Notes:

Curtis Ackley was fatally injured on 07 October 1952 while repairing a broken axle on a tractor. A 500 lb (227 kilogram) balancing weight slipped off a jack and knocked him down, pinning the back of his neck against the ground. The Otsego County Coroner gave a veredict of accidental death by suffocation.

Curtis Ackley was the son of Rene and Mary (Hopkins) Ackley. He was married to Anna Spafard on 18 July 1936. Five children survived: Curtis, Jr., and Caroline, 10; Arlene, 15; Mary Ann, 13; and Linda, 4. Additional survivors were his mother, Mary H. Rous and step-father, Sylvester Rous; paternal grandmother, Mrs. Sarah Ackley; three step-brothers, Charles, Harry and Lester Ackley; and three step-brothers, Merle, Brewster and Leo Rous.

Curtis Ackley is buried at the Plains Cemetery.

Career Summary:

A member of the Big Car Racing Association of Western New York.

Curtis Ackley owned and raced his own car.

He won the 25-lap main event, and had fastest time during trials, at the Owego race track on first weekend of June 1950.

He was reported to have won three feature events in a row before the opening of the Eastern States Racing Association dirt track series on 17 June 1950.

Ackley was also reported to have won a feature event on Canada during the summer of 1951.

• Newspaper The Oneonta Star (Oneonta, NY, United States), issue of Monday, 05 June 1950, page 8, article "Ackley Wins Auto Race".
• Newspaper The Oneonta Star (Oneonta, NY, United States), issue of Saturday, 17 June 1950, page 10, article "Morris Auto Races Sunday".
• Newspaper The Oneonta Star (Oneonta, NY, United States), issue of Tuesday, 20 June 1950, page 10, article "Race Driver in Fair Condition In Fox Hospital after Crackup Sunday on Morris Fair Track".
• Newspaper The Oneonta Star (Oneonta, NY, United States), issue of Saturday, 01 July 1950, page 13, article "Curt Ackley Races Sunday for ESRA Mid-Year Crown".
• Newspaper The Oneonta Star (Oneonta, NY, United States), issue of Wednesday, 08 October 1952, page 5, article "Curtis Ackley Killed As Tractor Drops On Him During Repair Work".
• Newspaper The Oneonta Star (Oneonta, NY, United States), issue of Saturday, 11 October 1952, page 5, article "Funeral Held For Victim Of Tractor Accident".
• The Wilson Howard Davis Archives.