December 14, 1947: Bill France Sr. organizes a meeting at the Streamline Hotel in Daytona Beach, Fla., to discuss the future of stock car racing. NASCAR (the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) is conceived.
Febuary 15, 1948: NASCAR runs its first race in Daytona Beach at the beach-road course. The race is won by Red Byron.
September 4, 1950: Darlington Raceway, NASCAR's first paved superspeedway, hosts the Southern 500. The first 500-mile even in NASCAR history is won by Johnny Mantz in a 1950 Plymouth. Seventy-five drivers started the event, which featured two caution periods and lasted more than 6 hours.
Febuary 22, 1959: The high-banked, 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway hosts the first Daytona 500, attracting 41,000 fans. Sixty-one hours after the checkered flag flies in an extremely close finish, Lee Petty is declared the winner by two feet after Bill France Sr. reviews footage from a newsreel.
March 24, 1970: Buddy Baker becomes the first driver to break the 200-mph barrier in a stock car, doing so at a test run at Talladega.
1971: R.J. Reynolds Winston brand becomes the title sponsor of NASCAR's top division, which is renamed the NASCAR Winston Cup Grand National Division.
January 10, 1972: The founder of NASCAR, Bill France Sr., hands over the reins of leadership to his son Bill France Jr., who becomes the second president in NASCAR's history.
1972: The NASCAR Winston Cup Grand National Division schedule is trimmed from 48 races to 31, marking the beginning of the Modern Era.
February 18, 1979: CBS Sports presents the first live flag-to-flag coverage of the NASCAR event with the Daytona 500. Richard Petty avoids a wreck between Cale Yarbourough and Donnie Allison during the last lap to win the race.
July 4, 1984: In the Firecracker 400 at Daytona International Speedway, Richard Petty earns his 200th win, setting a mark that has yet to be challenged.
1987: Dale Earnhardt makes his famous "pass in the grass" in The Winston, the all-star race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, shooting through the infield and back onto the track to maintain the lead and eventually win the race.
August 6, 1996: The NASCAR championship schedule expands to include the famed 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Jeff Gordon wins the first Cup race at the Brickyard.
June 19, 2003: NASCAR announces that the sponsorship of its top series will shift from Winston to Nextel in 2004. In 2004, drivers will contend for the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series championship. It is a 10-year agreement.
October, 2003: Brian Z. France becomes the new Chairman of the Board and CEO of NASCAR, replacing his father, Bill France Jr.
September 11, 2004: After the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond, 10 drivers qualify for the inaugural Chase for the NASCAR Nextel Cup: Kurt Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Mark Martin, Jeremy Mayfield, Ryan Newman, Elliott Sadler and Tony Stewart. Over the final 10 races of the season, Busch wins the first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup championship by eight points, the closest margin in NASCAR history, over Jimmie Johnson.