John Maxwell McDowell (January 29, 1915 – June 8, 1952) was an American

racecar driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organis ...

from Delavan, Illinois. He died in a qualifying crash at the Milwaukee Mile the week after the 1952 Indy 500.

Racing career

McDowell was raised in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. I ...

. He began racing cars at

Legion Ascot Speedway Legion Ascot Speedway was an American race track in Los Angeles, California that operated from 1924 to 1936. It hosted AAA Champ Car races. History Early success under Bentel ends with a scandal After the construction of a -mile dirt oval near ...

in 1934. He later moved on to the independent circuits in the Northwestern United States. He then moved to the CSRA circuit based in Ohio. He had his first experience at the Indianapolis 500 as a riding mechanic for

Frank Wearne Frank Wearne (May 27, 1913, Belle Plaine, Iowa – February 21, 1985 Los Angeles, California) was an American racecar driver. He grew up in Altadena, California and began his racing career in roadsters on the Jeffries Ranch track in Burbank. He m ...

in 1937. McDowell raced against top

midget car Midget cars, also speedcars in Australia, is a class of racing cars. The cars are very small with a very high power-to-weight ratio and typically use four cylinder engines. They originated in the United States in the 1930s and are raced on most ...

drivers at Gilmore Stadium in 1939. He held the points lead until September, and he finished second in the points behind

Bob Swanson Robert John Swanson (August 20, 1912 – June 13, 1940) was an American racecar driver. Swanson won the first Turkey Night Grand Prix midget car racing, midget-car race in 1934. At the 1939 Indianapolis 500, he was involved in the accident ...

. He won thirteen features at the track, and is ninth on the track's all-time win list. McDowell finished second in the AAA West Coast midget car points standings in 1947. He also won the 1947 Turkey Night Grand Prix. McDowell moved to the Midwestern United States in 1948. He won at least eight AAA midget car features, and won the 1948 Soldier Field title. McDowell competed in the 1949 to 1952 Indianapolis 500 races. He was killed at the Champ Car race at the Milwaukee Mile on June 8, 1952, at age 37.

Career awards

*He was inducted in the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 2003.

Indianapolis 500 results

World Championship career summary

The Indianapolis 500 was part of the FIA World Championship from 1950 through 1960. Drivers competing at Indy during those years were credited with World Championship points and participation. Johnny McDowell participated in 3 World Championship races but scored no World Championship points.

References

External links

* 1915 births 1952 deaths People from Delavan, Illinois Sportspeople from Pasadena, California Racing drivers from Illinois Racing drivers from California Indianapolis 500 drivers AAA Championship Car drivers Racing drivers who died while racing Sports deaths in Wisconsin {{US-autoracing-bio-stub