United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen (1961)

International Motor Racing Research Center

United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen Collection

American Walt Hansgen is in his No. 60 Cooper Climax before the 1961 United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen - Image Source

Collection Facts

Extent:

Dates of Original:

1961

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Historical Context

In August 1961, racing promoter Cameron Argetsinger, owner of the 2.35-mile (3.78 km) Watkins Glen Grand Prix Race Course located in the central Finger Lakes region of upstate New York, offered his circuit to the Automobile Competition Committee for the United States (ACCUS) to host the Grand Prix. He succeeded and Watkins Glen would host the United States Grand Prix for the next 20 years. Over this time, the event became a tradition among the fans as loyal crowds gathered each autumn on the spread out hills of Upstate New York. It was one of the season's most popular events with the teams and drivers as well, receiving the Grand Prix Drivers' Association award for the best organized and best staged Grand Prix of the season in 1965, 1970, and 1971. Watkins Glen has the longest hosting record of any American Formula One race in history; the considerably challenging track became known as the "Mecca" of American road racing and it eventually wove itself into European Grand Prix racing culture.

Scope of Collection

The United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen Collection encompasses representative photographs and documentation, as well as the official program, of each of the 20 years of the United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen. This international competition was hosted by the Watkins Glen Grand Prix Corp. from 1961-1980.