Gilbert Andersen (sometimes misspelled Anderson) (27 November 1879 – 20 September 1930) was a Norwegian-American racecar driver active during the formative years of auto racing.

Biography

Gilbert "Gil" Andersen was born on 27 November 1879 in

Horten is a town and municipality in Vestfold in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway—located along the Oslofjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Horten. The municipality also includes the town of Åsgårdstrand an ...

, Vestfold county, Norway. He later became a citizen of the United States. He married Elsie Olsen on 3 March 1909 in Minneapolis, Hennepin, Minnesota He competed in the first six Indianapolis 500 races, appearing in annual races from 1911 through 1916. For the

1911 Indianapolis 500 The 1911 International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Tuesday, May 30, 1911. It was the inaugural running of the Indianapolis 500, which is one of the Triple Crown of Motorsport, most prestigious automobil ...

, all of the drivers except for Gil Andersen were American citizens. One of his major victories was in the 1913 Elgin Road Race, which he won at an average speed of 71 mph. On October 9, 1915, Andersen set a new auto speed record of 102.6 mph, winning the first Astor Cup race at Sheepshead Bay. N.Y. In 1928 Andersen established a new American stock car speed record, when he clocked 106.52 mph in a Stutz Blackhawk on the measured mile at

Daytona Beach, Florida Daytona Beach, or simply Daytona, is a coastal Resort town, resort-city in east-central Florida. Located on the eastern edge of Volusia County, Florida, Volusia County near the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic coastline, its population ...

. He worked as an engineer for the Stutz Motor Company. Stutz was in operation from 1911 and continued through 1935. Gil Andersen also was an engineer for the ReVere Motor Company. ReVere Motor Company was located in Logansport, Cass County, Indiana is a defunct luxury car manufacturing company which was in operation from 1918 until 1926. Gil Andersen died of pulmonary tuberculosis on September 20, 1930 in Logansport, Indiana at age 51.

Indy 500 results

''Gil Andersen, Extended driver stats'' (ChampCarStats.com)
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Images

File:Stutz wrecked - Indianapolis LCCN2014690425.jpg, Gil Andersen's crashed

Stutz The Stutz Motor Car Company, was an American producer of high-end sports and luxury cars based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Production began in 1911 and ended in 1935. Stutz was known as a producer of fast cars including America's first spo ...

at T3 in the

1912 Indianapolis 500 The 1912 Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, or International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race, the second such race in history, was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Thursday, May 30, 1912. Indiana-born driver Joe Dawson won the race, leadin ...

File:Gil Andersen in 1910s.jpg, Gil Andersen at the

1915 Indianapolis 500 The 5th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Monday, May 31, 1915. The traditional race date of May 30 fell on a Sunday, but race organizers declined to schedule the race for Sunday. The race was ...

File:1916Indianapolis500Field.jpg, Andersen's #28 car (second from left), preparing for the

1916 Indianapolis 500 The 6th International 300-Mile Sweepstakes Race was the sixth running of the Indianapolis 500. It was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Tuesday, May 30, 1916. The management scheduled the race for 120 laps, , the only Indianapolis 500 sch ...

References

External links

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The ReVere Motor Company

Stutz Club
1879 births 1935 deaths People from Horten Norwegian racing drivers Norwegian emigrants to the United States American racing drivers Indianapolis 500 drivers Indianapolis 500 polesitters Sportspeople from Vestfold og Telemark {{Norway-sport-bio-stub