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Race Track and Grandstand, Eastern States Expo.

(c) Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, Deerfield MA. All rights reserved.
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From its opening in 1916, the mission of the Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield, Massachusetts, has been to showcase New England's agricultural and industrial achievements. Another goal has been to entertain as well as inform the millions of visitors who have passed through its gates. This postcard of the race track and grandstand in 1934 advertised the excitement of fast cars and large crowds. Big 'E' organizers treated visitors in the 1920s and '30s to fireworks, elaborate pageants, auto polo, stunt drivers, and trick horseback riders. The postcard inset of hundreds of cars parked at the fairgrounds reminds viewers of the turn-of-the-century fascination Americans had with and their growing dependence on the automobile.

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