PRONYNE MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM - NEW ENGLANDS FIRST HISTORIC AUTO RACING MUSEUM!

PRONYNE MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM - NEW ENGLANDS FIRST HISTORIC AUTO RACING MUSEUM!
The ProNyne Motorsports Museum is New Englands first museum dedicated to auto racing history. Open since 2003 it has continued to operate only by donations from the Racing Community. Our 7,400 square foot, 120 year old building is filled with Racing Artifacts and Historic Race Cars. In 1983 the PRONYNE GROUP began to take responsibility in preserving the sports history. In 2003 we found a building in a neighborhood just outside of downtown Pawtucket that has done the job for going on 20 years. Being a place where past race car drivers accomplishments, and cars can be shared for our visiting eyes to see, aswell as a place to speak about these past drivers accomplishments and stories as they deserve to be. Racing history is like any other history. It is important to save and teach future stars of the sport about how far the sport has come, as it most definitely had the most humbling beginnings. The Museum is a non-profit organization and as mentioned, we keep the doors open, the lights on, and continue to keep racing history repeating itself with the support from visitors, loyal supporters, donations to our gift shop of which we sell on our Ebay Store. If you are interested in supporting the PRONYNE MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM there is a place to do so through PAYPAL DONATIONS down below. Every dollar helps! Enjoy!)
Rhode Island, smallest state, but it is a big deal when it comes to the history of our beloved sport, Auto Racing. In Cranston Rhode Island, Narragansett Trotting Park was the site of the first organized oval race in the United States on September 7th, 1896. Races were held on the flat dirt oval until 1913. In 1915 huge modifications occurred to this 1 mile oval. It was paved, and 20 degrees of banking were added in the corners. The Super Speedway configuration was extremely novel, as paving and banking were both entirely new concepts in oval track racing nationally as it was the first super speedway built to this caliber with it being 1 mile in length, paved, and 20 degrees of banking in the corners! In 1916 the AAA (AMERICAN AUTOMOBILE ASSOCIATION) Sanctioning body sanctioned all races and championships at the track. That is quite a big deal for literally nearly everyone we bring these facts up to would have never known if it weren't for hearing it from us. In 1924, there was a hotel attached to the straightaway grandstands, and it caught fire. The fire destroyed the place and the track never reopened. Instead the land was converted into one of the many neighborhoods in Cranston Rhode Island. With all that said, stories like this would be lost if it weren't for historians having this knowledge and opening museums like the PRONYNE MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM located in a 7,400 square foot 125 year old building nestled in a Pawtucket neighborhood. You would never know by driving by that it had 16 vintage race cars on display and 2 floors including the basement filled with artifacts from all different corners of motorsports history. Although we mainly cater to stock car racing (open wheel asphalt modified and midget racing from the early 1900s through the 1980s. We opened the PRONYNE MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM in 2003. For going on 20 years we have kept racing history repeating itself aswell as put smiles upon so many visitors faces once they see what's inside Rhode Islands Best Kept Secret!!
As mentioned in story above. This track was a 1 mile high banked dirt track that seated 60,000 people! Til 1915 they paved the track. Not only did Rhode Island host the first organized race. But this was the first track of this caliber in the country!!!
Photo of the end of the front stretch going into turn 1.
7 competitors lined up at start finish line in front of 60,000 people about to start the first race at the 1 mile dirt track.. the first organized auto race in the country. SEPTEMBER 15th 1896!
The outline is where the track would have ran. I actually use to have a house where the orange dots are at 199 JORDAN AVENUE CRANSTON RHODE ISLAND. My house would have literally sat just inside the exit of Turn 4!!
The orange oval is where the track sat. Providence Rhode Island is the state capital just 15 minutes from the track!! Cranston Rhode Island the city the track was in is a borough of the city. Imagine that. A 1 mile oval in a capital city!!
So the tracks Front stretch was JORDAN AVENUE. The Back Stretch was FIAT AVENUE. You can actually see at the top right where the end of back stretch is and turn 3 begins, FIAT AVENUE follows the same dive into a corner as the real track as you can see in outline d version of photo. As I mentioned (I as in Rion Mariscal museum volunteer) I lived in the home at 199 JORDAN AVENUE (pink dot). That was just inside the exit of turn 4. So the front stretch went down Jordan back stretch up Fiat.
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IN THE MENU BAR AT THE TOP LEFT CORNER. CLICK ON THAT. SELECT EBAY STORE TO BE BROUGHT DIRECTLY TO THE MUSEUMS EBAY STORE. ALL PROCEEDS FROM SALES WILL DIRECTLY BENEFIT THE PRONYNE MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM
IN THE MENU BAR AT THE TOP LEFT CORNER, IF YOU CLICK ON THAT THEN SELECT "WHATS NEW IN MOTORSPORTS", YOU WILL FIND VIDEOS OF SNEAK PEAKS INTO THE MUSEUM, ASWELL AS A TWO PART SERIES THAT NBC SPORTS DID ON THE MUSEUM THAT WAS FEATURED ON THERE SHOW SPEED SPORT. KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR WHATS NEW UPDATES ASWELL
BY SELECTING THE MENU BAR IN THE TOP LEFT CORNER, THEN CLICKING ON DONATIONS, IT WILL BRING YOU TO THE MUSEUMS DONATION SUPPORT LINK. WE HAVE DIFFERENT DONATIONS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR WITH DIFFERENT GOALS. WHEN A GOAL AMOUNT IS MET BY A SPECIFIC DATE, WE SELECT DONORS RANDOMLY TO WIN PRIZES SUCH AS GIFT CERTIFICATES AND MORE!
EACH WEEK WE WILL BE UPLOADING BETWEEN 40 - 70 PICTURES FROM THE GOOD OLE DAYS, WHEN RACING WAS RACING. FOR THE FIRST SEVERAL UPLOADS WE WILL BE SHOEING THE MODIFIED TOUR OF THE 1980S AND 1990S.
Under Construction but will soon have shirts and different items you can purchase that will help support the museum.
News mostly regarding the museum directly. There will be some news in regards to some of our local grass roots racing and racers. Just like the photo archive this blog will be updated as interesting news becomes available.
8 Cleveland Street, Pawtucket, Rhode Island 02860, United States
Curators Phone Number: RIC MARISCAL (401)447-4202 Museum Curator Email Address: VINTAGEPRO@AOL.COM Feel free to reach out to us on our Facebook event at PRONYNE MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM.
We will schedule a visit any time between 11am and 6pm 7 days per week. Please contact us atleast 24 hours in advanced to schedule a visit to come to the museum. The earlier we can schedule you in prior to the day and time you would like to come, the better.
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