How to Pronounce Kurt Hitke
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Dec 01, 1889 Dresden, Saxony, Germany Died on 23 Feb 1979 (aged 89)
American racing driver
SagittariusKurt Hitke - Place of Birth, Date of Birth, Age, Wiki, Facts, Net Worth, Birthday, Biography and Family
Kurt Hitke, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Family, Facts, Age, Net Worth, Biography and More in FamedBorn.com
About Kurt Hitke
- Kurt Hitke (1 December 1889 in Dresden, Germany – 23 February 1979 in Miami, Florida) was an American racecar driver. Hitke was born in Leipzig, Germany, and worked from an early age in a blacksmith shop.
- During the outbreak of World War I, Kurt was working on a German merchant ship which was in Western Hemisphere waters.
- Consequently, Kurt stayed in the United States as it was impossible for the ship to return to Germany due to British naval superiority.
- Kurt became one of the two best known racing drivers in the country, being second only to Eddie Rickenbacker who later became America's leading World War I ace and still after headed the Eastern Airlines.
- In addition to Kurt's driving abilities, he was an outstanding automobile mechanic and is credited with inventing the first straight eight motor which later was used very successfully by the Packard Motor Company and others.
- Kurt's interest was largely in racing automobiles and both the Roamer and the Kenilworth, which he designed, were considered outstanding in the early Twenties. A naturalised American by the time of his racing days, Kurt later ran an insurance company in Illinois.
