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Louis Chevrolet Memorial, Indianapolis Speedway

Louis Chevrolet in a Buick racer in Crown Point, Indiana, during the Cobe Cup Race in 1909

Louis-Joseph Chevrolet (December 25, 1878, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Neuchatel, Switzerland - June 6, 1941, Detroit, Michigan) was a racing driver and the founder of the Chevrolet Motor Car Company, which was acquired by General Motors and is their best-known brand worldwide, and in many cases synonymous with General Motors itself.

In 1886 his family left Switzerland to live in Beaune in the Côte-d'Or département of France. It was there as a young man that Louis developed his mechanical skills and interest in auto racing. He worked for the Roblin mechanics shop from 1895 to 1899 at which time he went to Paris where he worked for a short time before migrating to Montreal, Quebec in Canada in 1900. The following year, he moved to New York City where he was hired by FIAT.

Working for the Buick motor company he learned car design and started designing his own engine for a new car in 1909. Shortly thereafter, he would partner with William C. Durant to start the Chevrolet Motor Car Company in Detroit, Michigan. Chevrolet had differences with Durant over the design and in 1915 sold Durant his share in the company. The next year, the company was folded into Durant's General Motors.

At that time, Chevrolet shifted into the racing car industry, partnering with Howard E. Blood of Allegan, Michigan to create the Cornelian, a state of the art racing car which he used to place 20th in the 1915 Indy 500. In 1916, he and his brother Gaston started Frontenac Motor Corporation, designing and producing another line of racing cars.

A mechanical genius with little in the way of a formal education, Louis was the older brother of Gaston Chevrolet (1892-1920), who won the 1920 Indianapolis 500 in a car he had built. Louis also competed in the race four times, with a best finish of 7th in 1919, and his brother Arthur also competed twice.

Louis Chevrolet is buried in the Holy Cross and Saint Joseph Cemetery in Indianapolis, Indiana. His bust stands at the entrance to the museum at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

• In 1992, he was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame.
• He was named to the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1990.
• He was inducted in the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1995.

• Chevrolet History and Photos