The Times brings its readers a four-part series on this celebrated match race of 1823 between American Eclipse and Sir Henry, beginning with Part I, "Napoleon Challenges the North."
The Times brings its readers a five-part series on the inaugural New Orleans Jockey Club races over the Eclipse Course in 1837, beginning with Part I, "Captain Oliver's Triumph."
Opening Day at Saratoga Race Course is just one week away on Thursday, July 14! If you can't be there in person, be there in spirit by reading up on the history of this special sporting venue and summer resort town--we've compiled a list of our favorite reads: Edward …
[Read more...] about Countdown to Saratoga–Spa Summer Reading
It's Preakness Week in Baltimore! We've got two historic stories about Pimlico Race Course and the Preakness Stakes as we shift focus from the Derby to the second leg of the Triple Crown at Old Hilltop. Our Preakness Stakes story is about the race's 1946 winner Assault, the …
[Read more...] about Ode to Baltimore–Looking back at the Preakness Stakes and Pimlico
We love this Kentucky Derby story so much, we're running it again! How was the first Derby upstaged by another race held during the six-day spring meet? The first Kentucky Derby was held on Opening Day of the Louisville Jockey Club and Driving Park Association’s inaugural …
[Read more...] about When a horse drank like a man during Derby Week
Brush up on your Louisiana Derby history knowledge before the race's 109th running on Saturday, March 26 at Fair Grounds Race Course! We're sharing some historical highlights here, and don't miss the link at the end to our previous story about the race's early years during last …
A classic-winning colt continues to be remembered at the Fair Grounds every February with the eponymous Risen Star Stakes, a Kentucky Derby prep race originally called the Louisiana Derby Trial that awards qualification points to the top four finishers (50--20--10--5). But the …
[Read more...] about Remembering New Orleans’ Risen Star, 1988 Champion 3-Year-Old Male
The G3 Lecomte Stakes for 3-year-old colts, slated to be run January 22 at a distance of 1 1/16 miles, typically kicks off the Road to the Kentucky Derby series of races at the historic Fair Grounds Race Course. Yet this season the track instituted in December the new Gun Runner …
Two online auctions benefiting Thoroughbred aftercare organizations are currently open this week--visit these for some unique and rare Christmas gifts, the proceeds of which will support several retirement charities. After the Finish Line is holding its 6th Annual Auction of …
The Ninth Annual Sporting Art Auction will be held at 1 p.m. ET this Sunday, November 21, at the Keeneland Sales Pavilion in Lexington, Kentucky. Thoroughbred champions will grace the sales ring, from paintings like this 1867 portrait of Gladiateur to a 19th-century weathervane …
Annually in October, racing returns to Kentucky's storied Keeneland track that is now celebrating its 85th year. On this day of October 15th in 1936--a Friday--Keeneland launched its inaugural race meeting lasting nine days and premiered its tote board, the first of its kind …
[Read more...] about October News: On This Day in History (October 15) at Keeneland Race Course
As mentioned in previous monthly posts, the Times contributed a piece about the National Museum of Racing's new Hall of Fame experience to The Horsemen's Journal, which is published by the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (HBPA). We are pleased to share …
[Read more...] about September News: Turf History Times Contributes to The Horsemen’s Journal
As mentioned in our July News post, Turf History Times is writing a piece about the new Hall of Fame multimedia experience at the National Museum of Racing in Saratoga Springs for The Horsemen's Journal, a quarterly publication produced by the National Horsemen's Benevolent & …
[Read more...] about August News: Update on Excitations, Former Fair Grounds Racing Club’s Sprinter
The Times was back in Saratoga Springs this month for the first week of racing at the storied track, which opened on July 15. We are currently working on a piece regarding Saratoga's National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame that will be published this fall--stay tuned for a …
June is synonymous with the Belmont Stakes, run annually every June at Long Island’s beautiful Belmont Park. For the Turf History Times, Long Island is also synonymous with its legendary 19th-century track, the Union Course. The Times visited the former site of this course in …
In honor of Preakness Week, we look back at one of the race’s historic winners from 1946, the improbable Triple Crown hero and “Little Chocolate Galloper,” Assault. Here’s one of our favorite quotes about his victory in the first leg of the Triple Crown: “Assault is the name, but …
After last year’s upheaval of the racing calendar due to COVID-19, the Kentucky Derby is back to its rightful date on the first Saturday in May, this year falling on May 1. So let’s talk Derby—the first Kentucky Derby in 1875, which was upstaged by another race held during the …
The Louisiana Derby during the 1918–1919 Spanish Flu pandemic: The 108th Louisiana Derby will be run on Saturday, March 20, 2021, at the Fair Grounds, which has been closed to general spectators during the 2020–2021 race meet; last year’s Louisiana Derby was also run without …
On this day in New Orleans in January 1852, racing was cancelled on account of—snow? Mild winters in New Orleans mean that few days, if any, fall below freezing in a given winter, thus snowfall is a rarity. While 19th-century race days were often rescheduled due to rainfall …
The following “Rules for Laying Out a Race Course” is shared from an 1833 issue of the American Turf Register and Sporting Magazine. Enjoy! …
[Read more...] about Handy Rules for Laying Out a Race Course
When the Breeders’ Cup is over and the Keeneland November sale is in full swing, another annual event celebrating exceptional equines is on the horizon—the Sporting Art Auction. Now in its eighth year, the auction is a highly anticipated event offering paintings and sculpture in …
The Times is pleased to sponsor the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation’s (TRF) fundraiser Ponies, Pumpkins & Pies, slated for Sunday, October 25th at Pitney Meadows Community Farm in Saratoga Springs, New York. This event will split its proceeds between Pitney Meadows’ …
[Read more...] about Support Retired Thoroughbreds through TRF’s Ponies, Pumpkins & Pies Event!
In honor of Preakness Week, the Times looks back at one of the race’s historic winners from 1946, the improbable Triple Crown hero and “Little Chocolate Galloper,” Assault. In our Kentucky Derby post in May, we shared one of our favorite quotes about his victory in that first …
[Read more...] about It’s Preakness Week! Revisiting Triple Crown Winner Assault’s 1946 Preakness
It was the first Kentucky Derby, but the race wasn’t the star attraction of the Louisville Jockey Club and Driving Park Association’s six-day inaugural spring meeting in 1875. Opening day on Monday, May 17, 1875, drew more than 12,000 attendees to the new track that would later …
[Read more...] about The First Kentucky Derby, Unhorsed by the Louisville Cup
It’s Travers Week, and we look forward to crowning the next three-year-old champion of the mile-and-a-quarter “Mid-summer Derby” this Saturday at Saratoga Race Track. The race has amassed 150 winners to date, its earliest titleholder being a colt named Kentucky in its inaugural …
[Read more...] about Kentucky, the First Winner of the Travers Stakes, Immortalized in Oil
Saturday, July 12, marks the anniversary of the birth of Edward Troye (1808--1874), America's preeminent animal painter of the 19th century. During his 40-year career in the U.S., the Swiss-born Troye painted commissions of hundreds of prized Thoroughbreds, and was recognized by …
Racing schedules have been turned upside-down across the globe due to COVID-19, and this Saturday, July 4, will feature the second leg of Britain’s Triple Crown, the Derby Stakes (officially the Investec Derby) at Epsom Downs Race Course—a race that was first inaugurated in 1780 …
[Read more...] about A Poem for this Weekend’s Epsom Derby: Ode to No More Betting on the Races
Here's your chance to attend a free virtual tour of Neir's Tavern in Queens, New York, on Thursday evening. This past winter, the Times reported about this historic race track bar that was opened in 1829 by the proprietor of the nearby Union Race Course. Read more about the …
Horse racing fans are lamenting that this week is typically Kentucky Derby Week, with the “Run for the Roses” slated for the first Saturday in May. As the Derby has been postponed to the fall, NBC will broadcast a virtual Derby on Saturday, May 2, featuring 13 Triple Crown …
While many businesses and other institutions have temporary closed due to COVID-19, some are offering online services, including museums. The Smithsonian, for example, is now offering a variety of online virtual exhibitions and museum tours—see link for more information. Here …
[Read more...] about Hello, Old Friend: A Visit With Lexington (Stallion) in Lexington (Kentucky)
This Saturday marks the 107th running of the Louisiana Derby, a Kentucky Derby prep race for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds at the distance of 1 3/16 miles that for the first time will be contested spectator-free at the Fair Grounds Race Course due to COVID-19. This global pandemic has …
On February 11, we celebrate the birthdays of two leaders of the nineteenth-century New Orleans turf whom we've written about at length here at the Times, both born on this date: Colonel Adam L. Bingaman (2/11/1793—9/6/1869), originally of Natchez, Mississippi, and Duncan F. …
In follow-up to our previous report of the impending closure of Neir's Tavern due to a rent hike, we are pleased to announce the historic bar located in Queens, New York, will remain open for business. Late Friday, news outlets reported that city leaders assisted Neir's owner Loy …
[Read more...] about Historic Race Track Bar in Queens Saved from Closure #NeirsForYears
While in New York for the 2013 Belmont Stakes, Times staff visited Neir's Tavern in Woodhaven, knowing its unique history and ties to the sport of horse racing. Neir's was originally opened in 1829 as The Blue Pump Room by Cadwallader Colden, track proprietor for the nearby Union …
We are pleased to share information regarding this Fall Racing Preview Handicapping Party taking place on Thursday, October 3 in Lexington, Kentucky in advance of opening day at Keeneland Race Course. Benefiting the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation that supports critical …
Even casual fans of the sport of horse racing will recall this year's disqualification of Maximum Security by state stewards in the Kentucky Derby. Let’s revisit another stewards’ inquiry—this one from 1838 concerning Rule 42 and a horse blanket, enforced by the Adams …
On Friday, July 12, we celebrate the birthday of Edward Troye (1808--1874), America's preeminent animal painter of the 19th century. Readers who have visited Lexington, Kentucky may have unknowingly seen his work across town as "Big Lex," the big blue horse that was adapted from …
[Read more...] about Happy Birthday to America’s Equine Artist, Edward Troye
It's Louisiana Derby Week, with the 106th Louisiana Derby slated for Saturday, March 23, 2019, at Fair Grounds Race Course. Brush up on the race's history here in our guide that we contributed to Lady and the Track and US Racing last year. Back again this year for Derby Day will …
[Read more...] about Revisiting Our Guide to the Louisiana Derby
On Monday, February 11, 2019, we celebrate two leaders of 19th c. racing in New Orleans who were born on this day: Colonel Adam L. Bingaman (1793--1869) and Duncan F. Kenner (1813--1887). Read more about their contributions to the sport by revisiting the 1837 Eclipse Course …
[Read more...] about Happy Birthday to Two Pillars of the New Orleans Antebellum Turf
The Times is pleased to announce the launch of its upgraded website that offers an improved online and mobile experience for readers. We hope you enjoy it (and agree that it looks stunning) as much as we do! …
