Lee Ambrose Frayer (October 2, 1874 – July 25, 1938) 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 ...

who competed in 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 automob ...

. Driving a Firestone-Columbus

automobile A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, peopl ...

, Frayer won a 100-mile race in

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451–1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, the capital city of the U.S. state of Ohio * Columbus, Georgia, a city i ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, defeating, among others, the great

Barney Oldfield Berna Eli "Barney" Oldfield (January 29, 1878 – October 4, 1946) was a pioneer American racing driver. His name was "synonymous with speed in the first two decades of the 20th century". He was the winner of the inaugural List of American ope ...

. Frayer was born in

La Grange, Missouri La Grange is a city in Lewis County, Missouri, Lewis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 825 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Since the 1960 census, the population has been dwindling. It is part of the Quincy, Illinoi ...

. His car participated in the

1906 Vanderbilt Cup The 1906 Vanderbilt Cup was a motor race held on a 29.7 mile street circuit on Long Island, New York on October 6, 1906. Just like the 1906 Vanderbilt Elimination Race, this race was stopped as the crowd invaded the course. Classification ...

with Frank Lawell driving. Frayer participated in the

where he was injured. His relief driver was future World War I hero

Eddie Rickenbacker Edward Vernon Rickenbacker (born Edward Rickenbacher, October 8, 1890 – July 23, 1973) was an American fighter pilot in World War I and a Medal of Honor recipient.Ravenna, Ohio Ravenna is a city in Portage County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. The population was 11,323 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is located east of Akron, Ohio, Akron. Formed from portions of Ravenna Township, Portage Co ...

, on July 25, 1938, following an operation for appendicitis. He was buried in Maple Grove Cemetery in Ravenna, Ohio."Rites Held for Lee Frayer, Ravenna Motor Car Inventor," The Evening Record and Daily Courier-Tribune, Ravenna, OH July 28, 1938.

Motorsports career results

Indianapolis 500 results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frayer, Lee 1874 births 1938 deaths Indianapolis 500 drivers People from La Grange, Missouri Racing drivers from Missouri