Tom Cooper (driver)
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Tom Cooper (December 1, 1874 – November 16, 1906) was an
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...
cyclist Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...
and early
automobile racing 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 organi ...
driver. He is best known for his rivalry with cyclist
Major Taylor Marshall Walter "Major" Taylor (November 26, 1878 – June 21, 1932) was an African-American professional cyclist. Even by modern cycling standards, Taylor could be considered the greatest American sprinter of all time. He was born and raised ...
, as well as his later work with
Henry Ford Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American industrialist, business magnate, founder of the Ford Motor Company, and chief developer of the assembly line technique of mass production. By creating the first automobile that mi ...
and
Barney Oldfield Berna Eli "Barney" Oldfield (January 29, 1878 – October 4, 1946) was an American pioneer automobile racer; his "name was synonymous with speed in the first two decades of the 20th century". After success in bicycle racing, he began auto r ...
.


Early years

Tom Cooper began his cycling career in
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,
Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
. His talent and athletic ability soon made him a national celebrity in the US as he climbed to the top of the sport. As a champion bicycle racer, Cooper was a contemporary of
Barney Oldfield Berna Eli "Barney" Oldfield (January 29, 1878 – October 4, 1946) was an American pioneer automobile racer; his "name was synonymous with speed in the first two decades of the 20th century". After success in bicycle racing, he began auto r ...
,
Carl G. Fisher Carl Graham Fisher (January 12, 1874 – July 15, 1939) was an American entrepreneur. He was an important figure in the automotive industry, in highway construction, and in real estate development. In his early life in Indiana, despite fa ...
, Johnny Johnson, Arthur Gardiner, "Plugger Bill" Martin and Eddie Bald. At the 1898
League of American Wheelmen The League of American Bicyclists (LAB), officially the League of American Wheelmen, is a membership organization that promotes cycling for fun, fitness and transportation through advocacy and education. A Section 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization ...
championship race on the Newby Oval in
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, Cooper won the half-mile professional event. He went on to win the Bicycle Championship of America for the 1899 season. Cooper was instrumental in the formation of the American Racing Cyclists Union in 1898, a rival to the
League of American Wheelmen The League of American Bicyclists (LAB), officially the League of American Wheelmen, is a membership organization that promotes cycling for fun, fitness and transportation through advocacy and education. A Section 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization ...
. Cooper, like many bicycle racers at the time such as Fisher and Oldfield, was drawn to the nascent automobile industry in the early 1900s. The gears and chains of bicycles were the heart of the
powertrains A drivetrain (also frequently spelled as drive train or sometimes drive-train) is the group of components that deliver mechanical power from the prime mover to the driven components. In automotive engineering, the drivetrain is the components o ...
of the earliest automobiles.


The Cooper-Ford racer

In 1902, Cooper formed a partnership with fellow Detroiter
Henry Ford Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American industrialist, business magnate, founder of the Ford Motor Company, and chief developer of the assembly line technique of mass production. By creating the first automobile that mi ...
to build two high-speed race cars. This was about a year before Ford founded the
Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...
. The result of the project were two wood-frame racers with four cylinder, 1,080 cubic inch engines. The cars were initially temperamental and Ford sold his share of their partnership to Cooper in October 1902. This was just days before Cooper entered them in the Manufacturer's Challenge Cup at Grosse Pointe, Michigan on October 25, 1902. Cooper, assisted by mechanic Ed "Spider" Huff, agreed that Barney Oldfield should drive the machine they had focused on, "999" (named after a New York Central railroad train). The result of the event became the topic of national news when Oldfield defeated millionaire
Alexander Winton Alexander Winton (June 20, 1860 – June 21, 1932) was a Scottish-American bicycle, automobile, and diesel engine designer and inventor, as well as a businessman and racecar driver. Winton founded the Winton Motor Carriage Company in 1897 in Clev ...
, founder of the
Winton Motor Carriage Company The Winton Motor Carriage Company was a pioneer United States automobile manufacturer based in Cleveland, Ohio. Winton was one of the first American companies to sell a motor car. In 1912 Winton became one of the first American manufacturers of ...
, and widely recognized as America's top race driver. Oldfield continued to race for Cooper for another 10 months, doing much to establish Ford's reputation as an automotive engineer by winning several races. He also drove the Cooper-Ford "999" racer to the first "mile a minute" (60 mph) on a circular track at the
Indiana State Fairgrounds The Indiana State Fair is an annual state fair that spans 18 days in July and August in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. The Indiana State Fair debuted in 1852 at Military Park in Indianapolis and is the sixth oldest state fair in the U.S. It is the ...
dirt oval in June 1903.


Cooper-Oldfield barnstorming

Cooper and Oldfield remained partners in many ways even after Oldfield left their race team to drive for Alexander Winton in August 1903. The two toured the Midwestern United States negotiating $1,000-plus purses from organizations such as the State Fair Association of Milwaukee in 1903. One of the highlights of these events for Cooper was his victory over Oldfield and one of his Winton racers at
Grosse Pointe, Michigan Grosse Pointe is a city in Wayne County, Michigan, Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the city had a population of 5,421. Grosse Pointe is an eastern suburb of Metro Detroit along Lake ...
on September 9, 1903. Cooper was a recognized top driver in his own right, and barnstormed on occasion without Oldfield. Some of these events were odd exhibitions, such as his special mile record on September 5, 1906, when he drove a Matheson automobile with seven passengers to a record for the distance under those conditions at 50.2 seconds or 71.71 mph. This record was achieved on the beach at Atlantic City.


Vanderbilt Cup career

Although Cooper never raced in the
Vanderbilt Cup The Vanderbilt Cup was the first major trophy in American auto racing. History An international event, it was founded by William Kissam Vanderbilt II in 1904 and first held on October 8 on a course set out in Nassau County, New York, Nassa ...
, he did work with the American Matheson team in 1905 and 1906, and was entered in the 1905 American Elimination Trials on September 22, 1905. In the final day of practice for the 1905 American Elimination Trial, Cooper's Matheson had a faulty lubricating system, destroying the main engine bearing. In 1906, Cooper returned with Matheson not as a driver, but as team manager. The driver was the Italian
Ralph Mongini Ralph (pronounced ; or ,) is a male given name of English, Scottish and Irish origin, derived from the Old English ''Rædwulf'' and Radulf, cognate with the Old Norse ''Raðulfr'' (''rað'' "counsel" and ''ulfr'' "wolf"). The most common forms ...
. Mongini led a few miles of the first lap around the 29.71 mile course before losing control of his machine and crashing into a telegraph pole. The 1906 race was held September 23.


Vanderbilt Cup Broadway play

Cooper and Oldfield took several creative approaches to making money. Bicycle racers, mechanics, race car drivers, they even owned a gold mine together in Colorado at the turn of the 20th century. In January 1906, they attempted to parlay their renown as race drivers into an easier way to generate large sums of money. Together they created a special effect using two race cars (the
Peerless Peerless may refer to: Companies and organizations * Peerless Motor Company, an American automobile manufacturer. * Peerless Brewing Company, in Birkenhead, UK * Peerless Group, an insurance and financial services company in India * Peerless R ...
Green Dragon and the
Peerless Peerless may refer to: Companies and organizations * Peerless Motor Company, an American automobile manufacturer. * Peerless Brewing Company, in Birkenhead, UK * Peerless Group, an insurance and financial services company in India * Peerless R ...
Blue Streak), bags of dirt, two large treadmills and stage props to create the illusion of a motor race for a Charles Dillingham play, ''The Vanderbilt Cup'', starring
Elsie Janis Elsie Janis (born Elsie Bierbower, March 16, 1889 – February 26, 1956) was an American actress of stage and screen, singer, songwriter, screenwriter and radio announcer. Entertaining the troops during World War I immortalized her as "Forces ...
. The two appeared on stage nightly. The show was a success but Oldfield and Cooper tired of the acting lifestyle in less than three months and returned to auto racing full-time.


Death

Cooper was killed in an auto accident while racing in
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in New York City on November 16, 1906. He is buried in Woodmere Cemetery in Detroit.


Notes


Sources

*''The New York Times'', "Cyclists at Indianapolis", August 12, 1998. *''Indianapolis Star'' "Days Are Here", (by Barney Oldfield), May 30, 1912, page 11. *William F. Nolan, ''Barney Oldfield, The Life and Times of America's Legendary Speed King'', Brown Fox Books, 2002, page 30.
firstsuperspeedway.com
*''Horseless Age'', "The Detroit Races", September 16, 1903. *''Automobile Topics'', "Eliminators Ready for The Trials", September 22, 1906, page 1758. *''Automobile Topics'', "Wednesday, September 5", September 8, 1906, page 1613. *''The Motor World'', "In Readiness to Select the American Cup Team", September 20, 1906, page 731. *''Motor Age'', "Tracy First in Eliminating Trial", September 27, 1906, page 8. *''Chicago Tribune'', "Auto Collision is Fatal", November 24, 1906, page 3. *Amateur Athletic Foundation
Barney Oldfield Scrapbook
*''The Motor World'', "The Tale of the First Eliminating Trial", September 28, 1905. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Tom American male cyclists American racing drivers 1906 deaths 1874 births Road incident deaths in New York City