For decades, the Southern 500 was run on Labor Day - the 1st Monday of September. Eventually it was moved back to the Sunday of Labor Day weekend - but the race generally fell in early September on the NASCAR calendar.
Though the race was in September, prelim events such as practice and qualifying sometimes took place in late August.
1956 was one such year. Curtis Turner was at Darlington on August 31 doing speed runs in preparation for the Southern 500 GN race. Then that evening, he slipped over to Greenville and picked up a win in the NASCAR convertible series race at Greenville Pickens Speedway.
Finishing order
| Fin | Driver | Car |
| 1 | Curtis Turner | Ford |
| 2 | Joe Weatherly | Ford |
| 3 | Glen Wood | Ford |
| 4 | Tom Pistone | Chevrolet |
| 5 | Bob Welborn | Chevrolet |
| 6 | Don Oldenberg | Buick |
| 7 | Jimmy Massey | Chevrolet |
| 8 | Bun Emery | Mercury |
| 9 | Jimmie Lewallen | Chevrolet |
| 10 | Gwyn Staley | Chevrolet |
| 11 | Dick Joslin | Dodge |
| 12 | Dick Beaty | Oldsmobile |
| 13 | Norman Schihl | Ford |
| 14 | Bill Poor | Chevrolet |
| 15 | Cannonball Brown | Chrysler |
| 16 | Allen Adkins | Dodge |
| 17 | Larry Frank | Chevrolet |
| 18 | Bill Lutz | Ford |
| 19 | Possum Jones | Ford |
| 20 | Mel Larson | Ford |
| 21 | Larry Odo | Chevrolet |
| 22 | Art Binkley | Plymouth |
| 23 | Bob Beck | Chevrolet |
Three days later, Curtis grabbed another Carolina trophy - the coveted Southern 500 one. A solid weekend for the Virginian.
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Schaefer: It's not just for racing anymore.
updated by @tmc-chase: 12/05/16 04:00:58PM
