Frederick William Frame (born Frederick William Colbath, June 3, 1894 – April 24, 1962) 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 ...

. One of the leading AAA Championship Car drivers of the late 1920s and early 1930s, Frame is best remembered for his victory at the

1932 Indianapolis 500 The 20th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Monday, May 30, 1932. Attrition was the story of the race, with 26 of the 40 cars dropping out due to crashes or mechanical failure. A record eight d ...

Biography

Early life

He was born Frederick William Colbath on June 3, 1894, in

Exeter, New Hampshire Exeter is a New England town, town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. Its population was 16,049 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, up from 14,306 at the 2010 census. Exeter was the county seat until 1997, when county ...

. His parents were Frank Colbath and Isabella Colbath (McClish). At a young age Colbath's father departed the family, and by 1910 Isabella had remarried to C. James Frame, and had relocated with her husband and son to

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commerci ...

. By this point Fred, as he was commonly known, had taken his stepfather's surname.

Early career

Frame began

dirt track racing Dirt track racing is a form of motorsport held on clay or dirt surfaced banked oval racetracks. Dirt track racing started in the United States before World War I and became widespread during the 1920s and 1930s using both automobiles and motorc ...

in about 1922. On July 5, 1923, Frame set his first world record in

San Luis Obispo, California ; ; ; Chumashan languages, Chumash: ''tiłhini'') is a city and county seat of San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Located on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California, San Luis Obispo is roughly halfway betwee ...

, driving a mile on a dirt track in 43.4 seconds."Two Dirt Track Records Go Down,"
''Ogden Standard-Examiner,'' July 5, 1932, pg. 2. Frame's record mile, established in a non-competitive event, surpassed the previous record for a dirt track mile of 45 seconds, held by Barney Oldfield of

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

since August 1917. By 1924, Frame was running his own car on the dirt track at

Culver City, California Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. It is mostly surrounded by Los Angeles, but also shares a border with the unincorporated area of Ladera Heights, Californi ...

, finishing second in a 100-mile race held there on July 5. Frame also continued to race on dirt tracks and began to venture outside of California in 1926, escaping serious injury in a crash in September of that year in a five-mile race in

Abilene, Texas Abilene ( ) is a city in Taylor County, Texas, Taylor and Jones County, Texas, Jones counties, Texas, United States. Its population was 125,182 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Abilene metropolitan ar ...

, held in conjunction with the West Texas Fair."Texas Auto Racer Killed in Smashup,"
''Oakland Tribune,'' September 23, 1926, pg. 23. A Texas racer was less fortunate, being killed in the same race when his car went through a railing and rolled.

Championship Car career

Frame began running at the

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly shortened to Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indian ...

, held in

Indianapolis, Indiana 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 1927. In that year he drove a machine owned by George Fernic,"To Drive Car that Won Race Last Year,"
''Indianapolis News,'' May 17, 1928, pg. 26. finishing in 11th place. He was brought back in 1928 by car owner Bill White to drive the same

Duesenberg Duesenberg Automobile & Motors Company, Inc. was an American race car, racing and luxury car, luxury automobile manufacturer founded in Indianapolis, Indiana, by brothers Fred Duesenberg, Fred and August Duesenberg in 1920. The company is kn ...

which had won the race the previous year. Frame would finish in 8th place in that race. In 1929, Frame arrived in Indianapolis just four days ahead of the race to drive a Cooper Special Front Drive."Thumbnail Biographies of Drivers Expected to Start in 500-Mile Race,"
''Indianapolis News,'' May 29, 1929, pp. 16-17. Despite limited practice time, Frame was able to qualify the car at over 111 miles per hour and sat in second place at the halfway point of the race, which was started by 33 cars on a quest for a share of $100,000 in prize money.Charles W. Dunkley
"Driver is Killed When Racing Car Crashes on Track,"
''Ogden Standard-Examiner,'' May 30, 1929, pg. 1. He would finish in 10th place, after leading the race for 11 laps — receiving bonus prize money of $100 per lap led provided by race sponsors. Frame would race at Indianapolis eight times in all, including a second-place finish in the 1931 race.

1932 Indianapolis 500 victory

Frame's greatest career victory was a win in the

on May 31, 1932. Driving a tan Miller-Hartz front wheel drive machine, the 10-year racing veteran Frame finished the course in 4 hours, 48 minutes, 3.79 seconds.United Press International
"Speed Classic Won by Frame"
''Albany Democrat-Herald,'' May 31, 1932, pg. 8. Frame dueled fellow competitor Howard Wilcox of Indianapolis over the last 75 miles in front of a packed crowd of 155,000 spectators to win the victory in a race in which only 10 of 40 starting cars managed to finish. Frame took the lead in lap 157 and never relinquished the advantage. Frame's winning average speed of 104.14 mph topped the previous course record of 101.13 mph, set by

Peter DePaolo Peter DePaolo (April 6, 1898 – November 26, 1980) was an American racing driver who is remembered as one of the greatest racers of his generation. He won the 1925 Indianapolis 500, and was a two-time National Champion, winning in 1925 and 1927. ...

in his 1925 Memorial Day victory at the

Indianapolis Motor Speedway The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a motor racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400, and and formerly the home of the U ...

. Frame became the third Indianapolis 500 winner to win with an average speed of more than 100 mph.

Personal life and death

Frame's son Bob was killed at a sprint car race in Minnesota in 1947. Frame died of an apparent heart attack in April 1962 in

Hayward, California Hayward is a city located in Alameda County, California, United States, in the East Bay subregion of the San Francisco Bay Area. With a population of 162,954 as of 2020, Hayward is the sixth largest city in the Bay Area, and the third largest in ...

, a city in Northern California's East Bay area that he moved to in 1950.

Awards and honors

Frame has been inducted into the following halls of fame: *

Auto Racing Hall of Fame The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum is an automotive museum on the grounds of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, United States, which houses the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame. It is intrinsically linked to the Ind ...

(1984) *

New England Auto Racers Hall of Fame The New England Auto Racers Hall of Fame is a hall of fame for racing-related people in the New England region of the United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primari ...

(2004)

Motorsports career results

Indianapolis 500 results

References

External links

Fred Frame - ChampCarStats.com

Fred Frame - Motorsport Memorial
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Frame, Fred 1894 births 1962 deaths Sportspeople from Exeter, New Hampshire Racing drivers from Los Angeles Indianapolis 500 drivers Indianapolis 500 winners Racing drivers from New Hampshire AAA Championship Car drivers 20th-century American sportsmen