Saturday Jun 4, 2016 Saturday Sep 17, 2016
Thurs - Saturday 10:00 - 4:30
Matthews Heritage Museum 232 N. Trade Street Matthews, NC 28105
$4 for Adults $2 for 10 - 17 under 10 Free
Barbara Taylor
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The Matthews Heritage Museum, 232 N. Trade Street, is pleased to announce its new exhibit Pinewood Derby Racers will open on June 4 and be on display until September 17. It is being held in conjunction with the Mecklenburg County Council of Boy Scouts. The Pinewood Derby is a car race where 7” toy cars are designed and built by Cub Scouts and raced down a sloped track. The concept originated with Don Murphy, in 1953, when he wanted to create a Cub Scout activity he could do with his son. The idea of racing miniature cars came to him while thinking of his company sponsored Soap Box Derby races. "I wanted to devise a wholesome, constructive activity that would foster a closer father-son relationship and promote craftsmanship and good sportsmanship through competition,” Murphy said. Murphy designed a miniature car that could be carved out of soft pinewood and wrote the rules. “We put the wood, wheels, and nails into a brown paper sack with an assigned number. Some Cub Scout fathers built a 31-foot race ramp with two lanes and a battery-run finish line made from doorbells.” His company North American Aviation sponsored the miniature racing event for his Cub Scout Pack. In October 1954 issue, Boys' Life publicized the event and offered plans for the track and a car. It caught on like wildfire and was officially adopted by the Boy Scouts as an annual event for Cub Scouts. Many of the racers on display were winners in this year’s contest held by the Mecklenburg County Council on April 9 at the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Additionally there are racers from yesteryear. The Matthews Heritage Museum is open Thursday – Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Admission fee charged. First Saturday of every month is FREE.
Printed courtesy of matthewschamber.org/ – Contact the The Matthews Chamber of Commerce for more information.
, Matthews, NC 28106 – (704) 847-3649 – office@matthewschamber.org