1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Monaco
Just a week later, the first Italian race was held, at Alessandria. This year, the long 32 km circuit through the Piedmont countryside was replaced by a shorter 8 km track through the northern suburbs. The track proved a minefield though with a lot of loose stones scattered across the road being picked up by the cars. Fagioli again represented Maserati, with Dreyfus as reserve. But Varzi was the favourite with a new Type 51, painted red and driven straight from the Molsheim factory the day before. He was supported by a number of Bugattis including the German team.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Monaco
Alfa Romeo was represented by a strong Scuderia Ferrari team. Nuvolari had an 8C-2300 modified for grand prix use, while Arcangeli, Severi and Caniato drove the less powerful 6-cylinder models. A big field of 39 cars, including voiturettes took the start. Varzi short through from the second row to take the lead and was never headed, drawing away at five seconds a lap. Fagioli broke his gearbox on lap 3 and Nuvolari’s differential broke on lap 9. On route to victory, Varzi lapped all the field except for Giovanni Minozzi's Bugatti with von Morgen coming in third.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Targa Florio
Always the toughest race of the year, the Targa Florio was made far harder by terrible floods across Sicily in February. Landslides had demolished the mountain roads between Polizzi and Collessano and many parts of the Medio Madonie were ruined. Therefore, Comte Vincenzo Florio and the organisers decided to run the race on the “Grande Madonie” – the full 146 km circuit used in the first years of the event, from 1906 to 1911. This ran all the way around the Parco delle Madonie out to Castelbuono before rejoining the Medio circuit at Collessano.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Targa Florio
To do the four race laps, driver would take over 8000 corners. Alfa Romeo put in the strongest team, with five cars: Nuvolari and Arcangeli ran the 8C-2300, while Campari, Borzacchini and Guido d'Ippolito had the 6C-1750GS. The competition would come from Varzi's Bugatti and the works Maseratis of Fagioli (still recovering after a recent hip operation), Dreyfus (the only foreigner racing this year) and Biondetti all running the 26M. Varzi led the small field of thirteen starters away and quickly set the pace. Near Castellana, Fagioli hit a bridge and badly bent his rear axle.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Targa Florio
After two laps it started raining. Jano had predicted that and fitted his Alfas with mudguards. Varzi, without them, was hindered and slowed by the mud and spray. Arcangeli also refused to have the mudguards fitted, and got injured in the eye by a flying stone, to be relieved by Zehender. Biondetti slid into a wall, getting slight injuries. Dreyfus, after changing fourteen spark-plugs and slipping off the road three times, was retired when the team realised he would not finish within the time limit.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Targa Florio
But Nuvolari and Borzacchini, also aided by the Alfa Romeo team using two-way radios around the track, pressed on hard through the heavy weather. Fog and torrential rain in the mountains made driving extremely hard, with the tyre ruts tearing up the roads. Varzi had a terrible final lap and he although finished first (car and driver completely covered in the yellow mud), Nuvolari had the shorter race-time to take the win. Borzacchini came in second, with Varzi ending up seven minutes back, just ahead of Campari.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Targa Florio
The Moroccan Grand Prix had been held five times as a touring car race. This year, renamed as the Casablanca GP, it was held for racing cars on the new Anfa circuit in the western suburbs of Casablanca. Many of the top drivers from the French circuit came across for the race. Stanisław Czaykowski had just received his new Bugatti Type 51 and so was the favourite. Lehoux and Étancelin were still waiting for their new Bugatti and Alfa Romeo, respectively, to be delivered and ran their older Bugatti Type 35s instead.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Targa Florio
Montier, father and son had their Ford specials while Ferrand ran his old Peugeot. The voiturette class was dominated by 1.5-litre Bugatti Type 37s. A sunny race-day drew a huge crowd with the dignitaries led by Sidi Mohammed, the Sultan of Morocco, along with the Grand Vizier and the French Resident-General Lucien Saint. Lehoux let for the first half of the race, but he had to stop to refuel whereas Czaykowski did not. The latter took the lead, and when Lehoux retired with an overstretched engine, he could cruise to victory with Étancelin second, a lap behind.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
The new championship started at Monza with the Italian Grand Prix. Owing to the ten-hour format, the race had been rescheduled from its usual September date to May to avoid running into darkness. The Grand Prix had not been held since the tragic 1928 race when Emilio Materassi had crashed killing himself and 22 spectators. The banked-oval half of the circuit had been closed and the circuit upgraded, so this was the return to the full 10 km circuit. The ten-hour race also demanded two drivers for each car.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
With an open formula on the cars, there was a wide variety in the sixteen cars that arrived, led by the two works teams. Maserati, realising their 26M was no longer competitive against the new models from Bugatti and Alfa Romeo did not attend, choosing to do further development instead. Bugatti arrived with two of their new cars. Now race-proven, their lead drivers of Varzi/Chiron were paired together in one while the other went the second team of Divo/Bouriat.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
Privateers Jean-Pierre Wimille and Marcel Lehoux had also now received their new Type 51s, to augment the works team with co-drivers Jean Gaupillat and Philippe Étancelin as their respective co-drivers. Bugatti's rival, Alfa Romeo, had three cars entered: two of the 8C-2300 models for Campari/Arcangeli and Marinoni/Zehender while the new Tipo A bimotore was assigned to Nuvolari/Borzacchini. The Scuderia Ferrari owners Caniato/Tadini entered their 6C-1750 model and Francesco Pirola ran a 6C-1500 "voiturette" with racing journalist Conte "Johnny" Lurani. Two big Mercedes SSKs arrived, raced by Antonio Maino, and Boris Ivanowski.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
The Russian émigré had a hectic schedule for his car, with six major races in nine weeks which also included running it in the 24-hour races at Le Mans and Spa. The race was also the third round of the Italian driver's championship. Umberto Klinger and Luigi Castelbarco both had their Maseratis, while the Scuderia Materassi ran their 1920s-vintage Talbot 700s. The final arrival was Robert Sénéchal in his equally-dated 1.5-litre Delage. Official practice was on Friday and Saturday. The Type A was found to be quite twitchy.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
While the teams were at Saturday lunch, Luigi Arcangeli took the car out for his first trial-runs. But after a sighting lap, he went off at speed at the Curva del Violone going onto the back straight, just as Ugo Sivocci had done in 1923 testing the new Alfa Romeo P1. Thrown from the car, he was killed instantly, with the car having apparently gone off the road at speed, side-swiping a tree and rolling several times. The Alfa Romeo team was ready to withdraw from the race until a telegram from Mussolini himself arrived that night, ordering them to race for Italian pride.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
A sunny race-day did not see Maino's Mercedes or Castelbarco's Maserati on the grid. The Tipo A test-car had been prepared overnight by Alfa Romeo, who re-arranged their driver line-up: Marinoni was now paired up with Campari while reserve driver Minoia came in to drive with Zehender. At 8am, Air Force Marshal Italo Balbo waved the chequered flag to the 14 remaining starters. Campari shot into the lead but at the end of the first lap it was Varzi had passed him, ahead of Étancelin, Klinger and Ivanowski.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
With Divo and Sénéchal pitting early, the field soon split into distinct groups. Near the end of the first hour, after fifteen laps, Varzi had just lapped Nuvolari in fifth and held a one-minute lead over Campari with Lehoux and Minoia the only others on the lead lap. Surprisingly, only the Scuderia Ferrari Alfa had retired so far. In an effort to catch up, Campari set a new lap record on lap 24 but near the 2-hour mark, the Nuvolari/Borzacchini Alfa stopped on –track when one of its engines seized up.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
The Bugattis were having tyre problems though and when Varzi stopped, Campari took the lead. When he, in turn, pitted it was Nuvolari, not Marinoni, who took over the car. Similarly, Borzacchini subbed in for Zehender in the other Alfa. In the third hour, Chiron coasted into the pits to retire with a broken differential. This left Alfa Romeo running 1-2, a lap ahead of the privateer Bugatti of Lehoux and Maserati of Klinger, who moved up a spot when Lehoux's engine expired in the fourth hour.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
By the halfway point, as predicted, the race has become a monotonous procession with only ten cars still running. The works Bugatti was having ongoing tyre-problems until changing over to the heavier-duty tyres used in the Targa Florio race. They were now third, three laps behind the leader. In the sixth hour, Varzi also drove the car for twenty laps. Campari passed 1000 km in just under 6½ hours. Klinger and Ghersi had an extended stop that dropped them from 4th to 8th. All the privateers were having various issues, all falling many laps behind.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
In the end, Sénéchal only drove five hours and would not be classified after changing three magnetos, not covering the 60% of the winner's distance. With a certain inevitability, the race continued to its conclusion. Campari and Nuvolari cruised home with a two-lap lead over their teammates with the works Bugatti coming third a lap further back. Wimille's Bugatti was seventeen laps behind the winner in fourth, while Klinger came out the pits at the end to be the last classified finisher in eighth. Because Ruggeri took over five minutes to complete his final lap, it was discounted and he was demoted to seventh behind Pirola’s Alfa on the same lap. With a 1-2 victory, breaking the Bugatti hold on Grand Prix wins, Alfa Romeo celebrated by giving their new car the “Monza” moniker.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
After several false starts in the 1920s, a major race was finally held in Switzerland. Filed too late to the AIACR to be called the Swiss Grand Prix, it was instead run as the Geneva GP on a triangular town-to-town track to the west of the city, on the French border. As it was on the same weekend as the Rome GP, the Italian driver did not race. Nor did Chiron who, upon leaving his entry late, had travelled ahead leaving a mechanic to drive his Bugatti to the venue.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
When the tired mechanic crashed the car badly en route, he was left without a drive. The race was run as three heats, for the separate classes, leading to a 27-lap final. In the main-class heat, the Bugattis of Lehoux and Czaykowski were duelling closely. Lehoux had just lapped Klinger’s Maserati but when Czaykowski tried to pass the two collided. His car slewed off the road into a roadside house killing one and injuring two others. Czaykowski himself had a broken rib and bruised legs. Lehoux went on to win the final later in the day.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
Three other races were held on this busiest racing weekend of the year. Mercedes won two of the races – Caracciola the Eifelrennen at the Nürburgring, while Hans Stuck won the Lwów Grand Prix in Poland. Most attention though was on the Rome Grand Prix, this year held on a banked high-speed circuit around the airfield in the north of the city. Being the next round of the Italian championship, it drew a big field and, as before, was run as a series of heats with a 60-lap final.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
Only the Maserati works team arrived – led by Ernesto Maserati in the 4-litre V4, with Fagioli and Dreyfus in the 26M and Biondetti in the 2-litre 26B. Their main competition would be Varzi's Bugatti and Nuvolari running both his own Type 35C and a loaned 2.3-litre Type 35B. A shrewd move as his own car failed in the second heat. In the final, Varzi led from Maserati, Dreyfus and Fagioli. Nuvolari was out early with broken suspension and on the fifteenth lap, Varzi burst a tyre and lost time in the pits. He had driven hard back into third when his ignition broke. Despite Fagioli being delayed, Maserati was able to lead home his team to a 1-2-3 finish with Biondetti coming through for third.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
The ACF promoted the French Grand Prix as the 25th edition. Although the first Grand Prix had been in 1906, there had only 17 races. However, the ACF included the inter-city races from 1895 to 1903 to add to their prestige. For the first Grand Prix's 25th anniversary, a special luncheon was held with the first two winners, Ferenc Szisz and Felice Nazzaro, as guests of honour. But it did provide one of the strongest entry lists for many years with all three works teams entered.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
The AIACR rules said the same driver combinations had to carry over for each race. Bugatti maintained their team. Alfa Romeo, after the enforced changes following Arcangeli's death, changed around their driver pairings again. Borzacchini now co-drove with Campari, with Nuvolari had Giovanni Minozzi and Minoia with Zehender, although this removed their co-drivers from the championship reckoning. Maserati had their new 2.8-litre Tipo 26M for Fagioli/Maserati. The other pairs, Dreyfus/Ghersi and Biondetti/Parenti had the older 2.5-litre.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
A strong privateer field was entered: Wimille and Lehoux in their Bugattis, Caracciola and Ivanowski had their 7-litre Mercedes – the first time German cars had raced at the Grand Prix since 1914. The race also attracted a significant British contingent; Earl Howe, having just won the Le Mans 24-hour the week before in his Alfa Romeo 8C-2300 tourer, now had a new Bugatti Type 51, while his victorious co-driver Tim Birkin ran a Maserati 26M. “Williams” ran his 2-litre Bugatti, William Scott had a 5-year old Delage and Jack Dunfee had a 1925 Sunbeam.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
All in all there were 23 starters. In practice Bugatti again found, as at Le Mans a week earlier, that their Michelin tyres were failing. They were going to withdraw but Williams still had a set of Dunlop tyres to test with. A full set of tyres was flown out overnight from England for the team and in gratitude gave “Williams” a third works car for the race, rejoining the team.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
On the startline, Dunfee’s Sunbeam broke its universal joint. Fagioli's Maserati led the first lap from team-mate Dreyfus with the Bugattis of Chiron, “Williams”, Lehoux and Divo following. Chiron took the lead on the fourth lap and he and Fagioli continued swapping the lead for the next two hours. Around three hours the first refueling and driver-changes started. Varzi was able to build a half-lap lead over Maserati, with Ghersi close behind in formation. Minozzi's Alfa, and the Bugattis of Bouriat and Conelli were the only other cars remaining on the lead lap.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
In the fourth hour, Maserati started slipping back with brake issues while the problematic supercharger on Caracciola's Mercedes finally stopped the car out on the track. After five hours, the spectators were getting bored and wandered off for lunch. Despite seventeen cars still running, the long 12 km circuit spread them out to a monotonous procession. Chiron now had nearly a full lap's lead over Divo, with Dreyfus, “Williams” and the Alfas of Nuvolari and Minoia following. Campari was well down, five laps back, after persistent brake problems.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
The Bugattis benefitted from having a one-piece wheel and brake-drum unit which meant brakes could be changed at each pit stop in the same time as changing wheels, thereby avoiding such issues. This superior pitwork got the three works Bugattis into the top-three by the sixth hour. But in the 7th hour, the “Williams” car broke its universal joint and retired. The Dreyfus Maserati had severe brake problems, spending a long time in the pits and in the end had to pillage a spare from the now-retired Fagioli car. A similar ailment afflicted the Nuvolari Alfa soon after.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
The order settled down for the next few hours: Chiron and Varzi had a lap on Divo/Bouriat while the delays to others put Campari/Borzacchini into third albeit four laps further back. Next were the Maseratis of Birkin and Biondetti. In the final hour, Divo came to a stop on the track – the bolts on the engine had worked loose and he had no tools on board. Told to slow down by his pit, Varzi dropped his lap times by a minute to protect the car.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The European Championship
Despite Campari putting in fast laps at the end, Varzi/Chiron still had a comfortable victory, completing exactly 100 laps, three laps ahead of the Alfa Romeo, with the Biondetti/Parenti Maserati third. Birkin/Eyston were the first privateers home in fourth, while the cars of Divo and Nuvolari, though not running at the end, had covered sufficient distance to be classified for points.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
Two weeks later, the French drivers met again at the very fast Reims circuit for the Marne GP. The entry-list was dominated by Bugattis and the favourites included Chiron, Lehoux and a fit-again Czaykowski in their Type 51s. Lehoux's erstwhile co-driver, Philippe Étancelin, was now driving the first Alfa Romeo 8C ‘Monza’ in private hands and René Dreyfus entered for the Maserati works team. Chiron only lasted two laps, put out by gearbox failure, and it was Lehoux taking the lead and extending it over Dreyfus and Czaykowski and Étancelin. Which is how it stayed for the next two hours, with Lehoux setting the fastest lap at an average of nearly 150 kph and winning by two minutes.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
Just a week later was the third, and final, race in the new Championship: the Belgian Grand Prix run a week after the 24-hour sports-car race at the same circuit. The calculation was simple: Campari, with a first and a second, only needed to finish to be crowned the inaugural European Champion. Once again Maserati chose not to attend, nominally to better prepare for the upcoming (non-Championship) German Grand Prix.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
Only a dozen cars were entered with a two-way struggle between Bugatti an Alfa Romeo expected: after their failure at Monza, Bugatti had changed to Dunlop tyres, while Alfa Romeo had adjusted their rear-axle ratio to address the lack of speed shown at Montlhéry. Bugatti kept the same three pairings they used at Montlhéry, while Alfa Corse changed theirs again. This time put Zehender with Campari while Nuvolari and Borzacchini combined once more. Minozzi co-drove for Minoia, who was given the Targa Florio-styled version, with external fuel-tank and bucket seats.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
Tim Birkin entered his Alfa Romeo, converted to racing format from the touring style he had run at the 24-hour endurance the week before. Racing with Eyston at that event, he now teamed up with Brian Lewis, Baron Essendon, who himself has previously co-drove with Earl Howe at Montlhéry. French privateer Jean Pesato had his smaller 1.75-litre Alfa and Jean-Pierre Wimille was in his Type 51. The final entrants were Ivanowski's Mercedes and the Montier father and son with their Ford Specials.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
Grand Prix cars had last raced at Spa in 1925 and Varzi beat the lap record on the first lap from a standing start. Immediately the rivalry between Varzi and Nuvolari started with the lead changing back and forth. After one hour (nine laps) the two were still nose-to-tail, with “Williams” further back in third, followed by Minoia, Wimille, Divo, Birkin and Campari driving a conservative race and Ivanowski. Already Pesato and the Montiers were falling well behind.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
As expected, the cars made their first pit-stops in the third hour with only Chiron, Borzacchini and Conelli now on the lead lap. During his stint, Chiron put in faster and faster laps to start building a lead over the Alfa. Just after the sixth hour, when the second changes were expected, great drama occurred. Coming down to La Source hairpin, Campari's car suddenly burst into flames. Despite the driver's attempts to put it out the fire destroyed the car – the early DNF would cost Campari 6 championship points. Around a similar time, Chiron pulled off the track to repair the engine magneto. Although able to get going again, he would not get much further as the camshaft was broken.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
This now left Nuvolari/Borzacchini with a 9 km (4-minute) lead over “Williams”/Conelli, with Minoia and Divo both two laps back. Then, when Divo/Bouriat retired in the 7th hour with a broken differential, this moved Birkin’s Alfa Romeo up to fourth, running four laps behind. Going into the last hour, Conelli pitted for a very fast refuel and brake-change. “Williams” went out and put in very fast laps, gaining on the Alfa Romeo at a rate of around ten seconds a lap. When Borzacchini came into the pits with a misfire complaining of fuel-feed problems, the Bugatti took the lead.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
After several stops, Nuvolari did some repairs then jumped in and took off with a misfire, now a lap behind. Although he caught and passed the Bugatti, time had run out. “Williams” took the flag by three-quarters of a lap, the Bugatti having spent only five minutes in the pits. Minoia/Minozzi were three laps behind, with Birkin’s Alfa fourth and Ivanowski's Mercedes in fifth a dozen laps behind the winner.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
Minoia's third place put him on equal points as Campari after the latter's early retirement, and having finished all three races, he won the tie-break by having covered just over 560 km further. Now a 47-year old veteran, Minoia had started racing in the 1907 Targa Florio and won the inaugural Mille Miglia. He became the first European Driver's Champion.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
The fifth German Grand Prix was held at the Nürburgring, using only the longer Nordschleife track for the first time. A big field of 31 starters took part in two classes: the cyclecars and voiturettes up to 1100cc would run 18 laps while the main class did 22 laps. Although there was no works team, Mercedes-Benz was well represented in their home Grand Prix with six cars, led by Rudolf Caracciola along with Hans Stuck and up-and-coming Manfred von Brauchitsch. The Bugatti team arrived in force with four cars, for Varzi, Chiron, Divo and Bouriat.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
There was also the German Bugatti Team with two cars – a Type 51 for von Morgen and an older 35B for Burggaller. Lehoux, Wimille and Earl Howe also arrived with their Type 51s. Maserati, having missed the Belgian GP, had four cars entered although only two arrived – for Fagioli and Dreyfus. Alfa Romeo were to be represented by the Scuderia Ferrari, but Borzacchini did not arrive so Nuvolari was their sole starter. The other notable entry was that of American driver Phil “Red” Shafer who bought his own Shafer Special, a 2-seat racecar with a 4.3-litre Buick engine.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
A huge crowd of over 100,000 arrived in drizzle for the 10am start. “Williams” had taken over Divo’s Bugatti and his own car was scratched. The big Mercedes were at the front of the grid while the Bugatti works team were all stuck in the middle with Nuvolari and Wimille at the back. Caracciola led Fagioli, von Morgen and Varzi at the end of the first lap, but by the end of the second lap Nuvolari had got up to fourth. After an hour, and five laps, Caracciola had a 1-minute lead over Nuvolari and Fagioli.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, July
On the 12th lap most of the cars (aside Nuvolari and von Morgen) pitted for refuelling as the rain gradually eased. Chiron had sped up as the track dried and passed Nuvolari but was still two minutes behind Caracciola. The rough, undulating track was damaging suspensions and cause oil leaks and a number of drivers (including “Williams”, Fagioli, Shafer and Dreyfus) retired with damaged engines or gearboxes for lack of oil in them. Although Chiron was steadily catching Caracciola, the German was able to manage his tyres well and held on to win by just over a minute. Varzi put in the fastest lap of the race to overtake von Morgen for third, who was losing oil pressure and retired on the last lap. This was the first motor-race to be broadcast over radio, with four commentators stationed at key corners reporting in via telephone.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Italy in August
While the German drivers were at the Avusrennen, most of the rest of Europe's top drivers were at the Coppa Ciano at the end of a week-long festival of racing on the coast at Livorno. It was another close race between Bugatti, Alfa Romeo and Maserati, and with a combined field with the voiturettes there were over 40 starters, started in threes at 1-minute intervals. Nuvolari, racing for the Scuderia Ferrari, took the lead initially and after his nearest rivals Fagioli and Varzi had early issues, was able to build a strong lead. Late in the race, Chiron pressed hard and Nuvolari had a small excursion on the hilly roads that made him drop his pace. But despite Chiron completing the race first, it was Nuvolari's victory on elapsed time.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Italy in August
A fortnight later, the circus re-convened for the Coppa Acerbo on the long, fast Pescara circuit. Many of the French drivers were at the Saint-Gaudens race in southern France, but a quality field was entered for the penultimate round of the Italian Championship. The long straights favoured the big bimotore with Nuvolari and Campari driving the Alfa Romeo Tipo A (under Scuderia Ferrari) and Maserati in his V4. Varzi and Chiron were again nominally independents but had Bugatti factory support. Campari led the start from Fagioli, Nuvolari and Varzi.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Italy in August
But once again, as at AVUS the hot temperatures and very high speeds played havoc with the tyres. Maserati, Fagioli and Varzi were delayed with delamination issues. Nuvolari pursued Campari and took the lead only for the pace to blow a gasket on one of his engines and overheat it. Campari drove more cautiously and took the victory from Chiron with Nuvolari's crippled Alfa third. The championship culminated at the Monza Grand Prix. The race format was a 14-lap heat for each of the three classes with the top finishers of those racing off in a 35-lap final.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Italy in August
The works teams arrived with full sets of their new cars for the fast track: Alfa Romeo had the biggest presence with top drivers Nuvolari and Campari in the Tipo A in the over 3-litre class, while Minoia, Borzacchini and Minozzi had the “Monza” Grand Prix car in the middle-class. Bugatti had Varzi and Chiron in the 5-litre Type 54. While Ernesto Maserati raced the big V4, teammates Fagioli and Dreyfus now both had the 2.8-litre 8C with Ruggeri in the older 26M, looking for a win in the 2-litre class.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Italy in August
He was up against a field of Bugatti Type 35s and Alfa Romeo 6Cs. Marcel Lehoux was the only driver in a Bugatti Type 51 and “Phi-Phi” Étancelin had his Alfa Romeo ‘Monza’. Ruggeri won the first heat, in the 2-litre class, for Maserati beating the Bugattis of Castelbarco and Czaykowski. Maserati was triumphant again in the second heat (for 3-litre cars) with Fagioli and Dreyfus leading home Minoia and Lehoux. Perhaps surprisingly, it was Nuvolari's Alfa Romeo, and not the Bugattis, that had tyre problems in the third heat, with Varzi and Chiron leading home the Italians.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Italy in August
Finally, there was an open repêchage race for those cars finishing 5th – 8th in each heat. In the end only four cars chose to enter, but tragedy struck near the end of the race when Étancelin went off the track at the Lesmo corner into spectators standing in an illegal area. Two were killed and fourteen wounded; Étancelin himself of only slightly injured. Borzacchini, Minozzi and Ghersi qualified. The four qualifiers from the 2-litre heat, knowing they would be outclassed, all chose not to contest the final.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Italy in August
In the slipstreaming battle, the lead changed several times in the early part of the race. Nuvolari retired with blown piston and by the tenth lap, Fagioli, Varzi, Dreyfus and Chiron had established a gap. Nuvolari called Minoia, the newly crowned European Champion, in to take over his car. The Bugattis had a bad race: Varzi had to pit twice for a successive tyre failures, and tyre debris severed one of Chiron's brake cables. Although Dreyfus also suffered engine issues, Fagioli continued on untroubled to take the win, a minute ahead of Borzacchini.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, Italy in August
Varzi recovered to take third while the Nuvolari/Minoia car was fourth. The victory put Varzi, Nuvolari, Campari and Fagioli all on equal points in the championship. The RACI decreed that Nuvolari and Campari had precedence as they had won the major races – Nuvolari won the Targa Florio and together they had won the Italian GP. In the end, they awarded the championship to Campari.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The end of the season
The last major event of the year was the second Masaryk Circuit, held on the long road circuit west of the city of Brno. With the other national events completed, it was able to attract most of the top European drivers and teams. Maserati and Fagioli ran their 8C cars; Alfa Romeo drivers Nuvolari, Borzacchini and Siena raced for the Scuderia Ferrari while Varzi, Chiron and Lehoux had their own Bugattis. Caracciola and Stuck also ran as privateers, although had notable factory support from Mercedes-Benz.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The end of the season
A big crowd arrived on a cold Sunday morning for the race, started by former driver Eliška Junková. As a memorial to her husband, killed in 1928 at the German GP, the would be a special prize to the fastest driver on the seventh lap. From the start, Fagioli burst into the lead, but on the second lap he hit a wooden pedestrian bridge support collapsing it and blocking the road. Somehow Borzacchini, Lehoux and Chiron were able to squeeze past but Nuvolari, Varzi and Caracciola could not avoid the wreckage, damaging their own cars. Varzi pitted to change three wheels, and also dropped off Nuvolari who had hitched a ride back with him.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The end of the season
Racing was strong again in Europe, with most of the major races easily attracting well over 100,000 spectators, despite the hard economic climate. There was a diversity of cars and the different manufacturers were well-matched and provided exciting racing with variety of personalities for the crowds to rally behind, as their favourites. It was apparent the power base for motor-racing was in Italy. Throughout the season, many of the major races also ran a voiturette race before or alongside them. Usually for cars up to 1.1 or 1.5-litre engines, they were well-supported with good sized fields.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The end of the season
The most consistent performer was Frenchman José Scaron, in his 1.1-litre supercharged Amilcar. He won the Italian Voiturette Grand Prix (held with the Monza GP) and at Casablanca, and placed at the German and Tunis Grands Prix and was often racing against driver in their 1.5-litre supercharged Bugatti Type 37As. Overall it had been a very positive year for Mercedes. With the depressed German economy, there was no sponsorship money available from fuel or automotive companies and managing director Wilhelm Kissel had closed the works racing team at the end of 1930 following the wishes of his board.


1931 Grand Prix season, Season review, The end of the season
However, development on the SSK produced the new lightweight model, and Kissel was able to provide works assistance to his best driver, Rudolf Caracciola, nominally running as a privateer. With the SSKL, he became the first foreigner to win the Mille Miglia after the two favourites, Nuvolari and Varzi, both had early issues. Caracciola also won the three major German races in the year – the Avusrennen, Eifelrennen and national Grand Prix and retained the European Mountain Championship. According to Alfred Neubauer, his prizemoney came to RM180,000, when a Mercedes machinist earned RM2500 annually. And to cap it all, Mercedes won the Spa 24-hours and was second in the Le Mans 24 hour sports-car races. This boded well for the German manufacturer’s future.


1931 Grand Prix season, Championship final standings
Note: *Not racing with his designated co-driver, therefore AIACR rules excluded him from the Championship standings


1931 Grand Prix season, Championship final standings
Bold font indicates starting on pole position, while italics show the driver of the race's fastest lap.


1931 Grand Prix season, Championship final standings
Source:  Information for 1st to 7th drivers originates from 1931 AUTOMOBIL-REVUE, while data for drivers 8 to 30 was compiled in 2008.


1931 Grand Prix season, Results of the other major races
italics show the driver of the race's fastest lap. Only those drivers with a best finish of 6th or better, or a fastest lap, are shown. Sources:


1931 Green Bay Packers season
The 1931 Green Bay Packers season was their 13th season overall and their 11th in the National Football League. The team finished with a 12–2 record under coach Curly Lambeau, earning them a first-place finish and the Packers third consecutive National Football League Championship. The Packers became the first team to win three consecutive NFL championships.


1931 Green Bay Packers season, Standings
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.


1931 Grenadian general election, Electoral system
The Legislative Council consisted of 16 members; the Governor (who served as president of the council), seven 'official' members (civil servants), three appointed members and five elected members. Voting was restricted to men aged 21 or over and women aged 30 or over who had resided in Grenada for at least two years and either had an income of at least £30 per year, owned property valued at £150 or more, or rented property for at least £12 per annum. Candidacy was restricted to qualified male voters with a minimum annual income of £200 and who either had lived in their constituency for at least a year, or owned property in the constituency worth at least £500.


1931 Grenadian general election, Electoral system
There were 2,272 registered voters, up from 2,088 in 1928.


1931 Grenadian general election, Results
The Grenada Workingmen's Association had four candidates; T.A. Marryshow, George Elmore Edwards, John Fleming and Fitz Henry Copland. The GWA also supported Willan E. Julien in St David's – South St George's.


1931 Guamanian legislative election, Background
In March 1931 Governor Willis W. Bradley dissolved the First Guam Congress, stating that it was "not functioning either as a representative body or in a manner to take full advantage of its responsibilities." He issued a proclamation that created a bicameral Congress with a 27-member House of Representatives and a 15-member House of Council. Members of the House of Representatives were to serve for two years and members of the House of Council for four.


1931 Guamanian legislative election, Aftermath
The Second Guam Congress met for the first time on 2 April 1931, with Bradley opening the meeting.


1931 Guatemalan general election
General elections were held in Guatemala between 6 and 8 February 1931. In the presidential election Jorge Ubico was elected unopposed, after the remaining sector of the old Liberal Party did not object to his candidacy, whilst the Conservative Party was too disorganised and discredited from the Lázaro Chacón González era to put forward a candidate. Ubico's Progressive Liberal Party, formed by a union of the two wings of the divided Liberal Party also won the parliamentary election unopposed.


1931 Guildford by-election
The Guildford by-election, 1931 was a parliamentary by-election held for the British House of Commons constituency of Guildford in Surrey on 25 August 1931.


1931 Guildford by-election
The seat had become vacant on the death of the Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) Sir Henry Buckingham, who had held the seat since the 1922 general election.


1931 Guildford by-election
The Liberal candidate who had finished a strong second at the 1929 general election, Somerset Stopford Brooke, withdrew his candidature, allowing the Conservatives an uncontested return the day after Ramsay MacDonald formed his National Government.


1931 Guildford by-election
The Conservative candidate, Charles Rhys, had previously been MP for Romford from 1923 general election to 1929 general election, and held the Guildford seat until he stood down at the 1935 general election


1931 Hamburg state election
The 1931 Hamburg state election was held on 27 September 1931 to elect the 160 members of the Hamburg Parliament.


1931 Harvard Crimson football team
The 1931 Harvard Crimson football team represented Harvard University as an independent during the 1931 college football season. In its first season under head coach Eddie Casey, Harvard compiled a 5–2–1 record and outscored opponents by a total of 158 to 80. Barry Wood was the team captain. The team played its home games at Harvard Stadium in Boston.


1931 Haskell Indians football team
The 1931 Haskell Indians football team was an American football that represented the Haskell Institute (now known as Haskell Indian Nations University) during the 1931 college football season. In its third year under head coach William Henry Dietz, the team compiled a 6–4 record. Louis Weller was the team captain for third consecutive season.


1931 Hauraki by-election
The Hauraki by-election of 1931 was a by-election held in the Hauraki electorate during the 23rd New Zealand Parliament, on 27 May 1931. It was caused by the death of incumbent MP Arthur Hall of the Reform Party and was won by Walter Massey.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake
The 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, also known as the Napier earthquake, occurred in New Zealand at 10:47 am on 3 February, killing 256, injuring thousands and devastating the Hawke's Bay region. It remains New Zealand's deadliest natural disaster. Centred 15 km north of Napier, it lasted for two and a half minutes and had a magnitude of 7.8 Ms(7.7 Mw). There were 525 aftershocks recorded in the following two weeks, with 597 being recorded by the end of February. The main shock could be felt in much of New Zealand, with reliable reports coming in from as far south as Timaru, on the east coast of the South Island.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Tectonic setting
New Zealand lies along the boundary between the Indo-Australian Plate and Pacific Plates. In the South Island most of the relative displacement between these plates is taken up along a single dextral (right lateral) strike-slip fault with a major reverse component, the Alpine Fault. In the North Island the displacement is mainly taken up along the Hikurangi Subduction Zone, although the remaining dextral strike-slip component of the relative plate motion is accommodated by the North Island Fault System (NIFS).


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Tectonic setting
The earthquake is thought to have occurred on one of the larger thrust faults within the accretionary wedge, at between ca. 5 km depth and ca. 20–25 km depth (which is the approximate depth of subducted Pacific plate at that location).


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Effects
Nearly all buildings in the central areas of Napier and Hastings were levelled (The Dominion noted that "Napier as a town has been wiped off the map") and the death toll included 161 people in Napier, 93 in Hastings, and two in Wairoa. Thousands more were injured, with over 400 hospitalised.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Effects
The local landscape changed dramatically, with the coastal areas around Napier being lifted by around two metres. The most noticeable land change was the uplifting of some 40 km2 of sea-bed to become dry land. This included Ahuriri Lagoon, which was lifted more than 2.7 metres and resulted in draining 2230 hectares of the lagoon. Today, this area is the location of Hawkes Bay Airport, housing and industrial developments and farmland.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Effects
Within minutes fires broke out in chemist shops in Hastings Street, Napier. The fire brigade almost had the first fire under control when the second broke out in a shop at the back of the Masonic Hotel. The hotel was quickly engulfed in flames. The wind at this point also picked up strength and began blowing from the east, pushing the fires back over the city. With water mains broken, the brigade was unable to save many buildings. Pumping water from Clive Square, they were able to stop the fires spreading south.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Effects
Only a few buildings in the central Napier area survived. Some withstood the earthquake only to be gutted by fire. Trapped people had to be left to burn as people were unable to free them in time. By Wednesday morning, the main fires were out, but the ruins still smouldered for several days.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Effects
The death toll might have been much higher had the Royal Navy ship HMS Veronica not been in port at the time. Within minutes of the shock the Veronica had sent radio messages asking for help. The sailors joined survivors to fight the fires, rescue trapped people and help give them medical treatment. The Veronica's radio was used to transmit news of the disaster to the outside world and to seek assistance.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Effects
The crew from two cargo ships, the Northumberland and Taranaki, also joined the rescue works, while two cruisers, HMS Diomede and HMS Dunedin, were dispatched from Auckland that afternoon with food, tents, medicine, blankets, and a team of doctors and nurses. The cruisers sailed at high speed overnight, arrived on 4 February and provided valuable assistance in all areas until their departure on 11 February.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Effects
A group of prisoners working at Bluff Hill in Napier had four of their number buried in a landslip by the quake. The remaining prisoners dug them out, but two had been killed. The prisoners re-assembled without any attempt to escape and were locked up in the Napier Jail. In Taradale, Mission Estate missionaries' accommodation block had been built and opened in February 1931. The next day the Hawke's Bay earthquake struck, causing serious damage to the entire Mission. Two priests and seven students were killed when the stone chapel was destroyed. In Havelock North, St Luke's church was damaged (but not destroyed) just before a wedding was due to take place. The couple got married later in the day, but outdoors.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Effects
The entire Hawke's Bay and Gisborne region lost electricity during the quake, although power was restored to Waipukurau within two hours and to Gisborne within ten hours. At Napier substation, the transformers were tipped over by the force of the quake and the high-voltage switchgear damaged, while the Napier to Tuai transmission line was taken out of service after a landslide caused a tower to collapse. A limited supply was restored to Napier and Hastings on 4 February; due to the damage at Napier substation, the Waipukurau to Napier transmission line was jumpered to the low-voltage switchgear at both ends. The Napier to Tuai line was repaired and put back into service on 12 February, while full supply to Naiper substation was restored on 29 March.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Effects
Within four days of the quake, cinemas around New Zealand offered news specials about the disaster.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Effects
Another casualty of the earthquake was the Napier trams. The tracks were twisted by the earthquake, and were never restored.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Effects
New Zealand's first commercial air disaster occurred six days after the quake, when a Dominion Airlines Desoutter monoplane crashed near Wairoa. The small airline had been making three return trips a day between Hastings and Gisborne, carrying passengers and supplies. All three on board were killed.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Effects
The Napier Daily Telegraph had recently celebrated its diamond jubilee with an article describing Napier as "the Nice of the Pacific". The newspaper office was destroyed by the quake. The Hawke's Bay Herald offices in Hastings were also destroyed.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Aftershocks
On 13 February, Hawke's Bay was struck by a 7.3 Ms  aftershock. At the time, this second event was New Zealand's fourth strongest recorded earthquake. Author Matthew Wright reported that "the power failed three seconds before the earthquake was felt in Napier. People from Napier to Dannevirke ran for their lives as previously damaged buildings cracked and fell". He added "Some inland parts of Hawke's Bay felt this aftershock more strongly than 3 February quake. In Taupo, goods were thrown from shop shelves, but 'there was no damage of any moment'. People rushed into the streets in Dannevirke and Masterton.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Aftershocks
In Wellington all but one of the clocks stopped working in the Dominion Observatory, and ceiling lights in the Evening Post offices swayed 'more vigorously' than they had the week before". The earthquake of 13 February 1931 is widely regarded as an aftershock of the larger event ten days earlier.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Aftershocks
But Messrs Adams, Barnett and Hayes commenting on the rapid decline in the frequency of aftershocks in the Journal of Science & Technology stated, "The fresh outbreak on the 13th February, due to the severe shock on that date, may almost be regarded as a separate disturbance, although it probably arose from conditions produced by the original shock on the 3rd".


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Aftershocks
Aftershocks continued to shake Hawke's Bay frequently until July 1931, where the average aftershock occurrence dropped to less than one daily. Aftershocks continued for several years, with the last major jolt shaking the Bay in April 1934.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Aftershocks
Below is a list of all recorded aftershocks following the main event.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Aftershocks
In all, 597 earthquakes were recorded at Hastings during February 1931, and more than 900 by the end of December 1931.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Rebuilding
The government quickly realised that the Napier borough council would be overwhelmed with organising the rebuild and appointed two commissioners for this task, John Barton and Lachlan Bain Campbell. When the commissioners were due to leave in May 1933, they were petitioned to stay, and Barton was invited to stand for the mayoralty, which he declined.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Rebuilding
The earthquake prompted a thorough review of New Zealand building codes, which were found to be totally inadequate. Many buildings built during the 1930s and 1940s are heavily reinforced, although more recent research has developed other strengthening techniques. Building regulations established as a result of this event mean that to this day, there are only four buildings in Hawke's Bay taller than five storeys, and as most of the region's rebuilding took place in the 1930s when Art Deco was fashionable, Hawke's Bay architecture is regarded today as being one of the finest collections of Art Deco in the world.


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Rebuilding
On the tenth anniversary of the earthquake, the New Zealand Listener reported that Napier had risen from the ashes like a phoenix. It quoted the 1931 principal of Napier Girls' High School as saying "Napier today is a far lovelier city than it was before".


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Gallery
1931 Hawkes Bay Earthquake - Baker and Pastrycook shop, Waipawa


1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Gallery
1931 Hawkes Bay Earthquake - Port Ahuriri - HMS Veronica at Wharf


1931 Hawthorn Football Club season
The 1931 season was the Hawthorn Football Club's 7th season in the Victorian Football League and 30th overall.


1931 Hawthorn Football Club season, Schedule, Premiership season
Hawthorn played their round 7 and 8 games before their round 6 game due to round 6 being split with games played on either Monday, 8 June or Saturday, 27 June.


1931 Hessian state election
The 1931 Hessian state election was held on 15 November 1931 to elect the 70 members of the Landtag of Hesse.


1931 Holy Cross Crusaders football team
The 1931 Holy Cross Crusaders football team was an American football team that represented the College of the Holy Cross as an independent during the 1931 college football season. In its second season under head coach John McEwan, the team compiled a 7–2–1 record. The team played its home games at Fitton Field in Worcester, Massachusetts.


1931 Homestead Grays season
The 1931 Homestead Grays baseball team competed as an independent in Negro league baseball during the 1931 baseball season. The team compiled a 34–21–1 (.616) record.


1931 Homestead Grays season
The team featured seven individuals who were later inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame: manager Cumberland Posey, first baseman Oscar Charleston; catcher Josh Gibson; third baseman Jud Wilson; and pitchers Bill Foster, Smokey Joe Williams, and Satchel Paige.


1931 Homestead Grays season
The team's leading pitchers were Bill Foster (9–2, 2.34 ERA) and Smokey Joe Williams (6–2, 2.41 ERA).


1931 Howard Bulldogs football team
The 1931 Howard Bulldogs football team was an American football team that represented Howard College (now known as the Samford University) as a member of the Dixie Conference and the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) during the 1931 college football season. In their third year under head coach Eddie McLane, the team compiled a 8–2–2.


1931 Humboldt State Lumberjacks football team
The 1931 Humboldt State Lumberjacks football team represented Humboldt State College during the 1931 college football season. They competed as an independent.


1931 Humboldt State Lumberjacks football team
The 1931 Lumberjacks were led by fifth-year head coach Fred Telonicher. They played home games at Albee Stadium in Eureka, California. After the debacle of the previous season (winless, and being outscored 7–268), the 1931 season was a step back for the team. They eliminated several teams from their schedule and added back in a high school team. This proved a positive, as Humboldt State finished with a record of one win, two losses and one tie (1–2–1). The Lumberjacks outscored their opponents 48–42 for the season.


1931 Hungarian parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Hungary between 28 and 30 June 1931. The result was a victory for the Unity Party, which won 149 of the 245 seats in Parliament. István Bethlen remained Prime Minister, but resigned on 24 August due to the effects of the Great Depression and was replaced by Gyula Károlyi.


1931 Hungarian parliamentary election, Electoral system
The electoral system remained the same as in 1926. There were 199 openly elected single-member constituencies and 11 secretly elected multi-member constituencies electing a total of 46 seats.


1931 Hungarian parliamentary election, Results
The number of votes refers to only 132 of the 199 single-member constituencies, as 67 seats were uncontested.


1931 Hungarian parliamentary election, Results
The number of votes refers to seven of the eleven MMCs.


1931 Hungarian parliamentary election, Results
The total number of registered voters was 2,549,178; the figure in the table refers to the number of registered voters in the contested seats for which figures are available.


1931 Ice Hockey World Championships
The 1931 Ice Hockey World Championship was the 5th World Championship, an annual international ice hockey tournament. It took place between 1 and 8 February 1931 in Krynica, Poland. The tournament was won by Canada who were represented by the University of Manitoba Grads team, claiming their fifth world championship title by finishing on top of the group in the final round with a total of nine points. The United States finished second to win the silver medal, losing only one game to Canada and Austria finished third for the bronze medal. The host nation of Poland finished fourth at the tournament after winning one game, tying one, and losing three in the final round.


1931 Ice Hockey World Championships
The World Championship also acted simultaneously as the 15th European Championship. Austria who finished highest of the European teams in third were named the champions.


1931 Ice Hockey World Championships, First round
Four teams compete in the First round each playing one game. The winning teams advance to the Second round and the losing teams compete in the Consolation round.


1931 Ice Hockey World Championships, Second round
Eight teams compete in the Second round each playing one game. The winning teams advance to the Final round and the losing teams compete in the Third round.


1931 Ice Hockey World Championships, Third round
The four losing teams from the Second round compete in the Third round each playing one game. The winning teams advance to the Final round and the losing teams compete in the Consolation round.


1931 Ice Hockey World Championships, Final round
The six participating teams played a round-robin, with the top three teams winning gold, silver and bronze respectively. Canada's University of Manitoba Grads won the tournament with a total of nine points after winning four games and tying one. Sweden's 0 – 0 tie with Canada was the first time a European team did not lose to a team representing Canada in a World Championship match. Due to a tie between Czechoslovakia and Poland in points, fourth spot was given to Poland who had more total goals scored.


1931 Ice Hockey World Championships, Consolation round
The four participating teams played a round-robin, with games played between February 4 to February 7. The winner Hungary won all three games, finishing with six points and earning sixth place in the overall standings.


1931 Ice Hockey World Championships, 15th European Championship
The 1931 World Championship also acted simultaneously as the 15th European Championships. Austria were named champions after finishing as the highest ranked European team in the tournament in third. Second and third were awarded to Poland and Czechoslovakia respectively.


1931 Icelandic parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Iceland on 12 June 1931. Voters elected all 28 seats in the Lower House of the Althing and eight of the fourteen seats in Upper House. The Progressive Party emerged as the largest party in the Lower House.


1931 Idaho Vandals football team
The 1931 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the 1931 college football season. The Vandals were led by third-year head coach Leo Calland, and were members of the Pacific Coast Conference. Home games were played on campus in Moscow at MacLean Field, with none in Boise this season.


1931 Idaho Vandals football team
Idaho compiled a 3–4 overall record and lost all but one of its five games in the PCC. The Vandals were led on the field by undersized sophomore quarterback Wee Willie Smith, then known as "Little Giant" Willis Smith of Boise. Three years later in 1934, he was a backup in the NFL with the New York Giants in their championship season.


1931 Idaho Vandals football team
In the Battle of the Palouse with neighbor Washington State, the Vandals suffered a fourth straight loss, falling by one point at Rogers Field in Pullman on November 7. Idaho's most recent win in the series was six years earlier in 1925 and the next was 23 years away in 1954.


1931 Idaho Vandals football team, All-conference
No Vandals were named to the All-Coast team; honorable mention were center Arthur Spaugy, guard Elmer Martin, and sophomore quarterback Willis Smith.


1931 Illinois Fighting Illini football team
The 1931 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois during the 1931 college football season. In their 19th season under head coach Robert Zuppke, the Illini compiled a 2–6 record and finished in last place in the Big Ten Conference. End Fred Frink was selected as the team's most valuable player. Halfback Gil Berry was the team captain.


1931 Indiana Hoosiers football team
The 1931 Indiana Hoosiers football team represented the Indiana Hoosiers in the 1931 college football season. The participated as members of the Big Ten Conference. The Hoosiers played their home games at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana. The team was coached by Earl C. Hayes, in his first year as head coach of the Hoosiers.


1931 Indianapolis 500
The 19th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday, May 30, 1931. Race winner Louis Schneider, who led the final 34 laps, was accompanied by riding mechanic Jigger Johnson.


1931 Indianapolis 500
The start of the race was delayed two hours due to rain. Defending race winner Billy Arnold charged from 18th starting position to lead the race by lap 7. Arnold, who had dominated the 1930 race (led 198 laps), proceeded to lead the next 155 laps, and built up a five-lap lead over second place. His rear axle broke on lap 162. He spun in turn four, was hit by another car, driven by Luther Johnson, and went over the outside wall. One of his errant wheels bounced across Georgetown Road, and struck and killed an 11-year-old boy, Wilbur C. Brink. Arnold suffered a broken pelvis, and his riding mechanic Spider Matlock broke his shoulder.


1931 Indianapolis 500
The race was part of the 1931 AAA Championship Car season.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Practice – Week 1
The deadline for entries to be received was midnight on Friday May 1. A record 72 cars were entered, for 40 starting positions. The track was made available for practice at the beginning of the month, and most entries were expected to arrive mid-month.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Practice – Week 1
By the end of the first full week of practice, track activity had been sparse. Several of the top teams were expected to arrive within the next week. In addition, rain and cold weather kept drivers off the track over the weekend and into Monday.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials
Four-lap (10 mile) qualifying runs were utilized, with 90 mph set as the required minimum speed. Diesel entries were allowed a special rules exception, given them a guaranteed starting position provided they complete their run at a speed of greater than 80 mph. Riding mechanics were required to accompany the drivers on all cars during qualifying.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Saturday May 23
The first day of time trials was held Saturday May 23, with the track available for qualifying from 10:00 a.m. to 7:01 p.m. (sundown). The minimum qualifying speed for gasoline powered engines was set at 90 mph. Dave Evans was the first car out to qualify, in the Cummins Diesel Special. Evans completed his run at 96.871 mph, well above the 80 mph minimum speed required for diesel-powered entries.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Saturday May 23
Russ Snowberger won the pole position with a four-lap average speed of 112.796 mph. A total of 19 cars took to the track, but only 17 cars officially qualified. Rounding out the front row was Bill Cummings and first year driver Paul Bost. Snowberger winning the pole was a surprise, not only because his nearly-stock motor Studebaker outperformed Cummings and others, but three of the favorites for the pole did not even get to put in a time. Cummings first attempt early in the day started out with a lap of 115.001 mph, but he suffered a failed clutch. Cumming's second attempt run managed only a 112.563 mph, just 0.66 seconds shy of bumping Snowberger from the pole.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Saturday May 23
Shorty Cantlon was kept off the track for the whole weekend, still awaiting an engine rebuild. He was expected to qualify on Tuesday. Louis Meyer, another favorite, took to the track to make an attempt in the 16-cylinder Sampson Special. He came down the mainstretch, but lost control in turn one, brushing the inside and outside wall. He drove back to the pits with a bent frame, and would be forced to make repairs.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Saturday May 23
Defending pole position and race winner Billy Arnold was having trouble finding speed over the past couple of days, but scrambled to make an attempt late in the day on Saturday. He wheeled to the line at 7:08 p.m., past the deadline for the track to close. Officials decided to allow the run, and his four-lap average of 113.848 mph tentatively took the pole position. After the run, some drivers protested, and during a post-qualifying inspection, it was found that Arnold's brake cables were not connected. During the rush to get the car on the track, the crew had neglected to connect the brake cables, and technical committee chairman Louis H. Schwitzer disallowed the run.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Sunday May 24
The second day of time trials was held on Sunday May 24. The track was for available for qualifying from 1 p.m. to 7:01 p.m. (sundown). Only two cars completed qualifying runs. One day after having his run disallowed, Billy Arnold put his car in the field at 116.080 mph. he became the fastest qualifier in the field.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Sunday May 24
During a practice run, the car of Floyd "Sparky" Sparks caught on fire down the backstretch, ignited from an oil or gasoline leak. Attempting to close off the fuel line, he hit the retaining wall in turn three. The car was badly burned. Sparks would not be able to qualify.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Sunday May 24
Tony Gulotta was the only other driver to complete a qualifying attempt. Gulotta left the Bowes Seal Fast team and instead moved over to the Hunt Special entered by Ab Jenkins. Freddy Winnai took his old seat. Gulotta would have been fast enough for the second row, but as a second day qualifier, he would line up 19th on the grid. Lou Moore tried to qualify Pete DePaolo's Boyle Valve Special, but a broken clutch prevented the attempt. At the end of the day, the field was filled to 19 cars, with 21 spots remaining.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Monday May 25
The third day of qualifying was held Monday May 25, with the track available from 2 p.m. to 7:02 p.m. (sundown). The day was marred by the fatal accident of Joe Caccia and his riding mechanic Clarence Grover. Caccia was on the track in the morning for a practice run, when the car skidded out of control entering turn 2. The car slid about 150 feet, and then slid into the outside barrier. The car ripped a hole through the outside retaining wall, hurtled 100 feet down the embankment, and crashed into a tree. Both drivers were likely thrown from the car, landed next to it, and the car had burst into flames. Both drivers were killed instantly, and were enveloped by the flames.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Monday May 25
Five cars completed qualification runs, filling the field to 24 cars. Jimmy Gleason (111.400 mph) was the fastest car of the day. Frank Farmer, formerly of the M.A. Yagle entry, took over the Jones-Miller Special, and was the second-fastest car of the day.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Monday May 25
Still yet to qualify was Shorty Cantlon, who practiced unofficially over 118 mph, but suffered a broken universal joint during the day.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Tuesday May 26
The fourth day of qualifying was held Tuesday May 26, with the track available from 2 p.m. to 7:02 p.m. (sundown). Nine cars completed runs, led by Lou Meyer in the Samson Special. Meyer was qualified comfortably, though probably below his potential speed, said to be playing it safe after his crash on Saturday. After considerable delay, Shorty Cantlon put his 16-cylinder machine in the field, as did Leon Duray. Duray had been suffering from overheating issues all week, and observers noted he qualified with water boiling from the radiator, indicating the problems were still not solved.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Wednesday May 27
The final day of qualifying was held Wednesday May 26, with the track available from 2 p.m. to 7:04 p.m. (sundown). The day opening with seven spots remaining in the grid. Out of a total of 72 entries, upwards of twenty cars were considered available for time trials.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Wednesday May 27
During a busy day of track activity, a total of eight cars qualified for the starting field, filling the grid to 40 cars. At least twelve other cars attempted to qualify, but were too slow or failed to complete their run. The fastest car of the day was Gene Haustein (107.823 mph), followed by Myron Stevens.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Wednesday May 27
Car owner Fred Clemmons managed to get both of his Hoosier Pete entries qualified, despite the cars only arriving at the track for the first time Wednesday morning. Billy Winn and Herman Schurch both took to the track for shake down laps at slow speed, and practiced for only about 45 minutes. The cars were brought to the garage for adjustments to the springs and shock absorbers, and later in the afternoon were safely qualified to the grid with only about 20 laps of practice each.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Wednesday May 27
Wilbur Shaw and Ralph DePalma were both at the track Wednesday, looking to qualify. Officials deemed that DePalma had not arrived in enough time to qualify, and the car he was to drive had not shown sufficient speed. Shaw took to the track for a qualifying attempt late in the day, but he pulled off with a broken crankshaft before starting the run.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Wednesday May 27
With less than fifteen minutes remaining in the day, Joe Huff was the final qualifier. Huff would have "crowded out" Harry Butcher, the slowest qualifier. After qualifying was over, however, Peter Kreis in the Coleman Special withdrew due to handling problems. As a result, Harry Butcher in the Butcher Brothers Special was restored to the starting field.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Wednesday May 27
The track was to be available on Thursday for final "carburation tests." No track activity was scheduled for Friday.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Race recap, Start
Overnight and morning rain delayed the start from 10:00 a.m. to 12 p.m. The Indianapolis Drum and Bugle Corps. paraded and entertained the early arriving fans, including Governor Harry G. Leslie and his entourage of seven other state governors. At noon, pace car driver Willard "Big Boy" Rader guided the field in the Cadillac 370 V-12 pace car for one unscored pace lap. Speedway general manager Theodore E. Meyers rode as a passenger. Rader and Meyers pulled over on the mainstretch, and the green flag was displayed for the flying start. The race began with Paul Bost grabbing the lead from the outside of the front row. Bost led the first two laps. Bill Cummings took the lead for laps 3–6.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Race recap, Start
Defending winner Billy Arnold, who started 18th (and was the fastest qualifier), went on a tear through the field at the start. He passed 17 cars, and took the lead on lap 7. He picked up where he left off a year earlier, and started pulling out to about a 15-second lead.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Race recap, Start
After suffering constant overheating problems during practice and time trials, Leon Duray pitted his car after only six laps. The overheating problems persisted and he finished 37th.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Race recap, First half
On lap 33, rain returned to the area, and brought out the yellow flag. The race was slowed and run under the yellow flag for about the next 28 laps. Drivers were required to slow down to about an 80 mph pace, and passing was not allowed unless except those cars that entered the pit area.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Race recap, First half
The drizzling stopped, and the green flag came back out on the 61st lap. Only a few laps later, the yellow flag came out again when Wilbur Shaw (driving relief for Phil Pardee) wrecked spectacularly in turn three. The car leaped over the outside wall, and down the embankment. Shaw was uninjured, and walked back to the pits, ready to relieve another driver. While the crash was being cleaned up, more rain began to fall, and the yellow remained out for several minutes more.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Race recap, First half
By lap 70, the rain had stopped and the green flag was back out with Billy Arnold still leading. Ralph Hepburn was running second, Tony Gulotta third, Russ Snowberger fourth, and Fred Frame fifth. Bill Cummings dropped out after completing 70 laps due to an oil leak. On lap 94, Cummins took over the car of Deacon Litz. Also dropping out early with an oil leak was Louis Meyer (28 laps). He got back in the race on lap 73, taking over as relief for Myron Stevens.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Race recap, Second half
Louis Schneider made his first and only pit stop on lap 106, taking on gasoline and oil, as well as changing the right rear tire. After surviving a spectacular crash in the first half, Wilbur Shaw was back in the race on lap 118, this time driving a stint of relief for Jimmy Gleason.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Race recap, Second half
After leading 155 laps, Billy Arnold crashed on lap 162. In turn four, Arnold spun, and lost a wheel. He was hit by the car of Luther Johnson. Arnold's car burst into flames, and hit the concrete wall. It slid for about 200 feet, and Arnold and his riding mechanic Spider Matlock were thrown from the machine. A wheel from Arnold's wrecked car bounced over the wall and across the street, striking and killing an 11-year-old boy playing in his yard. Johnson's car flipped over, but he was not seriously injured.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Race recap, Second half
Louis Schneider took the lead after Arnold's crash. Five laps later Tony Gulotta crashed in nearly the same spot as Arnold. Gulotta's car slid into the inside wall, then bounced up to the outside guardrail, ripping a portion of the barrier out, Neither Gulotta nor his riding mechanic were seriously injured.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Race recap, Second half
With 30 laps to go, Schneider and second place Bill Cummings were nose-to-tail, battling for the lead. Cummings had taken over the car of Deacon Litz. Cummings hit the wall in the south short chute on lap 177, leaving Schneider all alone out in front. Schneider led the final 39 laps en route to victory, and won by 43.19 seconds over second place Fred Frame. At the time, it was the second-closest margin of victory in Indianapolis 500 history.


1931 Indianapolis 500, Race recap, Second half
Polesitter Russ Snowberger was one of three drivers in the top five to complete the race without relief help. The car of Myron Stevens, with Louis Meyer driving relief for most of the race, charged from 35th starting position to 4th place, a remarkable gain of 31 positions at the finish.


1931 International Cross Country Championships
The 1931 International Cross Country Championships was held inDublin, Ireland, at the Baldoyle Racecourse on 28 March 1931. For the first time, an unofficial women's championship was held a week earlierin Douai, France on 22 March 1931. A report on the event was givenin the Glasgow Herald for the men's and the women's event.


1931 International Cross Country Championships
Complete results for men, and for women (unofficial), medallists,  and the results of British athletes were published.


1931 International Cross Country Championships, Participation, Men's
An unofficial count yields the participation of 54 male athletes from 6 countries.


1931 International Cross Country Championships, Participation, Women's
An unofficial count yields the participation of 16 female athletes from 3 countries.


1931 International Lawn Tennis Challenge
The 1931 International Lawn Tennis Challenge was the 26th edition of what is now known as the Davis Cup. Due to an increase in South American entries, the America Zone was split into the North & Central America Zone and the South America Zone. The winner of each sub-zone would play to determine who moved to the Inter-Zonal round. 22 teams would enter the Europe Zone, while 8 would enter the America Zone. These included first-time entries from Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, although Brazil withdrew without playing a tie, and Paraguay would not play their second tie until 1982. This year also marked the first time that ties were played in South America.


1931 International Lawn Tennis Challenge
The United States defeated Argentina in the America Inter-Zonal Final, but would then lose to Great Britain in the Inter-Zonal play-off. France defeated Great Britain in the Challenge Round, giving France their fifth straight title. The final was played at Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France on 24–26 July.


1931 International Lawn Tennis Challenge America Zone
The America Zone was one of the two regional zones of the 1931 International Lawn Tennis Challenge.


1931 International Lawn Tennis Challenge America Zone
Due to an increase in South American entries, the America Zone was split into the North & Central America Zone and the South America Zone. The winner of each sub-zone would play against each other to determine who moved to the Inter-Zonal Final to compete against the winner of the Europe Zone. 8 teams entered the America Zone: 3 teams competed in the North & Central America Zone, while 5 teams competed in the South America Zone.


1931 International Lawn Tennis Challenge America Zone
The United States defeated Canada in the North & Central America Zone final, and Argentina defeated Chile in the South America Zone final. In the Americas Inter-Zonal Final, the United States defeated Argentina and went on to face Great Britain in the Inter-Zonal Final.


1931 International Lawn Tennis Challenge Europe Zone
The Europe Zone was one of the two regional zones of the 1931 International Lawn Tennis Challenge.


1931 International Lawn Tennis Challenge Europe Zone
22 teams entered the Europe Zone, with the winner going on to compete in the Inter-Zonal Final against the winner of the America Zone. Great Britain defeated Czechoslovakia in the final, and went on to face the United States in the Inter-Zonal Final.


1931 International Society for Contemporary Music Festival
The 1931 International Society for Contemporary Music Festival was the ninth edition of the society's annual festival. It was held in London and Oxford from 23 to 28 July 1931 and consisted of six concerts featuring 29 compositions from thirteen countries, including one opera. Eleven works were broadcast by the BBC, bringing the festival to national attention.


1931 International Society for Contemporary Music Festival
Aaron Copland was critical of the event, criticizing that the ISCM Festival had become a means "to consecrate the glory of established reputations and to call to the attention of an international public the music of certain newer composers" rather than supporting the most revolutionary musical tendencies.


1931 Invercargill mayoral election
The 1931 Invercargill mayoral election was part of the New Zealand local elections held that same year. The polling was conducted using the standard first-past-the-post electoral method.


1931 Invercargill mayoral election
Incumbent mayor John D. Campbell was narrowly defeated by former mayor John Miller.


1931 Iowa Hawkeyes football team
The 1931 Iowa Hawkeyes football team represented the University of Iowa in the 1931 college football season. This was Burt Ingwersen's eighth and final season as head coach of the Hawkeyes.


1931 Iowa State Cyclones football team
The 1931 Iowa State Cyclones football team represented Iowa State College of Agricultural and Mechanic Arts (later renamed Iowa State University) in the Big Six Conference during the 1931 college football season. In their first season under head coach George Veenker, the Cyclones compiled a 5–3 record (3–1 against conference opponents), finished in second place in the conference, and were outscored by opponents by a combined total of 74 to 72. They played their home games at State Field in Ames, Iowa.


1931 Iowa State Cyclones football team
Robert Bowmen was the team captain. Roger Bowen and Dick Grefe were selected as first-team all-conference players.


1931 Irish Greyhound Derby
The 1931 National Derby took place during August with the final being held at Harold's Cross Stadium in Dublin on 21 August 1931. It was the fourth and last edition of the event before it took the mantle of the official Irish Greyhound Derby. The race at this stage was considered unofficial because it had not been ratified by the Irish Coursing Club.


1931 Irish Greyhound Derby
The winner was Little Chummie, trained by Billy Quinn and owned and bred by Michael Grace from (Callan). The brindle dog born in June 1928 also won the National Cup at Shelbourne Park and the Lincoln Cup at Wembley.


1931 Isle of Man TT
The 1931 Isle of Man Tourist Trophy was again dominated by the battle between Rudge, Sunbeam and Norton motor-cycles.


1931 Isle of Man TT
The 1931 Junior TT Race was run at a very fast pace by Jimmie Simpson riding for Norton who completed the first lap in 30 minutes and 49 seconds and was 6 second ahead of fellow Norton teammate Stanley Woods in 2nd place and 18 seconds ahead of Freddie Hicks in 3rd place riding an AJS motor-cycle. Although, Jimmie Simpson was able to hold on to the lead for the next 5 lap, he was slowed by having to refuel every two laps because of carburetor problems.


1931 Isle of Man TT
Fellow, Norton teammate, Tim Hunt recovered from a slow first lap with a loose plug-lead to set the fastest lap on lap 4 of 30 minutes and 5 seconds an average race speed of 75.27 mph (121.14 km/h) and steadily moves-up the leaderboard. Further, carburetor problems causes Jimmie Simpson to drops off the leaderboard and eventually finishes in 8th place. This allows the 1931 Junior TT Race to be won by Tim Hunt riding for Norton, in 3 hours 34 minutes and 21 seconds, at an average race speed of 73.94 mph (118.99 km/h), from Norton teammates Jimmie Guthrie, and Ernie Nott riding a Rudge motor-cycle.


1931 Isle of Man TT
The 1931 Lightweight TT was dominated by the works Rudge motor-cycles and the race was lap 1 by Ernie Nott by 45 seconds from Rudge teammates, H. G. Tyrell Smith and Graham Walker in 3rd place. By lap 6, Ernie Nott had a lead of 4 minutes over the rest of the field, until on the last lap he slid of just below the Mountain Mile and finished in 4th place steadying a damaged push-rod with his hand. This provided a first and only TT Race win for Graham Walker riding a Rudge at an average race speed of 68.98 mph (111.01 km/h).


1931 Isle of Man TT
The highly anticipated 1931 Senior TT Race which was again set to be dominated by Rudge and Norton motor-cycles. However, it proved to dominated again by Norton and Jimmie Simpson and Jimmie Guthrie, this time Guthrie led on lap 1 by 1 second from Jimmie Simpson and Norton teammate Stanley Woods by 17 seconds in 3rd place. On lap 3, the 1931 Senior TT Race produced the first 80 mph (130 km/h) lap by Jimmie Simpson on a Norton motor-cycle in 28 minutes and 1 seconds an average speed of 80.82 mph (130.07 km/h).


1931 Isle of Man TT
Despite taking over the lead from Guthrie, Jimmie Simpson crashed on lap 4 at Ballaugh Bridge and the bike ending-up in the river. Despite re-taking the lead, Jimmie Guthrie slips-off at the Governor's Bridge on lap 5, but continues to finish in 2nd place at an average speed of 77.34 mph (124.47 km/h). Fellow Norton teammate Stanley Woods finishes in 3rd place with a glove in the petrol-tank filler.


1931 Isle of Man TT
The fast-paced and incident packed 1931 Senior TT Race provided Tim Hunt with a popular Junior/Senior double win in 3 hours, 23 minutes and 28 seconds for the 7 lap (264.11 mile) race at an average race speed of 77.90 mph (125.37 km/h). The winner of the 1929 Junior Race, Freddie Hicks crashed on lap 5 at Union Mills and was killed.


1931 Islington East by-election
The Islington East by-election, 1931 was a parliamentary by-election held on 19 February 1931 for the House of Commons constituency of Islington East in Islington, North London.


1931 Islington East by-election
The seat had become vacant when the Labour Member of Parliament, Dr Ethel Bentham, died on 19 January 1931, aged 70. She had held the seat since the 1929 general election.


1931 Islington East by-election, Candidates
Labour selected as its candidate the 45-year-old Leah Manning, President of the National Union of Teachers. The Conservative Party candidate was Thelma Cazalet, a 31-year-old feminist and member of the London County Council. The Liberal candidate was Horace Crawfurd, who had been the MP for Walthamstow West from 1924 until his defeat at the 1929 general election.


1931 Islington East by-election, Candidates
The fourth candidate, Alfred Critchley, was referred to by Thelma Cazalet as "the Beaverbrook candidate". He stood for the Empire Free Trade Crusade and the United Empire Party, which both sought to make the British Empire a free trade bloc. The Empire Crusade had won the Paddington South by-election in October 1930, and hoped to repeat its success. Critchley had been the Conservative candidate in Manchester Gorton in 1929.


1931 Islington East by-election, Results
On a reduced turnout, Manning held the seat for Labour with a majority of 2,277 votes. Critchley came second with 27.2% of the votes, a setback for the Empire Crusade.


1931 Islington East by-election, Aftermath
The Empire Crusade also failed to win the Westminster St George's by-election in March. At the 1931 general election, Cazalet won the seat by a large majority, serving as Islington East's MP until her defeat by Labour's Eric Fletcher at the 1945 general election. After her defeat in 1931, Manning did not return to Parliament until her victory in Epping in 1945. Critchley rejoined the Conservative Party, and won the Twickenham by-election in 1934.


1931 Italian Grand Prix
The 1931 Italian Grand Prix was a Grand Prix motor race held at Monza on 24 May 1931. The race was the first of three Grands Prix that were part of the inaugural European Championship. The Alfa Romeo works team pairing of Giuseppe Campari and Tazio Nuvolari won the race, ahead of their teammates Ferdinando Minoia and Baconin Borzacchini in second, while third place went to the works Bugattis of Albert Divo and Guy Bouriat.


1931 Jefferson Bobcats football team
The 1931 Jefferson Bobcats football team was an American football team that represented Jefferson University (formerly known as Jefferson Law School) during the 1931 college football season. In its second season of intercollegiate football, Jefferson compiled a 1–7–1 record. George C. Sutherland was the head coach and was succeeded by player-coach Frankie Estes. Chester ("Gump" or "Gabby") Weatherford was the team captain. The team played its home games at Oak Cliff Field in Dallas. Known as the Lawyers in 1930, the team was re-branded as the Bobcats for the 1931 season to go along with the Jefferson University re-branding.


1931 Jefferson Bobcats football team
Jefferson was opened in 1919 as a law school by Andrew J. Priest in downtown Dallas. One of its early faculty members was Judge Sarah T. Hughes. The school achieved some success training lawyers and had a high graduation rate and most students successfully passed the bar exam. Jefferson was rebranded as Jefferson University in 1931 as it added additional colleges such as engineering, liberal arts, business, commerce, and secretarial training.


1931 Jefferson Bobcats football team
Playing against mostly junior college and smaller four-year college teams, Jefferson was only able to score seven points on the entire season. Despite the lack of scoring, the Bobcats were competitive in their early games, losing two games by a single touchdown, tying one game at 0–0 and then finally winning when the other team missed an extra point for a 7–6 victory. Thereafter, the team was blown out, with an especially bad loss coming against a top all-boys preparatory school in Dallas, Terrill Prep School, losing by a 52–0 score.


1931 Jinan air crash
1931 Jinan Air Crash occurred on November 19, 1931, when a Stinson Detroiter mail plane carrying one passenger and two pilots crashed into a mountainous area in Jinan, Shandong Province, China. All 3 people on board, including the only passenger, the famous Chinese poet Xu Zhimo, died in the crash.


1931 Jinan air crash
The aircraft was operated by China Airways Federal in  the Republic of China and was contracted by Chunghwa Post. It departed from Ming Gugong Airport in Nanking, heading to Nanyuan Airport in Beiping (now Beijing). The passenger, Xu Zhimo, was intending to attend an architectural lecture given by the well-known architect Lin Huiyin in Beiping. Because of Xu's fame as a poet, the crash shocked the literary community in China.


1931 Jinan air crash, Background, Xu Zhimo's schedule
Xu Zhimo was going to attend an architectural lecture in Beiping, which was given by the famous architect Lin Huiyin. It was widely believed that Xu was determined to attend the lecture because Lin was romantically related to Xu. He went to be a member of the claques for her. Although Xu was warned that the weather en route to Beiping was changeable, he insisted on flying there, since it is much faster by air and the weather had been fair before the aircraft took off.


1931 Jinan air crash, Background, The aircraft and pilots
The aircraft was a Stinson Detroiter SM-1F operated by China Airways Federal in the Republic of China and was contracted by Chunghwa Post. It was originally General Zhang Xueliang's private airplane, and Xu took the lift free. The aircraft was also carrying 500 lbs of mail. It had a nickname of Jinan.


1931 Jinan air crash, Background, The aircraft and pilots
The captain of the flight was Wang Guanyi (Chinese: 王贯一), and the first officer was Liang Bitang (Chinese: 梁璧堂), both 36 years old. They were experienced pilots graduated from Nanyuan Aviation School.


1931 Jinan air crash, Crash
The Stinson Detroiter got airborne around 8:00 am local time. It cruised over the path of the Jing Pu Railway, which directed the flight to Beiping. The weather was fine during the first part of the flight. The plane landed at Xu Zhou Airport for refueling near 10:00 am, and took off again 10 minutes later. This time first officer Liang was at the controls, as Captain Wang handed the flight over and moved to the passenger's seat. It then flew into Jinan airspace. The aircraft encountered severe fog and began flying off course.


1931 Jinan air crash, Crash
The pilot lost the railway in his sight, so he kept on heading for the nearest Wujiapu Airport, which would help him go back on course again. However, the plane started to descend. After the plane passed the waypoint Kaishan County, the pilot headed to the northwest for the target airport. Seconds later, the aircraft hit the peak of what is now called West Mountain below the summit, about six kilometers from Dangjiazhuang Railway Station, and broke off its right wing. This put the plane into a rapidly descending spiral, despite the fuselage remaining relatively intact in mid-air. The Detroiter crashed into the valley below and disintegrated, resulting in a series of fire and explosions, killing two of the three on board instantly.


1931 Jinan air crash, Crash, Crash site
The exact location of where the Stinson Detroiter crashed was controversial. The Government of the Republic of China claimed that the aircraft crashed into Mount Beida, where they set a tomb to commemorate Xu. Popular descriptions of the crash site include West Mountain, East Mountain, North Mountain (later research showed that the three names were for the same mountain), Mount Kai, and Mount Baima.


1931 Jinan air crash, Crash, Crash site
In 2013, investigators deduced the final location of the wreckage according to the documents in the archive. With the help of a modern electronic rangefinder, they followed Jing Pu Railway from Dangjiazhuang Station six kilometers north to a village called Chaomidian, which is north of the crash site. Ranging 1 kilometer from the village, the investigator found the valley, which was identical to eyewitnesses' description.


1931 Jinan air crash, Crash, Crash site
The investigation established that the crash site of the Stinson Detroiter was at West Mountain, which is in the east of Kaishan County in southwest Jinan and one kilometer from the railway, at an elevation of 150 meters.


1931 Jinan air crash, Search and rescue
The crash of the Detroiter was witnessed by a patrol police, who immediately rushed to the scene along with some local residents. Meanwhile, Xu's friend, Liang Sicheng, was told to pick Xu up at Nanyuan Airport at around 3:00 pm. At around 4:30 pm, Liang feared that the flight might have crashed and called local police.


1931 Jinan air crash, Search and rescue
When the rescuers found the wreckage, they discovered the bodies of the passenger and captain, with debris engulfed in flames. Xu, though not seriously burnt, had suffered from fatal cerebral trauma as well as fractured legs and several cuts on his body. Another friend of Xu, Yu Gengyu (Chinese: 于赓虞), described his corpse afterward as:


1931 Jinan air crash, Search and rescue
On his slightly swelled face were some white and red scars, probably because of the rinse on his face after he was found. The two eyes were not completely closed and opened a little, as if he was staring obsessively at someone. Through the glass (of the coffin), the body looked no difference from alive ...


1931 Jinan air crash, Search and rescue
Next to Xu, carbonic remains of captain Wang's body was also found, scarcely recognizable. Rescuers also discovered first officer Liang, who lay a meter from the two corpses. He had received burns all over his body, yet remained conscious. Liang was rushed to the hospital, but he died en route. The other two on board were considered to have died at the scene of the crash, probably killed instantly.


1931 Jinan air crash, Search and rescue
The three bodies were later carried back to Jinan, and Xu's was eventually buried at Mount Beida, which local government had mistaken as the crash site.


1931 Jinan air crash, Investigation
The first thing investigators identified was a piece of the aircraft's right wing few meters from the mountain peak. That was the first part that came off. This chilled them, as in the same year, a Fokker F-10 had crashed in Kansas in the United States due to a structural failure of the aircraft's wing. Investigators suspected that this crash might be a similar case. But after scrutinizing the debris carefully, the theory was ruled out.


1931 Jinan air crash, Investigation
Because at that time there were no black boxes, the investigators could only search for clues either at the crash scene or by recreating the crash according to the eyewitnesses' accounts. Witnesses reported that the plane was flying dangerously lower than usual and was circling in the air seconds from the crash, which indicated to investigators that the pilots might have had difficulty finding their route.


1931 Jinan air crash, Investigation
Investigators also noted that there were two pilots commanding the Detroiter, whose cockpit is designed only for one pilot. They inferred that the first officer was in control at the time of the accident due to the positions of the bodies at the crash scene.


1931 Jinan air crash, Investigation
Based on the evidence, they hypothesized that the pilot descended the aircraft beneath the minimum safety altitude while attempting to seek their target, Wujiapu airport. Visibility was bad when the plane flew into the fog, and the crews could only use compass heading to navigate. After the plane flew via Dangjiazhuang Railway Station, the first officer gradually lost sight of the railway due to poor visibility. The first officer could look for the airport lights only visually, and failed to recognize the terrain. Runway lights were blocked by the mountains surrounding Jinan.


1931 Jinan air crash, Investigation
But instead, the pilot in control considered that it was simply caused by thick fog and misjudged the situation. Thus, he continued descending until the plane flew too close to the mountain. There were no ground proximity warning systems on aircraft at that time, so when the terrain abruptly appeared in front of the windshields, it was too late for the pilot to divert the plane.


1931 Jinan air crash, Investigation
The investigators also concluded that lack of conversation between both pilots also played a major factor of the crash. They believe that the accident could have been avoided if the captain, sitting in the passenger's seat, had reminded the pilot at control that the flight was dangerously close to the terrain.


1931 Jinan air crash, Investigation
Another theory suggested that both the pilots were disoriented and failed to notice the plane was descending slowly. Therefore, the pilot could not know his exact altitude, which led to the crash.


1931 Jinan air crash, Investigation
The investigation of the Jinan air crash also revealed deficiencies in early aviation regulations. The crew should have canceled the plan due to the possibility of severe meteorologic conditions.


1931 Jinan air crash, Investigation, Conspiracy theories
Some believed that the air crash was a murder arranged by Xu Zhimo's romantic rivals, and that the most likely suspect was Wang Geng (Chinese: 王赓), who was the former husband of Lu Xiaoman (Xu's wife).


1931 Jinan air crash, Investigation, Conspiracy theories
A popular version of the crash pointed out that just at the night before the crash, the Northeast Army of Republic of China, in which Wang Geng had served, received a secret telegram which instructed the special agents to destroy a mail plane leaving from Nanking for Beiping. The mission was accomplished. It was a coincidence that the Detroiter planned to share the same route with the plane of their target, meaning that the plane was either shot down or blew up by spies. Investigators authenticated the theory through documents of Northeast Army, but confirmed it was untrue. There were no any records of this special "instruction".


1931 Jinan air crash, Legacy
The literary community in China went into mourning when they heard of the Xu's death. Overwhelmed by sadness, Lin Huiyin collected a piece of wreckage from the crash scene. She preserved it at her bedside in memory of Xu throughout the rest of her life.


1931 Jinan air crash, Legacy
Xu's memorial park was built in 1932, a year after the crash.


1931 Kansas Jayhawks football team
The 1931 Kansas Jayhawks football team represented the University of Kansas in the Big Six Conference during the 1931 college football season. In their fourth season under head coach Bill Hargiss, the Jayhawks compiled a 5–5 record (1–3 against conference opponents), finished in fourth place in the conference, and outscored opponents by a combined total of 112 to 54. They played their home games at Memorial Stadium in Lawrence, Kansas. Otto Rost was the team captain.


1931 Kansas State Wildcats football team
The 1931 Kansas State Wildcats football team represented Kansas State University in the 1931 college football season.


1931 Kashmir agitation
A widespread agitation throughout the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir in British Raj occurred in 1931 against the Maharaja's government. The Maharaja was forced to appoint the Glancy Commission to investigate the people's concerns. Various political reforms were adopted including the introduction of the Jammu and Kashmir Praja Sabha (legislative assembly). The movement also saw the rise of Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah as the leader of Kashmiris.


1931 Kashmir agitation, Events
On 13 July 1931, thousands of Kashmiris flocked to the central jail in Srinagar to see the trial of Abdul Qadeer. As the time for obligatory jumma prayer approached, a Kashmiri stood up to deliver the adhan. The Dogra governor, Ray Zada Tartilok Chand, ordered his soldiers to open fire on them, in total 22 Kashmiris died in the firing. The people carried the dead through the streets of Srinagar, chanting slogans opposing Dogra brutality. The incident shook the state, and a week-long period of mourning was observed.


1931 Kashmir agitation, Events
Traffic between Srinagar, Rawalpindi and Jammu was halted from 13 to 26 July. The protests intensified; anti-Hindu riots began, leading to the death of three Hindus, the wounding of many more and the looting of Hindu-owned shops. The Hindus retaliated, leading to more clashes between the two groups. The violence spread to Kashmir province and Jammu; three British companies, numbering about 500 soldiers, were sent to support Maharaja Hari Singh and restore law and order. The incident led to the rise of young Sheikh Abdullah, and his rivalry with the maharaja continued until 1947.