Find out what our Archive Volunteers are up to here at World of Speed. Glenn just finished the Usher Collection and about to take on the Plotts Collection which Susan has been deep sorting. Across the room from Plotts Collection is the P.R. Scott Collection being worked on by Megan. And then there's Au, who has scanned multiple scrapbooks and now working on the Duncan Collection while Steve finishes scanning John Feuz's photo loans after finishing the Denbo Collection. Tag team Tom and Frank are taking on the papers and blueprints from the Granatelli Collection.
World of Speed is supported by individuals and organizations who generously give images and artifacts to the World of Speed Archive Collection. Each bring stories, memories, and memorials to an often personal world of motorsports. Roughly 90 percent of the Museum’s Archive Collection has come from donors and lenders, people like you. As we continue to preserve the history and culture of motorsports to celebrate and educate for generations to come, we want to thank past and future donors and lenders for making this all possible.
See some highlights from the newly unveiled Pat Usher Collection. As a race car driver, local speed shop owner, and professional mechanics teacher, Usher was fully committed to motorsports racing which shows in the wide collection of articles and other published material he collected alongside his own teaching material and notes for the nine-month professional mechanics class he taught. From his auto shop in Beaverton, he worked on and built racing engines and chassis while also constantly reading and learning, keeping up on advancements in machines and technology in the field.
This digitized scrapbook is a window into the world of motorsports in the 1930s with all the fascination and thrill of true speed enthusiasts. Volunteer Au Nguyen highlights some of the pages he found while scanning these rich scrapbook in the WOS Archive. Check out the included flipbook as well for a page by page look at the racing articles and photos from the 1930s.
Every two years, the World of Speed Archive goes through the meticulous process of inventorying its complete collection, item by item, to make sure we are caring for all of the items in our catalog, many items donated by local motorsports enthusiasts like you. Along the way, we’ve gotten to dig into the boxes and remember some of the fun and unique items from the Collection. So obviously we wanted to share some with you.
The World of Speed Archive keeps over 200 racer files at the ready for visitors to take a peak. And we are always adding on so if you see a racer not covered but willing to donate something that would help us start a racer file on them, get in touch! Many of these include fan cards while some include articles or other material connected to the racer. Don't forget the check out our photo profiles too.
Can you tell the difference between an original, a fake, a copy or a restoration? What's the difference? Does it even make a difference if it has intellectual, monetary or evidential value? How do you even define these?
Volunteer Steve Dietz highlights the Steve Denbo PIR Drag Racing Collection after organizing the collection, making his way through each of the over a half dozen boxes, helping to identify items for the display, and creating the finding aid for everyone to be able to see and experience the full Denbo collection donated by Roseie Denbo.
Local racer Sue Mitchell is part of World of Speed's recent Women in (DRAG) Racing exhibit at World of Speed through November 2017. Sue has loaned her scrapbook to the WOS Archive to be fully digitized with the help of volunteer Au Nguyen. Get a taste of what's available in this newly digitized scrapbook, available in the Archive's online collection catalog, with a selection of images picked out by volunteer Au..
The World of Speed Archive is celebrating motorsports not just at the museum and online but out in the community as well, including the Tigard Public Library through April and May, 2017. If you couldn't make it to our "Racing Stories From the Archive" in early April with Collection Manager & Archivist Katrina O'Brien, take a look at the presentation images shared as well as details from the onsite display.
The World of Speed Archive just digitized two scrapbooks belonging to racer Art Pollard of Medford, OR. A true local hero, Art went from racing midgets and modified stock cars in the Pacific Northwest, to Indy cars in USAC, the pinnacle of American automobile racing. At his prime, Art was wheel-to-wheel with Mario Andretti, A.J. Foyt and the Unsers.
Loaned to the World of Speed Archive, local drag racer Sue Mitchell's scrapbook has been scanned and organized into a flipbook to make it easy for all to enjoy. Click on the embedded screen for a full screen view of the flipbook with easy zoom to read the articles, see photo details, and easily flip through the pages.
Loaned to the World of Speed Archive, Art Pollard's 1968 scrapbook has been scanned and organized into a flipbook to make it easy for all to enjoy. Click on the embedded screen for a full screen view of the flipbook with easy zoom to read the articles, see photo details, and easily flip through the pages.
Loaned to the World of Speed Archive, Art Pollard's 1967 scrapbook has been scanned and organized into a flipbook to make it easy for all to enjoy. Click on the embedded screen for a full screen view of the flipbook with easy zoom to read the articles, see photo details, and easily flip through the pages.
In preparation for the unveiling of the 2016-2017 Women in Racing exhibit, focused on drag racers, we asked local racers Kacee Pitts and Sue Mitchell to share their racing experiences including first memories, career highlights, how racing has changed, advice, and even their dream cars.
Every item in our museum has a story (or two) behind it. David Skeans, son of early Slo Poks car club member JL "Pappy" Skeans, shares some memories of his father and the Slo Poks in their earliest days. Thank you for sharing your stories with us, David!
World of Speed Archive has just released the first round of the Nakamura Digitized Film Collection online through our Archive Catalog. Digitized films of racers such as Atts Ono, Gary Cagle, Leonard Harris, Tommy Ivo, and Don Gartlis are caught on these home films at Lions Drag Strip. Covering 1958-1660, these films also include shots of crowds in bleachers, push cars, race preparation, close ups of engines, qualifying rounds, gag starts, a mini moto, and the iconic entrance sign.
Dana Bates, CEO of Bates Custom Leathers, designed the leather Peggy Llewellyn wore when she won the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle Championship (2007). Bates shares what it takes to design and construct a racesuit for maximum performance. Llewellyn’s leathers will be on display as part of the upcoming next generation of Women in Racing exhibit unveiling December 10th. You’ll also see Angelle Sampey’s leathers.
Once a month the World of Speed Archive hosts Open Archives Days but in October, at part of National Archive Month, we used the days for Archives from the Streets: an event that invited you to show off your own racing collectibles or keepsakes by displaying them here at the museum alongside items previously donated. In case you missed it, here is your opportunity to look at the interesting array of objects shared.
The World of Speed Archive has just processed a rich collection of papers and artifacts originally belonging to Ed Rose, a well-known starter in the Pacific Northwest during the heyday of racing. From the collection’s racing programs and newspaper clippings to its RRAO patch and 1960s Portland Speedway poster, there is something of interest for motorsports fans, researchers and enthusiasts alike.
We’re kicking off Racing Story Vault with a video of Ariel Biggs, who took the time to share here photo of Shawna Wilsky. Keep an eye out for monthly videos from our Racing Story Vault.
This summer, the WOS Archive, in its commitment to expanding the exploration and learning of motorsports through interaction with the museum’s archive collection, opened up the Archive to our summer campers.
The best way to understand what happened, how it happened, or even why it happened, is to ask the people who were there. Driver Seat Stories is all about asking those who were there and took part in making motorsports history to share their story; and so WOS Archive is reaching out to you, our community, to share your story whether how it felt to be behind the wheel, what is was like to build or ready a car or motorcycle (or even boat) to race, what part you played in the world of motorsports, or even the experience of watching a pivotal moment as a fan.
Do you have that one object that represents a memorable racing moment or experience as a participant or fan? It could be a program, picture, race gear, racecar part, ticket, poster, scrapbook, or any other number of objects that shine light into the world of motorsports.
We are opening up Open Archive Days just for YOU in October. Your participation lets you showcase the stories that mean so much to you while strengthening our collective knowledge as makers and stewards of racing history.
Do you have home movies from your racing days or from the stands, or trackside?
World of Speed Archive is offering you the chance to share a short film excerpt (5 minutes max) in any of the formats below and see yourself, your friends, and your idols on the ground floor of motorsport history. On Saturday October 22nd, World of Speed will be playing your films on the big screen 12:30-3:00pm. This is a unique way to share our local racing history and the making of our motorsport experience.
October is National Archive Month and WOS Archive will be focusing on you and sharing your stories as part of its series Racing History from the Driver’s Seat to kick off our upcoming preservation projects, unveil new resources from the Archive, and share some tips to preserve your own keepsakes. We are kicking off our digitizing and volunteer projects with two main events that look directly to you, as part of the racing community whether racer or fan, to participate hands-on to show and share your wears.
Interested in watching one of many racing-related DVDs in the Archive Collection? How about listening to one of the many LPs? In the Archive Room Media Corner, patrons can sit back and watch or listen to audiovisuals from our collection [...]
One the most fascinating experiences for an archivist is the discovery of a unique, obscure, or rare object. At World of Speed, with the intake of many especially varied donations, locally and nationally, the Archive has the opportunity to experience such instances any time we meet a potential donor or open a donor shipment [...]
In preparation for the Women in Racing exhibit, opening November 21, each of the racers highlighted were given the opportunity to answer questions about the arc of their careers. Earlier posts include the responses of Cindi Lux, Michelle Miller, Betty Burkland and now Lyn St James.
