Career

Born January 31, 1921 in Atlanta, Georgia, and driving from the early age of eight, Samples became one of the better-known moonshine runners in the Dawsonville area, a hotbed of the production of moonshine liquor during and after Prohibition. He survived being shot three times in a dispute over the production of the liquor shortly before World World War World War II Soon afterwards he changed his career to competition on the racetrack after observing the racing prowess of fellow moonshiner Lloyd Seay, declaring auto racing to be "safer than moonshine".

He raced motorcycles a few times before switching fully to stock cars. Samples raced at tracks such as Lakewood Speedway in the early, pre-World World War II era of stock car racing.

In the track"s 1941 Labor Day event he battled for the lead before crashing out of the race.

Samples was a front-runner on France"s NCSCC circuit in the late 1940s. He finished second in the series, which sanctioned "modifieds", in the final 1947 season standings, behind Fonty Flock and ahead of Red Byron. Samples" 1949 season was interrupted when he was one of three drivers banned from National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing competition by Bill France for "conduct detrimental to the best interests of the National Association for Stock Carolina Auto Racing" following their competing in a NSCRA event the same weekend as a National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing race.

He was reinstated later in the year following the payment of a fine.

He retired from racing competition in 1956, running a speed shop and repair station in Birmingham, Alabama.

Achievements

• He was the winner of the 1946 stock car racing championship, and later won the 1949 National Stock Carolina Racing Association championship. In 1946, Samples won the first stock car race promoted by Bill France, Senior held outside Daytona Beach, Florida, an event held on Independence Day at Greenville-Pickens Speedway. The win, among others the inaugural National Championship Stock Carolina Circuit (NCSCC) event, run on the beach at Daytona on June 30 of that year, allowed Samples to be declared the 1946 national champion of stock car racing, a consensus decision among officers of the NCSCC, the National Stock Carolina Racing Association, and the United States. Stock Carolina Drivers Association, defeating Roy Hall and Bob Flock for the title. In December 1947, Samples was present at the famous meeting at the Streamline Hotel that saw the formation of National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing. 1948 would see Samples win the South Carolina Racing Association championship, winning ten consecutive races over the course of the season. Samples would see his championship points stripped under France"s policy that drivers who raced in non-National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing sanctioned events would be penalized. However, in the NSCRA series promoted by Weyman Milam and Bruton Smith, he would win the 1949 championship. In 1951, he was leading the NSCRA championship when the series folded. He would move to National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing more regularly after that, but would never win a race in the series" top tour, the Grand National Division, although he did win the Birmingham Racing Club Championship in 1954 and 1955.