On this day 108 years ago one of the strangest auto races in history took place. The venue was a dirt track in Sheepshead Bay, New York and the featured characters were America’s first auto racing superstar, Barney Oldfield, and Jack Johnson, the first black heavyweight boxing champion.

The New York newspapermen dubbed Joe Dawson "The Indiana Whirlwind" after the 21-year-old stormed to the front of the 1910 Vanderbilt Cup with something less than 50 miles remaining to the finish.

The least well known of the three Chevrolet brothers, Arthur competed in two Indianapolis 500s, in 1911 and 1916. He also raced at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway prior to the first Indianapolis 500 and came away with a fourth-place finish in the May 1910 Wheeler-Schebler Trophy, a 200-mile contest.

This photograph is of the most spectacular accident that occurred during the first Indianapolis 500. The incident was triggered when the Case racer of Joe Jagersberger broke a steering arm on the front stretch. The car was high on the running surface and skirting the concrete wall.