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History
Brief History of Daytona Beach-
Daytona Beach’s
breathtaking expanse of sand, like the rest of Florida, was
first claimed by Spanish explorers in the 1500s, but it was not until 1835 that Mathias
Day of Manfield, Ohio, founded the first permanent settlement in the
area. The residents who incorporated the town of Daytona in 1876 honored Day by
adapting his name. The city of Daytona Beach, a merger of several local
communities, was formed 40 years later.
Daytona Beach began
attracting auto racers shortly after the invention of the automobile, because
the hard-packed sands provided the perfect place for drivers to show their
stuff. In 1935, English speed demon Sir Malcolm Campbell hit 276.8 miles per
hour on the sands, at the time the world’s land speed record. The motor mania
moved off the sands to Daytona Beach International Speedway in 1959.
Today, the speedway is home to the Daytona 500 and the
corporate headquarters of NASCAR, the major league of stock car
racing.
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