The Soap Box Derby is a youth soapbox car racing program which has been run in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 since 1934. World Championship finals are held each July at Derby Downs

Derby Downs

Derby Downs, in Akron, Ohio, has been the home track of the All American Soap Box Derby since it was built as a Works Progress Administration project in the late 1930s...

 in Akron, Ohio

Akron, Ohio

Akron , is the fifth largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Summit County. It is located in the Great Lakes region approximately south of Lake Erie along the Little Cuyahoga River. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 199,110. The Akron Metropolitan...

. Cars competing in this and related events are unpowered, relying completely upon gravity to move.
In the wake of the first car races, local kid auto races took place in the US at a very early stage. In 1914 the motion picture Kid Auto Races at Venice

Kid Auto Races at Venice

Kid Auto Races At Venice is a 1914 American-made motion picture starring Charlie Chaplin in which his "Little Tramp" character makes his first appearance.-Synopsis:...

 starring Charlie Chaplin

Charlie Chaplin

Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...

 was shown in the cinemas.

In 1933 Myron Scott

Myron Scott

Myron E. Scott was the creator of the All-American Soap Box Derby. He is also credited with naming Chevrolet's sports car, the Corvette. Scott was born in Camden, Ohio...

, a photographer for Dayton, Ohio

Dayton, Ohio

Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...

 newspaper Dayton Daily News, put together an impromptu race for 19 boys.