Indianapolis Hall of Fame Museum (at the Motor Speedway) - Indianapolis, Indiana - Auto Racing History on Display at Indy500 Track

Located at 4790 West 16th Street in Indianapolis, Indiana, the Indianapolis Hall of Fame Museum (at the Motor Speedway) is a tribute to the history of the Indianapolis 500 race that began in 1909 and to automobile racing around the world. The museum also celebrates the historic role of the State of Indiana in relation to the sport of automobile racing. The museum is just inside of Gate 2 (the main gate) of the Speedway.

Over 75 race cars are on display within the museum. Among them are Indy 500 winners as well as other vehicles that have participated in renowned car racing events across the globe. Each of the cars at the museum has a brief explanation of its history for visitors to read. Many of the cars found here have also participated in automobile shows; museum cars have won various awards at shows.

Museum guides, who are easily identified by their red jackets, are happy to answer questions about the museum and any of the memorabilia on display.

The museum hosts a large collection of trophies as well as historic cars. The Tony Hulman Theater which seats 48 people shows historic early racing footage as well as Indy 500 highlights. There is no additional charge of admission for the museum theater.

Among the things to do at the museum is the opportunity to sit in an actual Indy 500 race car and have your photo taken for a fee or with your own camera free of charge.

Pictures of Hall of Fame inductees are on display as well as the Indy 500 winners over the history of the race.

In 1957 a Foundation was created to operate and maintain support for the Hall of Fame Museum. It has been doing so ever since that time.

In 1987 the speedway itself was declared a National Historic Landmark although it is privately owned by the Hulman family.

The Indianapolis Hall of Fame Museum (at the Motor Speedway) has had a partnership with the Washington D.C. based Smithsonian for over a quarter of a century, lending cars and other memorabilia to that museum.

The museum provides a 90 minute Grounds Tour of the historic Motor Speedway. The tour, carried out on comfortable tour buses, includes stops at the famous start/finish line "Yard of Bricks,'' the Victory Podium and the Gasoline Alley garage space. Tours of the motor speedway are held between March and Thanksgiving weekend departing from the Hall of Fame Museum four times a day when scheduled.

Tour tickets for the full grounds tour include museum admission. Children under 5 years of age can participate in the tour without charge. While tickets for the tour are available at the museum itself, space is limited, thus advance reservations are recommended. Special arrangements are made for groups of 20 people or more.