The Slidell Museum has a very interesting article on its Facebook page this week. Written by Gregory Scott, the post tells about Arthur Chevrolet, one of the three Chevrolet brothers who came to America and took part in the relatively new sport of car racing in the 1910's. He lived in Slidell, died in 1946 and is buried in a Slidell cemetery. Here is the account of his life as offered by the Slidell museum:
"In 1904, three brothers left Switzerland to come to America. Their names were Louis (1878), Arthur (1884), and Gaston (1892). They were the Chevrolet brothers. Arriving in the United States, they became interested in motor cars and automobile racing. A year after arriving, Louis would win his first race at an event in New York. This win had caught the attention of William C. Durant, the founder of General Motors. The Chevrolet brothers later went to work Durant, designing and racing cars for the GM Racing Team.
"In 1911, Louis (with his brothers) teamed up with Durant to start the Chevrolet Motor Company and produced the first Chevrolet car. Louis and Durant clashed over the direction that the Chevrolet car company should take. Durant wanted to produce low-cost automobiles like other mass production companies, like Ford’s Model-T. Louis wanted to build something more ‘high-end’ than the other manufacturers. In 1915, the Chevrolet’s sold all interest in the Chevrolet Motor Company to Durant, and the Chevrolet car company became part of General Motors.
"The Chevrolet brothers went on racing and building cars. In 1911, Arthur drove in the inaugural Indianapolis 500. He failed to finish due to mechanical problems. He would return to the Indy 500 again in 1916, but again fail to finish. His brother Gaston would race at Indy in 1920, winning the race that year in a Frontenac racecar. Later in 1920, Gaston would die in a racing accident; by that time, Gaston had already accumulated enough points to posthumously win the championship.
"Arthur also stopped racing in 1920. Louis and Arthur retired from racing. They began focusing for the Frontenac Motor Company founded in 1916 by Louis Chevrolet, William Small, Victor Heftler, and Indy 500 winner Joseph Boyer, Jr. The Frontenac company focused on building and selling racecars, along with producing performance parts. A Frontenac car won the Indy 500 again in 1921. The Frontenac Motor Company later entered a deal with the Stutz Motor Company to build passenger cars. Arthur considered this his greatest success. Success was short lived, and Frontenac filed for bankruptcy in 1923.
"The two brothers then began the Chevrolet Brothers Aircraft Company. Arthur designed a new airplane engine called the “Chevrolair.” They also produced cylinder heads and performance parts for Model-T Fords. This business was unsuccessful. They returned to the automobile industry and pioneered the development of ‘sprint’ type racecars. The Chevrolet brothers split up after dispute over the use of the family name for their own individual interests.
"Louis returned to Detroit and went to work in the Chevrolet Division of General Motors. Arthur went to work for Cummings Engine Company in the 1930s. He later moved to Slidell, Louisiana, to work as a production engineer for the Higgins Engine Company during World War II. By that time, Arthur Chevrolet owned patents on a special type of piston ring, an over-head valve engine, a valve conversion for Ford Model-T engines, and the Chevoliar aircraft engine. While in Slidell and working for the Higgins Company, Arthur and a partner began work on a new high-performance airplane engine (while on company time). The company found out about the project and wanted to claim all rights, but the designs and prototype were destroyed.
"Arthur’s son (also named Arthur) died in 1931. Louis Chevrolet died in 1941. By 1946, Arthur’s wife suffered from deepening dementia and Arthur himself was dealing with years of clinical depression. On April 16, 1946, Arthur Chevrolet hung himself in his Slidell Home. In a final letter to his daughter, he requested that they not bury him next to his brothers at the Indianapolis Holy Cross and Saint Joseph Cemetery. Instead, he asked that they bury his body in an unmarked grave in Slidell. In 1946, Arthur Chevrolet was laid to rest in local Slidell. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina destroyed the records of the burial location within the cemetery.
"Questions arose about Arthur Chevrolet’s gravesite in 2011 during the Chevrolet Motor Company’s Centennial, when the Indianapolis Motor Speedway commissioned a marker for the Holy Cross Cemetery in Indianapolis.
"The centennial marker was to accompany the existing commemorative marker already placed by the Indianapolis Speedway in 1975, on the grave of “Arthur Chevrolet.” Controversy continued in 2012 when “St. Tammany News” reporter David Freese wrote a story and was able to document the mistake. A 2014 story in the “Indianapolis Star” renewed the controversy over the mistake. Investigations revealed that the grave in the Indianapolis Holy Cross Cemetery held the body of Arthur Chevrolet’s son, Arthur Chevrolet Jr.
"In light of the documentation and information presented, the Indiana Racing Association obtained permission to move the 2011 Arthur Chevrolet marker to the cemetery in Slidell, Louisiana. In keeping with Arthur’s wishes, the grave marker was placed near the entrance of the Slidell cemetery. The engraved stone reads; “In These Hallowed Grounds, the Exact Location Unknown, Rests Arthur Chevrolet.”
NOLA.com on Arthur Chevrolet Gravesite
