Hometown Heritage

Niagara Falls is also known for the Hyde Park Rose Garden and the Aquarium of Niagara, and visitors enjoy the Maid of the Mist Boat Tour and the Cave of the Winds. It’s also common for many tourists to dine at our famous Como Restaurant, which has served many celebrities through the years.

When someone asks me where I’m from, I’m proud to say Niagara Falls, New York. Like Dorothy from “Wizard of Oz,” I am of the opinion that “There’s no place like home.”

Elinor - Niagara Falls, New York

Belleville, Kansas, is Home to Dirt Car Racing Track

Located in North Central Kansas, the town of Belleville is home to High Banks, the longest continuously operating dirt car racing track in the United States.

Auto racing began in Belleville in 1910, and with the exception of the war years, 1942 through 1945, has operated continuously. This summer marks its centennial.

Virtually every kind of dirt racing car has graced High Banks at some time. Early in the history of the track, it was all big cars – the forerunner of today’s sprint cars. Along the way, High Banks has hosted 200-lap stockcar races, hot rods (or track roadsters), demolition derbies, cruisers, motorcycles, jalopies, late models, modifieds, midgets, sprint cars and even tractors.

Originally, the track was flat, but between 1934 and 1936, the bank was added, making the track 80 feet wide with a 23-degree bank. The racing surface has only one short straightaway and is made of Kansas clay.

High Banks has become the fastest half-mile dirt track in the world, and it is also known for its stone grandstand, which was erected in the 1930s as a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project.

Since 1978, the Midget Nationals have taken place at High Banks during the fair each summer. Racing notables who have come through Belleville over the years include Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman, Jeff Gordon, Ken Schrader, Clint Bowyer, Bobby East, Kasey Kahne, Dave Darland, Josh Wise, John Andretti, J.J. Yeley, Tracy Hines, Sleepy Tripp and Stan Fox.

Karol - Munden, Kansas

Three Historical Buildings Live in Camden, Arkansas