fbpx
Wikipedia

Sheepshead Bay Race Track

April 30, 2024

The Sheepshead Bay Race Track was an American Thoroughbred horse racing facility built on the site of the Coney Island Jockey Club at Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn, New York.

Sheepshead Bay Race Track
Thoroughbred racing at Sheepshead Bay track c.1905
jam-packed with fans, even on the roof.
LocationSheepshead Bay, Brooklyn,
New York, United States
Owned byConey Island Jockey Club
Date openedJune 19, 1880 (143 years ago) (1880-06-19)[1]
Course typeFlat & Steeplechase

Early history edit

The racetrack was built by a group of prominent businessmen from the New York City area who formed the Coney Island Jockey Club in 1879. Led by Leonard Jerome, James R. Keene, and the track's president, William Kissam Vanderbilt, the Club held seasonal race cards at nearby Prospect Park fairgrounds until construction of the new race course was completed. On June 19, 1880 the track hosted its first day of Thoroughbred racing.[2]

Old maps and railroad track diagrams for the Manhattan Beach Branch of the Long Island Rail Road showing the spur that served both the club and the racetrack indicates the entrance to the club was located on the east side of Ocean Avenue between Avenues X and Y.[3][4] The Sheepshead Bay Race Track station contained six tracks and three island platforms.[5]

In its first year of operations, the new Sheepshead Bay track hosted a 1½ mile match race between two of the top horses racing at the time in the United States. The Dwyer Brothers' Luke Blackburn was ridden by Jim McLaughlin, and Pierre Lorillard's Uncas was ridden by Tom Costello. Luke Blackburn won by twenty lengths.[6]

Sheepshead Bay had both a dirt and a turf course.

Principal backers were:

The new Sheepshead Bay Race Track's premier event was the Suburban Handicap, first run on June 10, 1884 and conceived by James G. K. Lawrence, who became the track's president.[7] Four years later Lawrence would also create the Futurity Stakes, first run on Labor Day in 1888. At the time, the Futurity was the richest race ever run in the United States.[8][9] Today, both the Suburban and the Futurity are ongoing Graded stakes races held at the Belmont Park racetrack in Elmont on Long Island. The Lawrence Realization Stakes was named for James G. K. Lawrence.

First turf course in the United States edit

On June 10, 1886 the Coney Island Jockey Club opened the first turf racecourse in the United States. The Club replaced the Sheepshead Bay steeplechase course with a one-mile turf course, built inside the existing main dirt track. The Green Grass Stakes was the first race on turf and was run as part of the June 10 opening day program. A race for three-year-old horses, it was contested at a distance of a mile and an eighth and was won by Emory & Cotton's Dry Monopole in a time of 157.00.[10]

Demise edit

In 1908, the administration of Governor Charles Evans Hughes signed into law the Hart–Agnew bill that effectively banned all racetrack betting in the state of New York. The legislation allowed for fines and up to a year in prison which was strictly enforced.[11][12]

Compounding matters for the Sheepshead Bay track was intense competition. In a summary of 1909 racing, the Daily Racing Form reported that "Sheepshead Bay, which for years led the country in daily average distribution, yielded first place in 1909 to Belmont Park, which August Belmont and his associates are ambitious to make the "turf headquarters of America"." [13] A 1910 amendment to the Hart–Agnew legislation added further restrictions that made the owners and directors of a racetrack personally liable for any betting done on their premises, with or without their consent. Such an onerous liability was intolerable and meant that by 1911 all racetracks in the state ceased operations.[14] Although a February 21, 1913 ruling by the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division paved the way for racing to resume that year, by then it was too late for horse racing at the Sheepshead Bay Race Track and it was ultimately sold to the Sheepshead Bay Speedway Corporation who used it for automobile racing.[15][16]

In December 1919, what the Daily Racing Form called one of the most famous racetracks in the history of the American turf, was purchased for real estate development. The facility was torn down and the land subdivided into building lots.[17]

Thoroughbred stakes races at Sheepshead Bay edit

Stakes race titles[18]

Flat races edit

Ŧ One of the three Sheepshead Bay Autumn Serials.

In 1959, the Sheepshead Bay Handicap was named in honor of the old racetrack, and first run at the now-defunct Jamaica Race Course in Jamaica, New York. It, too, is currently held at Belmont Park.

Steeplechase edit

  • Beacon Steeplechase
  • Independence Steeplechase
  • Westbury Steeplechase

Sheepshead Bay Speedway Corporation edit

 
Astor Cup auto race at Sheepshead Bay
 
Auto racing at the Sheepshead Bay track c. 1919

The new owner converted the horse track to a board automobile race track. Several auto races were held from October 1915, through September 1919, including the Astor Cup Race and the Harkness Trophy Race. The Sheepshead Bay Speedway Corporation ran into financial difficulties following the death of its majority shareholder Harry Harkness in January 1919. The property was sold in 1923 for residential real estate development.[19] No trace of the racetrack can be found today.

See also edit

Other defunct New York race tracks:

References edit

  1. ^ "Coney Island Jockey Club; Programme of the June Races". The New York Times. June 14, 1880. p. 8. Retrieved 2010-01-16.
  2. ^ "Coney Island Jockey Club; Programme for the September Meeting". The New York Times. September 3, 1879. p. 3. Retrieved 2010-01-16.
  3. ^ "The New York and Manhattan Beach Railway - Part Five". arrts-arrchives.com. Retrieved 2010-01-16.
  4. ^ (Map). 1:62,500. 15 Minute Series (Topographic). United States Geological Survey. 1898. § SW. Archived from the original on 2010-05-26. Retrieved 2010-02-13.
  5. ^ (PDF). Electric Railroaders' Association Bulletin. 46 (7): 2. July 2003. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 7, 2018. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
  6. ^ "Upon by Luke Blackburn; The Great Match at Sheepshead Bay". The New York Times. September 15, 1880. p. 2. Retrieved 2010-01-16.
  7. ^ "The Coney Island Jockey Club; Entries for the Foam Stakes and the Suburban Handicap". The New York Times. June 10, 1884. p. 2. Retrieved 2010-01-16.
  8. ^ "Coney Island Jockey Club". The New York Times. July 26, 1887. p. 2. Retrieved 2010-01-16.
  9. ^ "Initial Futurity Stakes; Twenty-One Starters Probable for the Rich Prize". The New York Times. September 3, 1888. p. 8. Retrieved 2010-01-16.
  10. ^ . Brooklyn Daily Eagle. June 11, 1886. p. 1. Archived from the original on 2011-06-12. Retrieved 2010-04-04.
  11. ^ "Penalties in the New York Bills". Daily Racing Form. 1908-01-18. Retrieved 2018-10-26 – via University of Kentucky Archives.
  12. ^ "Keep Up Betting Ban; Strict Enforcement of the Law at Sheepshead Bay Races". Daily Racing Form. 1908-09-01. Retrieved 2018-11-06 – via University of Kentucky Archives.
  13. ^ "Racing Statistics of the Year 1909". 1910-01-02. Retrieved 2020-02-11.
  14. ^ "Anti-Racing Bills Pass at Albany". Daily Racing Form. 1910-05-27. Retrieved 2018-11-30 – via University of Kentucky Archives.
  15. ^ "Destruction Wrought by Hughes". Daily Racing Form. 1908-12-15. Retrieved 2018-11-30 – via University of Kentucky Archives.
  16. ^ "Famous Old Track is Sold". Daily Racing Form. 1914-11-17. Retrieved 2018-11-30 – via University of Kentucky Archives.
  17. ^ "Last of Famous Sheepshead Bay: Former Home of the Suburban Handicap and Futurity Cut Up into Building Lots". Daily Racing Form. 1919-12-04. Retrieved 2018-11-30 – via University of Kentucky Archives.
  18. ^ "Donate Title to Old Stakes: Coney Island Jockey Club Turns over to Jockey Club All Interest". Daily Racing Form. 1917-08-22. Retrieved 2018-11-26 – via University of Kentucky Archives.
  19. ^ "Last of Brooklyn's Once Famous Race Tracks Succumbs to March of Housing Development". The New York Times. August 26, 1923. p. RE2. Retrieved 2010-01-16.

External links edit

  • Information and photos of Sheepshead Bay Race Track

40°35′32″N 73°56′50″W / 40.59222°N 73.94722°W / 40.59222; -73.94722

April 30, 2024
sheepshead, race, track, american, thoroughbred, horse, racing, facility, built, site, coney, island, jockey, club, sheepshead, brooklyn, york, thoroughbred, racing, sheepshead, track, 1905jam, packed, with, fans, even, roof, locationsheepshead, brooklyn, york. The Sheepshead Bay Race Track was an American Thoroughbred horse racing facility built on the site of the Coney Island Jockey Club at Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn New York Sheepshead Bay Race TrackThoroughbred racing at Sheepshead Bay track c 1905jam packed with fans even on the roof LocationSheepshead Bay Brooklyn New York United StatesOwned byConey Island Jockey ClubDate openedJune 19 1880 143 years ago 1880 06 19 1 Course typeFlat amp Steeplechase Contents 1 Early history 2 First turf course in the United States 3 Demise 4 Thoroughbred stakes races at Sheepshead Bay 4 1 Flat races 4 2 Steeplechase 4 3 Sheepshead Bay Speedway Corporation 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksEarly history editThe racetrack was built by a group of prominent businessmen from the New York City area who formed the Coney Island Jockey Club in 1879 Led by Leonard Jerome James R Keene and the track s president William Kissam Vanderbilt the Club held seasonal race cards at nearby Prospect Park fairgrounds until construction of the new race course was completed On June 19 1880 the track hosted its first day of Thoroughbred racing 2 Old maps and railroad track diagrams for the Manhattan Beach Branch of the Long Island Rail Road showing the spur that served both the club and the racetrack indicates the entrance to the club was located on the east side of Ocean Avenue between Avenues X and Y 3 4 The Sheepshead Bay Race Track station contained six tracks and three island platforms 5 In its first year of operations the new Sheepshead Bay track hosted a 1 mile match race between two of the top horses racing at the time in the United States The Dwyer Brothers Luke Blackburn was ridden by Jim McLaughlin and Pierre Lorillard s Uncas was ridden by Tom Costello Luke Blackburn won by twenty lengths 6 Sheepshead Bay had both a dirt and a turf course Principal backers were August Belmont Jr Leonard Jerome James G K Lawrence Pierre Lorillard IV A Wright Sanford William R Travers William Kissam Vanderbilt The new Sheepshead Bay Race Track s premier event was the Suburban Handicap first run on June 10 1884 and conceived by James G K Lawrence who became the track s president 7 Four years later Lawrence would also create the Futurity Stakes first run on Labor Day in 1888 At the time the Futurity was the richest race ever run in the United States 8 9 Today both the Suburban and the Futurity are ongoing Graded stakes races held at the Belmont Park racetrack in Elmont on Long Island The Lawrence Realization Stakes was named for James G K Lawrence First turf course in the United States editOn June 10 1886 the Coney Island Jockey Club opened the first turf racecourse in the United States The Club replaced the Sheepshead Bay steeplechase course with a one mile turf course built inside the existing main dirt track The Green Grass Stakes was the first race on turf and was run as part of the June 10 opening day program A race for three year old horses it was contested at a distance of a mile and an eighth and was won by Emory amp Cotton s Dry Monopole in a time of 157 00 10 Demise editIn 1908 the administration of Governor Charles Evans Hughes signed into law the Hart Agnew bill that effectively banned all racetrack betting in the state of New York The legislation allowed for fines and up to a year in prison which was strictly enforced 11 12 Compounding matters for the Sheepshead Bay track was intense competition In a summary of 1909 racing the Daily Racing Form reported that Sheepshead Bay which for years led the country in daily average distribution yielded first place in 1909 to Belmont Park which August Belmont and his associates are ambitious to make the turf headquarters of America 13 A 1910 amendment to the Hart Agnew legislation added further restrictions that made the owners and directors of a racetrack personally liable for any betting done on their premises with or without their consent Such an onerous liability was intolerable and meant that by 1911 all racetracks in the state ceased operations 14 Although a February 21 1913 ruling by the New York Supreme Court Appellate Division paved the way for racing to resume that year by then it was too late for horse racing at the Sheepshead Bay Race Track and it was ultimately sold to the Sheepshead Bay Speedway Corporation who used it for automobile racing 15 16 In December 1919 what the Daily Racing Form called one of the most famous racetracks in the history of the American turf was purchased for real estate development The facility was torn down and the land subdivided into building lots 17 Thoroughbred stakes races at Sheepshead Bay editStakes race titles 18 Flat races edit Advance Stakes Annual Champion Stakes Autumn Cup Handicap Autumn Stakes Autumn Maiden Stakes Bay Ridge Handicap Belles Stakes Century Handicap Commonwealth Handicap Coney Island Derby Coney Island Handicap Daisy Stakes Dash Stakes Dolphin Stakes Double Event Stakes part 1 Double Event Stakes part 2 Equality Stakes Fall Handicap Ŧ Flatbush Stakes Flight Stakes Flying Handicap Foam Stakes Futurity Stakes Grass Selling Stakes Golden Rod Stakes Great Eastern Handicap Great Filly Stakes Great Trial Stakes June Stakes Lawrence Realization Stakes Long Island Handicap Mermaid Stakes Ocean Handicap Ŧ Omnium Handicap Ŧ Pansy Stakes Partridge Stakes Reapers Stakes Rosebuds Stakes Russet Stakes Sapphire Stakes September Stakes Sheepshead Bay Handicap Sheepshead Bay Maiden Stakes Spring Stakes Spindrift Stakes Suburban Handicap Surf Stakes Swift Stakes Thistle Stakes Tidal Stakes Turf Handicap Twin City Handicap Vernal Stakes Waldorf Stakes Zephyr Stakes Ŧ One of the three Sheepshead Bay Autumn Serials In 1959 the Sheepshead Bay Handicap was named in honor of the old racetrack and first run at the now defunct Jamaica Race Course in Jamaica New York It too is currently held at Belmont Park Steeplechase edit Beacon Steeplechase Independence Steeplechase Westbury Steeplechase Sheepshead Bay Speedway Corporation edit nbsp Astor Cup auto race at Sheepshead Bay nbsp Auto racing at the Sheepshead Bay track c 1919 The new owner converted the horse track to a board automobile race track Several auto races were held from October 1915 through September 1919 including the Astor Cup Race and the Harkness Trophy Race The Sheepshead Bay Speedway Corporation ran into financial difficulties following the death of its majority shareholder Harry Harkness in January 1919 The property was sold in 1923 for residential real estate development 19 No trace of the racetrack can be found today See also editOther defunct New York race tracks Brighton Beach Race Course Fleetwood Park Racetrack Gravesend Race Track Jamaica Race Course Jerome Park Racetrack Morris Park RacecourseReferences edit Coney Island Jockey Club Programme of the June Races The New York Times June 14 1880 p 8 Retrieved 2010 01 16 Coney Island Jockey Club Programme for the September Meeting The New York Times September 3 1879 p 3 Retrieved 2010 01 16 The New York and Manhattan Beach Railway Part Five arrts arrchives com Retrieved 2010 01 16 Brooklyn NY Quadrangle Map 1 62 500 15 Minute Series Topographic United States Geological Survey 1898 SW Archived from the original on 2010 05 26 Retrieved 2010 02 13 BRIGHTON LINE TRACK PLANS PDF Electric Railroaders Association Bulletin 46 7 2 July 2003 Archived from the original PDF on September 7 2018 Retrieved April 10 2018 Upon by Luke Blackburn The Great Match at Sheepshead Bay The New York Times September 15 1880 p 2 Retrieved 2010 01 16 The Coney Island Jockey Club Entries for the Foam Stakes and the Suburban Handicap The New York Times June 10 1884 p 2 Retrieved 2010 01 16 Coney Island Jockey Club The New York Times July 26 1887 p 2 Retrieved 2010 01 16 Initial Futurity Stakes Twenty One Starters Probable for the Rich Prize The New York Times September 3 1888 p 8 Retrieved 2010 01 16 Troubadour The Son of Lisbon and Glenluine Wins the Suburban Brooklyn Daily Eagle June 11 1886 p 1 Archived from the original on 2011 06 12 Retrieved 2010 04 04 Penalties in the New York Bills Daily Racing Form 1908 01 18 Retrieved 2018 10 26 via University of Kentucky Archives Keep Up Betting Ban Strict Enforcement of the Law at Sheepshead Bay Races Daily Racing Form 1908 09 01 Retrieved 2018 11 06 via University of Kentucky Archives Racing Statistics of the Year 1909 1910 01 02 Retrieved 2020 02 11 Anti Racing Bills Pass at Albany Daily Racing Form 1910 05 27 Retrieved 2018 11 30 via University of Kentucky Archives Destruction Wrought by Hughes Daily Racing Form 1908 12 15 Retrieved 2018 11 30 via University of Kentucky Archives Famous Old Track is Sold Daily Racing Form 1914 11 17 Retrieved 2018 11 30 via University of Kentucky Archives Last of Famous Sheepshead Bay Former Home of the Suburban Handicap and Futurity Cut Up into Building Lots Daily Racing Form 1919 12 04 Retrieved 2018 11 30 via University of Kentucky Archives Donate Title to Old Stakes Coney Island Jockey Club Turns over to Jockey Club All Interest Daily Racing Form 1917 08 22 Retrieved 2018 11 26 via University of Kentucky Archives Last of Brooklyn s Once Famous Race Tracks Succumbs to March of Housing Development The New York Times August 26 1923 p RE2 Retrieved 2010 01 16 External links editInformation and photos of Sheepshead Bay Race Track 40 35 32 N 73 56 50 W 40 59222 N 73 94722 W 40 59222 73 94722 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Sheepshead Bay Race Track amp oldid 1214332248, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.