After 1968, club members and the racing public had this fully paved 1/8th mile track to run on. Of course another problem surfaced which would not have been a concern in 1960. There were now at least five other small 1/8th mile tracks in central Illinois, plus the quarter mile at Alton and across the Mississippi at Mid America Raceway.

Several of the Conquistadores reported to this writer that by 1975, the extreme competition for cars and fans was just too much, and like so many other original drag strips, White Hall was destined to close. Today the area has Mid-State Raceway at Havana, Ill., not too far north of White Hall. Four quarter mile tracks still operate at Byron, Ill., Cordova, Ill., Joliet,, Ill. and Madison, Ill. (St. Louis International).

But White Hall has a great Reunion every year which keeps the locals in touch with the original clubs competition & classic Hot Rods.

Drag Racing? Well no, but if you live in central Illinois where White Hall Drag-O-Way was, you know what this is. Otherwise you might not recognize what probably ranks at the top of America’s Coal Mining Machines, In this timely photo, the machine is ‘trying to cross the road’ somewhere north of White Hall. Strip coal mining has been a huge industry in Illinois for decades.