James Frank Duryea, along with his brother Charles, built the first gasoline powered automobile in September of 1893.On November 28, 1895, the Chicago Times-Herald sponsored a race intending to advertise the new American car industry. The original track was supposed to loop from Chicago to Waukegan, Illinois and then back, a distance of 80 miles, but a blizzard changed all that. With over a half foot of snow, the distance was changed to 54 miles from Chicago to Evanston, Illinois and back. The contestants had a few rules to follow. The vehicles had to have at least three wheels, all wrapped in twine to give traction, and the cars had to be able to carry two people; One driver, and a guard to prevent cheating.
Over 80 motorist had signed up, but due to the snow, only 6 showed up at the starting line. Duryea, Oscar Mueller of Chicago who drove his father's imported Benz, two other Benz, and two electric cars which barely made it off the starting line.
The race was fraught with difficulties. Snowdrift, skids, and running into objects, both stationary, and moving, plagued the contestants. In the end, Frank Duryea finished in just under 10 1/2 hours going an average speed 5 1/4 miles per hour. He won $2,000 and advertising that made his company the premier automobile manufacturer of that time.
In the next year, Frank built and sold 13 handmade cars, making him the biggest automobile dealer in America.
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