Ira Thomas McIntire

1899 - 1929

 

Ira Thomas McIntire

Connie Bellamy collection

 

Ira McIntire was born August 21, 1899 at Yewed in Alfalfa County, Oklahoma.  He was the third of seven children born to Edward Guy “Eddie” McIntire (1868-1936) and his wife, Larina Isabelle (Bennett) McIntire (1872-1955).  By 1910, the family had moved to Cherokee, Oklahoma where Ira had found work as an auto mechanic and night watchman at the Northwest Ford Company in Cherokee by 1918.  By 1922, he was working as a mechanic for the Cherokee Motor Company at Cherokee.

 

Ira was married to Lila Deloris, whose maiden name is unknown.  She was born in 1903 in Oklahoma.

 

Ira and Lila McIntire moved to Arkansas City, Kansas in 1923 where Ira went to work as a mechanic at the Ruckel – Kilburn Chevrolet garage.

 

Following is the known record of Ira McIntire’s involvement in motor racing:

 

 

Motorcycles:

 

October 18, 1919 – 1 mile oiled dirt oval – Alva Motor Speedway located one mile northwest of Alva, Oklahoma

Motorcycle:  Harley-Davidson

Attendance:  2,000

Finish:  McIntire finished in 2nd place in the sidecar race for motorcycles to win $15 from the purse.  The winner of that race was Carl Schmidt of Alva who was riding an Excelsior.

          Feature race winner:  Roy Meacham of Pawhuska, Oklahoma

 

October 19, 1919 – 1 mile oiled dirt oval – Alva Motor Speedway located one mile northwest of Alva, Oklahoma

Motorcycle:  Harley-Davidson

Attendance:  2,000

Finish:  McIntire finished in 3rd place in the Australian Pursuit behind John Sims of Oklahoma City and William D. Fisher of Alva, Oklahoma who was riding a Harley-Davidson.  McIntire won $10 from the purse for his 3rd place finish.

          Feature race winner:  Roy Meacham of Pawhuska, Oklahoma

 

 

Ira Thomas McIntire

Connie Bellamy collection

 

tomobiles:

  

July 5, 1926 – ½ mile oiled dirt oval – Speedway Park one mile north of Cushing, Oklahoma – Sanctioned by the American Automobile Association (A.A.A.)

Car:  George Dwight Moody of Arkansas City, Kansas entered his own Chevrolet special #2 for driver Ira T. McIntire.

Attendance:  10,000 plus 500 who were turned away because there was no room for them.

Finish:  McIntire won the straw-hat derby finishing in front of Jess. E. Currie of Shawnee, Oklahoma who was driving his own Currie special #25.

Feature race winner:  Harley Wells of Miami, Oklahoma who was driving a Ford Frontenac #27 owned by Ralph R. Scott of Miami, Oklahoma and sponsored by the Scott Motor Company of Miami.

  

November 11, 1927 – ½ mile dirt oval – Okmulgee County Fairgrounds at Okmulgee, Oklahoma

Finish:   McIntire entered these races but the results have yet to be located.

  

May, 1928 – ½ mile dirt oval – Noble County Fairgrounds at Duncan, Oklahoma

Car:  Joe Hutchinson of Arkansas City, Kansas entered his own Ford Rajo special #44 to be driven by Ira McIntire in these races.

Finish:   Results of these races have yet to be located.

 

May 30, 1928 – ½ mile oiled dirt oval – Speedway Park one mile north of Cushing, Oklahoma – Sanctioned by the American Automobile Association (A.A.A.)

Car:  Joe Hutchinson entered his own Ford Rajo special #44 to be driven by _____ Pearson(s) and Ira McIntire on this day.

Attendance:  5,000

Finish:  Pearson(s) finished 3rd in the 5-lap championship dash behind Andrew “Cokey” Fuller of Arkansas City, Kansas and Earl L. Hovenden of Arkansas City, Kansas who was driving the double-overhead-cam Kerbs special Fronty Ford owned by Leonard Kerbs of Otis, Kansas.

             McIntire finished 3rd in a 6-lap heat race behind Earl L. Hovenden of Arkansas City, Kansas who was driving the double-overhead-cam Kerbs special Fronty Ford owned by Leonard Kerbs of Otis, Kansas; and Bill Tennill of Taylor, Texas.

Feature race winner:  Lee Bammel of Taylor, Texas who was driving his own Bammel special Fronty Ford #U2.

 

Ira Thomas McIntire

Connie Bellamy collection

 

July 4, 1928 – ½ mile oiled dirt oval – Speedway Park one mile north of Cushing, Oklahoma – Sanctioned by the American Automobile Association (A.A.A.)

Car:  Joe Hutchinson of Arkansas City, Kansas entered his own Ford Rajo special #44 to be driven by Ira McIntire in these races.

Attendance: “nearly 7,000”

Finish:  McIntire finished 2nd in the 2nd 15-lap heat race behind Andrew “Cokey” Fuller of Arkansas City, Kansas who was driving a Gallivan Ford #30-30 that he co-owned with Joe Hutchinson of Arkansas City, Kansas.

   McIntire finished 3rd in the 30-lap “Cushing Sweepstakes” race behind Andrew “Cokey” Fuller of Arkansas City, Kansas who was driving a Gallivan Ford #30-30 that he co-owned with Joe Hutchinson of Arkansas City, Kansas; and John Boling of Tulsa, Oklahoma who was driving the Calhoun special #26 owned by Dick Calhoun of Cleveland, Oklahoma.

  McIntire’s total winnings for the day was $200.

Feature race winner:  Andrew “Cokey” Fuller of Arkansas City, Kansas who was driving a Gallivan Ford #30-30 that he co-owned with Joe Hutchinson who was also from Arkansas City, Kansas.

 

July 23, 1928 – ½ mile dirt oval – Cowley County Fairgrounds on the west edge of  Winfield, Kansas

            Car:  Joe Hutchinson entered his own Rajo Ford special #44 for driver Ira T. McIntire.

Finish:  McIntire won one race and finished in 2nd place in another before he won the sweepstakes race.

Feature race winner:  Ira T. McIntire of Arkansas City, Kansas

 

September 3, 1928 – ½ mile oiled dirt oval – Speedway Park one mile north of Cushing, Oklahoma – Sanctioned by the American Automobile Association (A.A.A.)

Car:  Joe Hutchinson of Arkansas City, Kansas entered his Rajo Ford special #44 for Ira T. McIntire.

Attendance:  4,000

Finish:  McIntire finished 2nd in the 2nd 15-lap heat race behind George Lawhon of St. Joseph, Missouri who was driving his own Lawhon special #X-3.  That 2nd place finish won McIntire $50 from the purse.

             McIntire finished 3rd in the 15-mile Cushing Sweepstakes behind John Boling of Tulsa, Oklahoma who was driving the supercharged Ford Frontenac B & B special #700 that had been built by Leonard Kerbs of Otis, Kansas and entered by Pat Cunningham of St. Joseph, Missouri; and Earl L. Hovenden of Arkansas City, Kansas who was driving who was driving the double-overhead-cam Kerbs special Fronty Ford owned by Leonard Kerbs of Otis, Kansas.  3rd place in this race won McIntire $125 from the purse.

Feature race winner:  John Boling of Tulsa, Oklahoma who was driving the supercharged Ford Frontenac B & B special #700 that had been built by Leonard Kerbs of Otis, Kansas and entered by Pat Cunningham of St. Joseph, Missouri.

[Note:  Eddie Neva of San Antonio, Texas who was driving the #7-11 Ford Frontenac Well-Brook special owned by Maxie L. Brooks & M. T. Wells of San Antonio, Texas was fatally injured during the running of the 30-lap sweepstakes race on this afternoon.]

 

September 6, 1928 – ½ mile dirt oval – Ottawa County Fairgrounds at Miami, Oklahoma – Sanctioned by the American Automobile Association (A.A.A.)

Car:  Ira T. McIntire entered a Rajo Ford #44 owned by Joe Hutchinson of Arkansas City, Kansas.

Finish:  While McIntire entered these races, his name does not appear in the published results.

Feature race winner:  Vern McComb of St. Joseph, Missouri who was driving the Lawhon special #X-3 owned by George Lawhon who was also from St. Joseph.

 

Ira Thomas McIntire, second from left.  Can you identify where this photo was taken or who any of the other three men are?  If you can, please contact Bob Lawrence at: sprintguy @ cox.net

Connie Bellamy collection

 

October 9, 1928 – ½ mile dirt oval – Cowley County Fairgrounds on the west edge of  Winfield, Kansas

            Car:  Joe Hutchinson entered his own Rajo Ford special #44 for driver Ira T. McIntire.

Finish:  McIntire ran the 2nd fastest 1-lap tie trial of the afternoon of 33 seconds flat.

    McIntire finished in 2nd place in the 1st 5-car, 10-lap heat race behind James F. Pickens of Arkansas City, Kansas who was driving a the Kerbs Ford special #K-1 that was owned by Leonard E. Kerbs of Otis, Kansas.

    McIntire finished in 2nd place in the 4th 4-car, 6-lap heat race behind Russell D. Hill of Arkansas City, Kansas who was driving his own Ford Frontenac #15.

   The Rajo Ford special #44 that was driven by McIntire and owned by Hutchinson, was one of 4 cars involved in a spectacular crash “well into” the 8-car, 15-lap feature race with the car driven by McIntire turning over.  All four of the cars; the Superior special Hisso #43 driven by Wendell A. Sparling of Winfield, Kansas; the Kerbs Ford special #K-1 driven by James F. Pickens of Arkansas City, Kansas; a Hudson #15 driven by Dusty Deines of Topeka, Kansas and the Rajo Ford special #44 driven by McIntire, were too heavily damaged to continue in the race but, at least, there were no injuries.

Feature race winner:  Ralph Chrysler of Omaha, Nebraska who was driving a Rajo Ford #7-11.  [Note:  Ralph Chrysler was probably Ralph James Chrysler who was born in 1896 at Junction City, Kansas and died in 1963 in Los Angeles, California although some have speculated that “Ralph Chrysler” may have been a pseudonym used by “Speck” Heminger of Hastings, Nebraska when he competed in non-A.A.A. sanctioned races.]

 

October 13, 1928 – ½ mile dirt oval – Cowley County Fairgrounds on the west edge of  Winfield, Kansas

            Car:  Joe Hutchinson entered his own Rajo Ford special #44 for driver Ira Thomas McIntire of Arkansas City. Kansas.

Finish:  McIntire ran the 2nd fastest lap in time trials of 32.8 seconds in the 11-car field that took time trials.  His lap was only slower than the lap run by Wendell A. Sparling of Winfield, Kansas who was driving his own Superior special Hisso #43.

   McIntire was credited was a 2nd place finish in the 1st 3-car, 8-lap heat race for the fastest 3 cars in time trials.  McIntire dropped out on the 5th lap of the race leaving Wendell A. Sparling of Winfield, Kansas who was driving his own Superior special Hisso #43 as the only car running in the race.

   McIntire won the 5-car, 6-lap 4th heat race in 3:16.5.  Ralph Chrysler of Omaha, Nebraska finished in 2nd place in a Rajo Ford #7-11 after passing Russell D. Hill of Arkansas City on the final straightaway to take that position.  Hill was driving his own Ford Frontenac #15.

   McIntire started on the pole position in the 9-car field that started the race in a formation of 3-rows of 3-cars each.  He led every lap of the race winning in 8:10.0.  Russell D. Hill of Arkansas City, Kansas finished close behind McIntire in 2nd place driving his own Ford Frontenac #15.

Feature race winner:  Ira Thomas McIntire of Arkansas City, Kansas who was driving a Rajo Ford special #44 owned by Joe Hutchinson who was also from Arkansas City, Kansas.

 

 

Ira McIntire had been the shop foreman at Ruckel – Kilburn Chevrolet garage in Arkansas City, Kansas for six years when he passed away unexpectantly on February 20, 1929 in Mercy hospital in Arkansas City due to an infection in his mouth and throat.  He is buried in an unmarked grave in the Newkirk Cemetery located two miles north of Newkirk in Kay County, Oklahoma.

[Note:  Although the grave is unmarked, it is located in block H, lot 15, space 4 of that cemetery.  Family members have stated that the infection that took McIntire’s life was a complication from having one of his wisdom teeth extracted but that was not mentioned in McIntire’s published obituary.]

 

After Ira’s death, Lila Deloris McIntire worked as a waitress at the Harvey House restaurant at the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad depot on the east side of Arkansas City, Kansas until it closed in April of 1933.  She was married in 1935 in Oklahoma City to her second husband, a train engineer for the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad named Lewis Silas Avery (1877-1939).  Lila Deloris McIntire Avery passed away at Sonoma, California in 1979.

 

If you know anything more about Ira Thomas McIntire, Lila Deloris McIntire Avery, or especially about Ira’s involvement in motor racing, please contact Bob Lawrence at:  sprintguy @ cox.net

 

 

 

Autograph signed in 1918