Sam Dickson
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Samuel Parker Dickson (May 21, 1887 in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
– May 30, 1911) was a race car
riding mechanic A riding mechanic was a mechanic that rode along with a race car during races, and who was tasked with maintaining, monitoring, and repairing the car during the race. The various duties included manually pumping oil and fuel, checking tire wear, ...
, and the first person to be killed in 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 ...
. He was the son of writer Maxwell E. Dickson and Martha E. Dickson. Dickson was buried at
Rosehill Cemetery Rosehill Cemetery (founded 1859) is a historic rural cemetery on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois in the United States. At , it is the largest cemetery in the city of Chicago and its first private cemetery. The Entrance Gate and Administration ...
.


Indianapolis 500

In the inaugural race, Dickson was the riding mechanic for
Arthur Greiner Arthur William Greiner (April 28, 1884 – May 24, 1917) was an American racing driver, and historically the first to finish last in the Indianapolis 500. Greiner crashed on the backstretch after completing twelve laps during the inaugural race. ...
, who was making his only 500 appearance. On lap twelve, one of the front wheels came off of the American Simplex car Greiner was driving, causing Greiner to lose control and both men to be thrown from the car. Dickson flew into a fence twenty feet from the car. Reports state that Dickson was killed instantly, although the crowd evidently swarmed around the body, requiring the
state militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or serve ...
who were acting as security at the event to use their guns as clubs to clear a path for the attending doctors.


References

1887 births 1911 deaths Riding mechanics Disasters in Indiana Sports deaths in Indiana Indianapolis 500 Burials at Rosehill Cemetery {{US-autoracing-bio-stub