The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-03-05
Garry" Hermann Presi- dent of Company Which Will Carry Through PrOj- ect at Edgew0Od Lake
SOLON JACOBS IS
 GENERAL MANAGER
Birmingham Motor and
 Country Club Makes Deal Which Is Expected to Be Big Attraction to Visitors

Birmingham is to have one of the finest automobile speedways in the world, ac. cording to announcement made yesterday by officers of the Birmingham Motor and Country club.
 It will be built around the clubs lake
 August (Garry) Hermann, chairman oi the national baseball commission, anc owner and president of the Cincinnati Baseball club, is president of the new speedway company which will build the course here.
 One of the vice presidents is Harry L. Gordon. former mayor of Cincinnati, for mer lieutenant governor of Ohio anc chairman of the Dixie Highway commls' slon Others included in the company are men who have lo,-g been connected with automobiles and racing
 JACOBS GENERAL MANAGER
 solon Jacobs of Birmingham will be president and general manager in charge of construction and operation and num- Der of other well-knowli local men will be financially interested in the project
 While the names of other outside men who will be interested are not made pub lie now, they are represented by Dan w. Mccarthy and Selden D. Maddox, we'll known business men of Cincinnati.
 The course around the lake at Edge wood is regarded as an ideal settlnS' pe- cause the hill and mountain on eacf side form natural anphitheatre The track will be two and a half miles long and will be built of concrete witt an absolutely smooth surface.
 President C. E. Rice of the Motor and Country club states that they have been negotiating on the project for the past 12 months and he is convinced that il will be one of the south's greatest at fractions and will draw thousands of people here.
 The deal made with the Speedway com- pany was very attractive for the Mo- tor club, as it provides money to pay off the clubs debts, build golf course and make many needed Improvements.
 LOCAL AUTO RACES
 ''This track will be a source of pleasure to the members of the club during the year when it is not being used by the SpGeQWdy COUlpdHy, ocld NIL ieiNS' e''iS will be a source of considerable revenue as the club will pull or a number o1 races on its own account. It is also provided in our contract with the Speed way company that the club shall receive certain percentage of the profits iron each race held by the Speedway com pany.
 Tt is also provided that the club shal be represented on the board of directors NV nnt less than two of the board of governors ol the Motor and Country club
 Birmingham is the best city in the United States in which to build speed way said Dan w. Mccarthy of Gin cinnati, '.and, I say this advisedly, fol during the past six months my associates and have investigated speedway prop ostions offered by northern cities, all o1 which were older and bigger than Bir. mingham, and in none of them did I find the advantages that I found here. Fol instance, the Cincinnati Speedway com pany, which has been formed since the completion of our negotiations here, hao to go 20 miles out of the city to find suitable location for their speedway and were compelled to pay several hun dI ed thousand dollars for the site alone The site for the speedway around the beautiful lake of the Birmingham Motor and Country club is ideal. The mountain on one side of the lake and the hill or the other form natural amphitheatre and I do not believe IL is possible fol any other city to ever rival this speeu- way.
 BEAUTIFUL SCENERY
 ''The scenery at other speedways, if you can dignity it by calling it scenery is very commonplace or even, in many instances, unsightly, while this body oi water and the hills and mountains ir the background offer scene that Is beau tiful and restful to the eyes.
 ''The people with whom 1 am associated are well pleased with Birmingham. Au gust Hermann, president of our Speed way company, knows through his base ball connections with Birmingham tha i. is the best baseball city in the south and one of the best in the whole coun. try, and that the people here love clear sport.
 Harry l.. Gordon is chairman of ths Dixie Highway commission, and is ont of the big national figures in the goot roads movement. and his influence fol the good of Birmingham through his con nection with this speedway will be very beneficial
 'The people of Alabama and tho south will find when the first race is held next fall that this is a proposl- tion that will benefit them nearly as much as it does Birmingham direct, fol it will be the means of bringing into the south automobile men and racing men from all over the world. It is g well known fact that these people arc big money spenders, and they will takt the opportunity while at the races 1T Rirp1inCham to continua their ViSitine 2