Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Track: 1/2-mile, 1/4-mile Dirt
Total Races: 4 (1949 - 1960)
NASCAR made its next visit to Heidelberg on July 15, 1951, this time known as the Grand National Division. A record 42 cars started the race with Fonty Flock on the pole. Herb Thomas won the race in a '51 Oldsmobile. The series would not return to the track for another eight years.
On July 21, 1959, the Grand National Series finally returned to race at the speedway, only this time they would be running on the 1/4-mile layout instead of the 1/2-mile layout. Grove City, PA's Dick Bailey sat on the pole in his '59 Plymouth, but fell out early due to overheating problems. It would be Bailey's final start in NASCAR. New York's Jim Reed won his second race of the 1959 Grand National season in his '59 Chevy.
The following year, Lee Petty was again the talk of Heidelberg. He sat on the pole in his Petty Enterprises Plymouth and dominated the race. Petty lead 169 of 188 laps en route to the win. His son, Richard, finished second. Afterwards, NASCAR never returned to the speedway again.
Heidelberg was paved in 1966 and remained in opperation until 1973. It has since been demolished. The track's memory lives on, for in its place is a suburban shopping center called "Raceway Plaza."