Gaston Chevrolet (4 October 1892 – 25 November 1920) was a French racecar driver and automobile manufacturer.

Early life

Born near

Beaune Beaune () is the wine capital of Burgundy in the Côte d'Or department in eastern France. It is located between Lyon and Dijon. Beaune is one of the key wine centers in France, and the center of Burgundy wine production and business. The annua ...

, in the

Côte-d'Or Côte-d'Or (; literally, "Golden Slope") is a département in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of Northeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 534,124.Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland *Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri *Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia *Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports * Swiss Internation ...

parents had emigrated to a few years earlier, he was the younger brother of Louis (1878–1941, founder of the

Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ), colloquially referred to as Chevy and formally the Chevrolet Motor Division of General Motors Company, is an American automobile division of the American manufacturer General Motors (GM). Louis Chevrolet (1878–1941) and ou ...

car company) and Arthur Chevrolet (1884–1946). After brother Louis emigrated to the United States and earned enough money, he sent for Gaston and Arthur to join him. Once there, Gaston worked as an automotive mechanic and joined his brothers in auto racing. In 1916, the year after older brother Louis left the Chevrolet car company, Gaston Chevrolet became a partner with Louis and Arthur in the new

Frontenac Motor Corporation Frontenac Motor Corporation was a joint venture of Louis Chevrolet, Indy 500 winner Joseph Boyer Jr., Indianapolis car dealer William Small, and Zenith Carburetor president Victor Heftler. Per articles of Incorporation on file in the Michigan Sta ...

Indianapolis 500

Driving a Frontenac race car, Chevrolet competed in the 1919

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indi ...

, finishing in tenth place while brother Louis finished seventh. Chevrolet broke the dominance of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an built cars in the

1920 Indianapolis 500 The 8th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Monday, May 31, 1920. Ralph DePalma held a two lap lead when the car stalled on lap 187. His riding mechanic Pete DePaolo ran to the pits to get a ca ...

, winning the race in a redesigned Monroe-Frontenac. In the process, he became the first driver in the history of the race to go the distance without making a tire change. Gaston was unable to defend his win because of his death later that year. Chevrolet was the last Frenchman to win the Indianapolis 500 until Simon Pagenaud won the

2019 Indianapolis 500 The 2019 Indianapolis 500 (branded as the 103rd Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge for sponsorship reasons) was an IndyCar Series event held on Sunday, May 26, 2019, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. Th ...

, 99 years after the 1920 race.

1920 National Championship and death

Following his May 31, 1920 victory at Indianapolis, Chevrolet raced in several more events. He won a match race against top racers

Tommy Milton Thomas Milton (November 14, 1893 – July 10, 1962) was an American race car driver best known as the first two-time winner of the Indianapolis 500. He was notable for having only one functional eye, a disability that would have disqualified him ...

(driving a Chevrolet race car) and

Ralph Mulford Ralph Kirkman Mulford (December 28, 1884 – October 23, 1973) was an American racecar driver who participated in the 1911 Indianapolis 500. In 1911 he won the Vanderbilt Cup in Savannah, Georgia. Biography He was born on December 28, 1884, ...

Chevrolet grave - June 2022 - Sarah Stierch

With the coming of winter in late 1920, racing moved to the West Coast. While competing in the last race of the season on the board track at the Beverly Hills Speedway, Chevrolet was killed when his Frontenac crashed on lap 146 of the 200 lap race. He connected with Eddie O'Donnell’s car and both cars tumbled down the embankment. Chevrolet died instantly along with O’Donnell’s riding mechanic while O’Donnell died the next day from a skull fracture. Despite the crash, Chevrolet had accumulated enough points during the race and through the season to win the 1920 title of "Speed King of the Year" (the AAA National Champion). Chevrolet is considered by accredited historians and contemporary accounts as the 1920 National Champion despite later revisionist publications retrospectively listing

as such.Motor Age. 27 October 1927, Pgs. 17 & 20 Chevrolet is interred next to his brother Louis in the Holy Cross and Saint Joseph Cemetery in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mar ...

Indy 500 results

Awards

*He was inducted in the

Motorsports Hall of Fame of America The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (MSHFA) is hall of fame that honors motorsports competitors and contributors from the United States from all disciplines, with categories for Open Wheel, Stock Cars, Powerboats, Drag Racing, Motorcycle ...

in 2002.Gaston Chevrolet
at the

References

External links

*
Gaston Chevrolet
at ChevroletBrothers.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Chevrolet, Gaston 1892 births 1920 deaths French people of Swiss descent Champ Car champions Indianapolis 500 drivers Indianapolis 500 winners International Motorsports Hall of Fame inductees People from Beaune Racing drivers who died while racing Sports deaths in California AAA Championship Car drivers Burials at Holy Cross and Saint Joseph Cemetery Automotive businesspeople French emigrants to the United States French racing drivers American people of Swiss descent Sportspeople from Côte-d'Or