In the early 20th Century, Central Florida played an important part in the early days of auto racing, setting a number of land speed records that would give birth to the “World Center of Racing.”
Bill France Sr., the American who created NASCAR, did so 75 years ago, on Feb. 21, 1948, in Daytona Beach, Florida and today it's the world's premiere stock car racing circuit.
The Streamline, which opened in 1941 in Daytona Beach, Florida, and has been widely recognized as the birthplace of NASCAR because it hosted meetings between drivers and officials during its formative years, has once again become a landmark overlooking the “World’s Most Famous Beach.”
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) The France family love affair with racing began when Bill France was a teen willing to skip school to catch events in suburban Washington, D.C. He taught himself mechanics, even tried racing a bit himself.