Charles J. Moran Jr. (May 27, 1906 – June 7, 1978) was an American

racing driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...

and official.

Early life

Moran was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, son of Charles Moran, a naval historian, and Martha Adams. He attended St. George's School in

Middletown, Rhode Island Middletown is a town in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 17,075 at the 2020 census. It lies to the south of Portsmouth and to the north of Newport on Aquidneck Island, hence the name "Middletown." History Issue ...

, and

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

before graduating from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

Career

In 1928, driving a "Rally" (Automobiles Rally - Colombes), he finished 4th in the 24-hour race at St. Germain-en-Laye (France) the "VII° Bol d'Or" driving the full 24 hours without relief. For the next year and a half he campaigned this car in Spa, San Sebastian, Madrid, Geisberg.LISCA News October 1960 He was the first American to race at

Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...

in 1929, in a DuPont, with co-driver Alfredo Jose Miranda; he raced the same car at

Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

in 1930 with George Reed in the mechanics seat. In 1932, he gave up racing, joined DuPont Motors as an engineer, and then moved to a related enterprise, the brokerage firm of Francis I. DuPont, where he became managing partner in the 1950s. In 1949 he resumed racing, this time in sports cars (

Bugatti Automobiles Ettore Bugatti was a German then French automotive industry, manufacturer of high performance vehicle, high-performance automobiles. The company was founded in 1909 in the then-German Empire, German city of Molsheim, Alsace, by the ...

, MGs, Cunninghams, AC Bristol, Lotus,

Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...

) in

SCCA The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) is a non-profit American automobile club and sanctioning body supporting Autocross, Rallycross, High Performance Driver Education, HPDE, Time trial, Time Trial, Road racing, Road Racing, Regularity rally, R ...

events and again at Le Mans, with his

Ferrari 212 Ferrari used its 2.6 L (2562.51 cc) ''Colombo'' V12 engine in a number of models, all called 212 for the displacement of a single cylinder. The following models used the 212 name: * 1951 Ferrari 212 F1 — Formula 1 and Formula 2 racer * 1951 ...

(1951, finishing 16th, 1952 DNF) and with his Cunningham C4Rx coupe, co-driver John Gordon Bennett (1953, finishing 10th). He became Secretary of the Sports Car Club of America in 1952-3 and President in 1954-5. He was a member of the

Commission Sportive Internationale In-Commission or commissioning may refer to: Business and contracting * Commission (remuneration), a form of payment to an agent for services rendered ** Commission (art), the purchase or the creation of a piece of art most often on behalf of anot ...

and the American representative at the

Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA; ) is an international organisation with two primary functions surrounding use of the automobile. Its mobility division advocacy, advocates the interests of motoring organisations, the automot ...

. In 1956 the

American Automobile Association American Automobile Association (AAA) is a federation of motor clubs throughout North America. AAA is a privately held not-for-profit national member association and service organization with over 60 million members in the United States and Cana ...

ended its relationship as the sole motorsport organization affiliated with the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile which governed international racing. As a result, the U.S. no longer had an association with FIA and hence no international racing licenses could be issued, international landspeed records could be certified, or US events be FIA sanctioned' which would put international drivers competing in them at risk of losing their FIA licenses. Only Indianapolis and Sebring retained their FIA licenses. Moran took it upon himself to organize the

Automobile Competition Committee for the United States The Automobile Competition Committee for the United States (ACCUS) is an umbrella organization of auto racing Sport governing body, sanctioning bodies in the United States. It is the official liaison of U.S. sanctioning bodies to the Fédération ...

(ACCUS) to overcome rivalries between SCCA, USAC and

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...

clubs and have one umbrella entity to work with the FIA. He became the first president of ACCUS and managed it skillfully in its early years and led the negotiating with the FIA for US affiliation. FIA recognized ACCUS in 1957. He chaired the Board of Trustees at St. George's School 1958-62.

Personal life

In February 1936, he married Josephine D. Taylor, daughter of David H. Taylor of 875

Park Avenue Park Avenue is a boulevard in New York City that carries north and southbound traffic in the borough (New York City), boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx. For most of the road's length in Manhattan, it runs parallel to Madison Avenue to the wes ...

. Together, they had two children: * Charles Moran III (b. 1936), who served in the O.S.S.in England and France in 1944-5.Family Correspondence * David Taylor Moran (b. 1940). He later married Hesteranne Primrose Butz; they had 3 children: * Martha Adams Moran (b. 1962) * Amedee Depau Moran (b. 1963) * Helen Moran. Charles Moran Jr. Moran died on June 7, 1978, in

Teasdale, Utah Teasdale is a census-designated place in western Wayne County, Utah, United States, between the Dixie and Fishlake National Forests and near Capitol Reef National Park. The population was 191 at the 2010 census. Teasdale lies along local road ...

Motorsports career results

Indianapolis 500 results

24 Hours of Le Mans results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moran, Charles 1906 births 1978 deaths Princeton University alumni Indianapolis 500 drivers Racing drivers from New York City Columbia University alumni St. George's School (Rhode Island) alumni 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers