CN
III ARCHIVES
BY LARRY LAWRENCE
Millionaire Morty
M
orty Graves was one of the earliest mo-
torcycle-racing stars of the Los Angeles
board-track-racing scene late in the first de-
cade of the 1900s. He won many races and set
numerous records on the giant, wooden board
tracks of the day. By the early 1910s, Graves was
racing across America on the boards, dirt tracks
and road races as a factory rider for such teams
as Merkel and German-made NSU. Graves was
popular for his charm and as a result he was a
huge fan favorite. He won so many races and
took top-prize money that he earned the nick-
name of "Millionaire Morty."
Perhaps the biggest victory for Graves was his
win at the 1910 FAM 10-Mile National Champion-
ship in Philadelphia, aboard a Flying Merkel. He
also was a perennial top contender in the Dodge
City 300—the biggest race in America during the
1910s.
Graves was born December 10, 1890, in Chi-
cago. He started racing shortly after he began
riding motorcycles at the age of 16. In a maga-
zine interview in the early 1920s, Graves said
that this was during the time that motorcycles still
had wooden rims. Graves didn't do well at racing
early on, but he was persistent and soon began
P114
Hall of
Famer Morty
Graves was
one of the
top board-
track racers
of the early
1900s.
