He possessed an uncommon talent, as confirmed by many eminent racers of his time. He captured dozens of victories, yet Charlie Wiggins remains virtually unknown.
You see, Wiggins never got the opportunity to display his considerable ability against the best because, like Satchel Paige in baseball, Wiggins came along in an era when segregation restricted him to competing against only those of “his kind.”
Tagged the “Negro Speed King” by the 1920s media, Charles Edwin Wiggins was born in Evansville, Indiana, in 1897. At 11, he encountered a life-altering event. His mother passed away.
In those days, kids were expected to take care of themselves at a young age, and when his coal miner father couldn’t support his family as a widower, Wiggins struck out on his own. He opened a shoeshine stand outside the “Benninghoff and Nolannd Garage” and soon became enamored with the cars, the mechanics and the noisy work in the shop.
Whenever he got a break from shining shoes, he’d shyly stick his head in the door to watch. He got braver, ventured in, and eventually became so popular with the mechanics that he was hired as an apprentice.
Making the most of the opportunity, Wiggins worked his way up to lead mechanic, overseeing a crew of white mechanics. A thoroughly unique situation for that time. At the urging of friends, in 1917, he moved north to Indianapolis in search of more lucrative employment.
He found a job in a shop located near where the Indianapolis Colts play today and became so skilled that when the owner retired, he sold the business to Wiggins.
It was during this time that auto racing captivated him. Regrettably, there were few outlets for African Americans who wanted to race.
Then, in 1924, a group of Indianapolis businessmen/sportsmen formed the Colored Speedway Association (CSA).
Wiggins wanted in.
Having little money, he gathered spare pieces, junkyard parts, and with a lot of ingenuity, cobbled together a little car with which he dominated the CSA.
Just how good was he compared to the AAA stars of that time? In October 1927, he won a 100-mile dirt track race in Quakertown, Pennsylvania, at 81.6 mph. A week earlier, 1926 Indianapolis 500 winner, Frank Lockhart, driving the best Miller money could buy, set a dirt track world record of 82.8 mph. Charlie was a mere one mph slower in his homebuilt Wiggins Special.
Wiggins brought so much popularity to the CSA that investors created a large-purse, 100-mile, championship race called the Gold and Glory Sweepstakes. The first Sweepstakes ran at the famed Indiana State Fairgrounds mile in 1924. It attracted 60 cars from across the country and drew a sellout crowd.
Wiggins didn’t have his car ready for the first Sweepstakes, but he did for the second annual event of 1925 and then took his first Sweepstakes win in 1926. He’d developed a fuel mixture so potent that at the finish he was two laps ahead of second place, a former Indianapolis car valued at $15,000.
Wiggins went on to win three more Sweepstakes. His renown grew to the point that racing’s best began to take notice. Harry McQuinn, 1934 Indianapolis 500 winner, Bill Cummins, Babe Stapp, and Bob Carey, all respected not only his remarkable driving talent, but also his aptitude with car setup. They often called on Wiggins to help prepare their cars.
These admirers lobbied for Wiggins to compete with them in the AAA, but even they couldn’t scale the racial barriers of that time.
Harry McQuinn once asked Wiggins if he could borrow one of his cars to compete at a race in Louisville, Kentucky. Wiggins agreed on one condition. He wanted to warm up the car beforehand. Unable to compete against the leading drivers, Wiggins at least wanted to experience running with them in some form on one of their tracks. McQuinn readily agreed, but when spectators saw an African American driver in the car, there was a near riot.
Wiggins’ last race was the 1936 Gold and Glory Sweepstakes. Again, a favorite to win, he got caught in a 13-car accident that cost him his right leg and his right eye.
His story is a bittersweet one. Although he was unable to compete at the highest level, he still doggedly pursued racing, utilizing the meager opportunities available to him.
Those efforts inspired others to chase their own dreams, no matter how severe odds they might encounter.
“Race on,” he would tell them.
Charlie Wiggins did just that his entire life.
