Dog River Speedway

Northfield, Vermont

New Scott Haskell Photos- CLICK HERE

     Not a lot was known about this racetrack when I started this website. It does not have a particularly long or distinguished history, like its neighbor and more prominent brother, Thunder Road International Speedbowl, in Barre.

    Apparently, Dog River was named for a body of water located nearby. It largely depended on fielding cars that frequented Thunder Road. Like Northeast Speedway in Waterford, Dog River's history is totally intertwined with the Barre oval. There are those who feel that the very first stock car race in Vermont happened here. No distinct proof.

    I have been depending on information from folks like my good friend and old college mate Mike Gilbert, a business teacher in Barre who once lived in Northfield. Mike's locating information about Dog River goes like this: "If you ever go to Northfield, you go south on Route 12A for about two miles or so. The first bridge to go over the river [brook] on the right goes to the trailer park. The track used to be up, beyond the trailer park."

From Northfield Historical Society
The old fairgrounds track, with a big crowd in attendance.

   Fellow historian Cris DaBica has also mentioned Dog River: "Yet another track at the end of a road in the middle of nowhere, Dog River between the late 1940’s and early 1960’s and is listed as being a dirt 1/2 track. It is located just south of Northfield, VT on what was supposedly the site of the Northeast Fairgrounds.  

Dubois Family Collection via Jason Lahue
This overly small photo shows very early racing at
the venue when one could race whatever he brought.
It is probably 1949.

     The one thing I consistently hear of when conversing about this track is the fact that drivers who went off the track often went down a hill and landed on railroad tracks. The great drivers were more apt to suffer this fate than the others due to their speed.

     So far no mentions of either Dog River or the fairgrounds have been found anywhere so a visit to Northfield’s library or historical society is probably in order. The land is currently marked as private property/no trespassing, and looks like someone is using it to store construction equipment…didn’t get out to investigate too deeply but a return visit may happen soon."

VICTORY LANE IN 1961
Flagger and future Chief Pit Steward, Archie Blackadar, of Danville, Vt. stands in the white uniform with hands on hips. Car owner Ed Pelletier is at Archie's right, looking at the camera.

Courtesy of Neal Davis
Barre's Norm Chaloux was probably a regular at Northfield. Here the car is shown trailering into Thunder Road in 2004.

Ladabouche Photo
Buddy Bardwell, of Keene, NH [shown here at Fairmont] tried Northfield a few times, as he did T-Road. He would have used this Ford he prepared especially for T Road, not his customary Hudson.

Bushey Family Photo, via Jack Anderson
Gordy Owen, of Williston, in the Ralph Bushey #1 at Northfield.

Bushey Family Photo, via Jack Anderson
Gordy Owen returns the Ralph Bushey #1 to the infield pits in 1951. This is one of the best shots of Northfield I have been able to get. Note the Coke truck with the PA system on its roof and Bob Doyle's Bardahl distributor truck. You can get an idea of the paper clip shape of the track, as well.

Courtesy of Scott Haskell
Check out the similarity of this shot to the one above. It makes one wonder if it was the same photographer.

Courtesy of Mike Gilbert
The legendary George Barber 46 with driver, the equally legendary Roy "Pappy" Forsyth. [Nether is visible]