Hoosiers who competed in early Indy 500s: encore

<p>Even though there won't be an<strong> Indianapolis 500</strong> this Memorial Day weekend due to the Coronavirus pandemic, we've got the green flag to explore the colorful heritage of the "greatest spectacle in racing." During this encore show originally broadcast in 2016, Hoosier History Live delves into the lives and careers of early race drivers who had deep connections to Indiana.</p> <p>Here are some of the story nuggets involving "homegrown" competitors whose exploits captivated Indy 500 fans during the years immediately following the inaugural race in 1911:</p> <ul type="disc"> <li>After 22-year-old native Hoosier <a href= "http://www.firstsuperspeedway.com/articles/joe-dawson-collection"><strong>Joe Dawson</strong></a> won the <strong>Indianapolis 500</strong> in 1912, he hurried from the <a href= "https://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/"><strong>Indianapolis Motor Speedway</strong></a> to his family's home at 2828 N. Illinois St. to hug his mom.</li> <li><a href= "http://www.vanderbiltcupraces.com/drivers/driver/charles_merz"><strong> Charlie Merz</strong></a>, the son of an Indianapolis police officer, survived horrific accidents early in his racing career to complete the final lap of the Indy 500 in 1913 - with his car on fire. He died in 1952 and is buried in <a href= "http://crownhillhf.org/docs/CrownHillNotables_lastname.pdf"><strong>Crown Hill Cemetery</strong></a>.</li> <li>And in 1919, the Indy 500 was won by popular <a href= "http://www.firstsuperspeedway.com/photo-gallery/howdy-wilcox-1919-indianapolis-500"><strong>Howdy Wilcox</strong></a>, a pioneer race driver born in <strong>Crawfordsville</strong>. His son <a href= "http://indianapublicmedia.org/momentofindianahistory/the-little-500/"><strong>Howard S. Wilcox</strong></a>, also known as Howdy, founded the <a href= "http://www.iusf.indiana.edu/little500/fans/"><strong>Little 500</strong></a> bicycle race at Indiana University in the early 1950s.</li> </ul> <p>Anecdotes about those race drivers and others with Hoosier connections are s