Figure 1: Historical Marker dedicated to 1910-11 American Grand Prize Races and 1911 Vanderbilt Cup race, erected by Georgia Historical Commission, 1955, photo by Andrew Lawrence.

Figure 2: Black population of Georgia counties with chain gangs, 1901, from Journal of Southern History, February, 1993.

Figure 3: Distribution of Georgia Misdemeanor Convicts by Work, 1898-1908, from The Journal of Southern History, February, 1993.

Figure 4: Tortured convict laborer, from Distribution of Georgia Misdemeanor Convicts by Work, 1898-1908, from On the Chain Gang, 1932.

Figure 5: Convict laborer whipping ledger, from On the Chain Gang, 1932.

Figure 6: Convict laborers working on the road course, courtesy of Tanya A. Bailey, 1911.

Figure 7: Convict laborers working on the road course, courtesy of Tanya A. Bailey, 1911.

Figure 8: Convict laborers working on the road course, courtesy of Tanya A. Bailey, 1911.

Figure 9: Convict laborers working on the road course, from On the Chain Gang, 1932.

Figure 10: Map of Chatham Crescent development, from The Playground of America, 1911.

Figure 11: Ad touting Chatham Crescent development, http://www.apccna.org/uploads/2/4/3/4/24344957/published/s-l1600-10.jpeg?1483630665, courtesy of Ardsley Park/Chatham Crescent Neighborhood Association, 1910. Accessed in 2020.

Figure 12: A study in contrasts, from The Playground of America, 1911.

Figure 13:

Creative component

“America at Crossroads.” Photo illustration by Andrew Lawrence

Three years ago, well before my matriculation at SCAD, my wife and I drove to Savannah from our home in Beaufort, S.C., to interview a midwife as part of our family planning. The appointment location was a private residence in Ardsley Park, and we were early. So we went for a stroll through the neighborhood to kill time. (It was a nice enough day.) When we happened across the marker touting the American Grand Prize races, I was gobsmacked. Here I was, formerly the motorsports beat writer at Sports Illustrated, and I had idea no clue that Formula 1 racing—the world’s biggest sport behind fútbol—had effectively begun in Savannah on the very street where I stood. (Funny: No one in Indianapolis or Daytona had ever mentioned that...) And even though I quickly found a way to work this discovery into an F1 column for The Guardian, I remained haunted by the feeling that there was much more to explore about the marker. Herewith, finally, is that bit of unfinished business.

Bailey, Tanya A. The First American Grand Prix: The Savannah Auto Races, 1908-1911. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, 2014.

Godfrey, Barry, and Steven Soper. “Prison Records from 1800s Georgia Show Mass Incarceration's Racially Charged Beginnings.” The Conversation. The Conversation US, Inc, July 8, 2019. Accessed May 27, 2020. https://theconversation.com/prison-records-from-1800s-georgia-show-mass-incarcerations-racially-charged-beginnings-96612.

Hulett, Keith. “James M. Smith (1823-1890).” New Georgia Encyclopedia. 08 June 2017. Accessed May 26, 2020. https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/government-politics/james-m-smith-1823-1890.

Johnston, R.H. “Touring from North to South.” The Travel Magazine, December, 1908, pp 121-23.

Lawrence, Andrew. “Can Formula One's American Takeover Fuel a Long-Awaited US Expansion?” The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, October 21, 2017. Accessed May 27, 2020. https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2017/oct/21/f1-america-liberty-us-grand-prix.

Lichtenstein, Alex. “Good Roads and Chain Gangs in the Progressive South: ‘The Negro Convict Is a Slave.’” The Journal of Southern History 59, no. 1 (1993): 85-110. Accessed May 27, 2020. doi:10.2307/2210349.

Patton, Phil. “A 100-Year-Old Dream: A Road Just for Cars.” The New York Times. The New York Times, October 9, 2008. Accessed May 27, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/automobiles/12LIMP.html.

Spivak, John L. On the Chain Gang. New York: International Publishers, 1932.

Stultz, Billie. “American Grand Prize Races.” Georgia Historical Society, 2016. Accessed May 26, 2020. American Grand Prize Races - Georgia Historical Society

The Playground of America. The Savannah Trust Company. 1911. Accessed May 27, 2020. https://www.archive.org/stream/descriptionofsav00ayer?ref=ol#page/n1/mode/2up.

Todd, William A. "Convict Lease System." New Georgia Encyclopedia. 13 May 2019. Accessed May 26, 2020. https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/convict-lease-system.