2024 Official Guide to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
National Museum of Racing and
By Sir Alfred J. Munnings
Coglianese / Janet Garaguso
HUMBLED by
history.
DETERMINED
to build on it.
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National Museum of Racing and
20
Welcome to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
26
History of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
By Edward L. Bowen, Hall of Fame Nominating Committee Chairman
38
Hall of Famers in the News
By Brien Bouyea, Hall of Fame and Communications Director
96
Hall of Fame Class of 2024: Aristides
By Brien Bouyea, Hall of Fame and Communications Director
104
Hall of Fame Class of 2024: Lecomte
By Brien Bouyea, Hall of Fame and Communications Director
50
Museum Collection Spotlight
Hall of Fame Horses Roster
58
Hall of Fame Jockeys Roster
108
Hall of Fame Class of 2024: Abe Hawkins
By Brien Bouyea, Hall of Fame and Communications Director 42
112
Hall of Fame Class of 2024: Harry F. Guggenheim
By Edward L. Bowen, Hall of Fame Nominating Committee Chairman
120
Hall of Fame Class of 2024: Clement L. Hirsch
By Jay Hovdey, Eclipse Award-winning Writer
128
Hall of Fame
Class of 2024: Joe Hirsch
By Edward L. Bowen, Hall of Fame Nominating Committee Chairman 62
Hall of Fame Trainers Roster 138
Hall of Fame Pillars of the Turf Roster 146
Hall of Fame Profile: Equipoise and Twenty Grand
By Brien Bouyea, Hall of Fame and Communications Director 66
Hall of Fame Class of 2024: Joel Rosario
By Brien Bouyea, Hall of Fame and Communications Director 154
Hall of Fame Profile: Danny Maher
By Brien Bouyea, Hall of Fame and Communications Director
Hall of Fame Class of 2024: Gun Runner
By Brien Bouyea, Hall of Fame and Communications Director
Photo Finish: Selections from the Museum’s 2023 juried photography exhibition
88
Hall of Fame
Class of 2024: Justify
By Brien Bouyea, Hall of Fame and Communications Director
163
Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor
Museum Events
WHERE ICONIC MOMENTS BECOME
EXTRAORDINARY MEMORIES.
Reserve your place to witness The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports ®
MAY 3RD, 2025
WELCOME
Located in Saratoga Springs, New York, home of the fabled Saratoga Race Course, the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame has been chronicling and promoting thoroughbred racing’s rich history for almost 75 years.
Established in 1950, the Museum was initially housed within the Canfield Casino in Congress Park before moving to its permanent home on Union Avenue in 1955.
Throughout its history, the Museum has preserved and interpreted the full spectrum of thoroughbred racing in America and honored the sport’s
greatest achievers with racing’s most coveted and prestigious honor — enshrinement in the Hall of Fame.
The Museum features arguably the world’s finest collection of equine art, numerous comprehensive historical exhibits emphasizing prestigious trophies and artifacts, and a variety of interactive displays that convey the excitement of thoroughbred racing and educate fans of all ages. A stateof-the-art Hall of Fame featuring the immersive signature film What It Takes: Journey to the Hall of Fame opened to the public in 2020.
As of Hall of Fame Induction Day 2024, the Museum’s Hall of Fame
Gallery includes the interactive plaques and details the tremendous accomplishments of 227 thoroughbreds, 112 jockeys, 101 trainers, and 47 Pillars of the Turf. This year, the Hall of Fame will induct the racehorses Aristides, Gun Runner, Justify, and Lecomte; jockeys Abe Hawkins and Joel Rosario; and Pillars of the Turf Harry F. Guggenheim, Clement L. Hirsch, and Joe Hirsch
The 2024 induction ceremony will be held at the Fasig-Tipton Sales Pavilion on Friday, Aug. 2. For more information on the ceremony, please visit racingmuseum.org.
We also invite you to experience the Museum’s newest exhibits: The Passions of Paul Mellon: Horses, Art, and Philanthropy (Peter McBean Gallery, through March 2025); The Remarkable Ruffian (von Stade Gallery, through Oct. 6, 2024); the 6th annual Photo Finish: Juried Photography Exhibition (von Stade Gallery, opening Oct. 30, 2024); and Hot Dog! The Harry M. Stevens Concessions Experience (Link Gallery, through Jan. 5, 2025).
We look forward to seeing you at the Museum.
The First Futurity
Proctor Knott, Shelby “Pike” Barnes up, defeats Salvator, Anthony Hamilton up, at Sheepshead Bay in the inaugural running of the Futurity Stakes, 1888 By Louis Maurer, oil on canvas, 1889 National Museum of Racing Collection Gift of George D. Widener, Jr.
HISTORY OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF RACING AND HALL OF FAME
Where Racing History Comes to Life
Since 1950, the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame has chronicled, honored, and promoted the sport of American thoroughbred racing in innovative ways
By Edward L. Bowen Hall of Fame Nominating Committee Chairman
Led by Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney, a group of people prominent within the sport of thoroughbred racing founded the National Museum of Racing in 1950. The Museum’s location of Saratoga Springs, New York, home of the oldest thoroughbred racetrack in America, proved to be an ideal setting. On Aug. 6, 1951, amid a great deal of fanfare, the Museum made its public debut in a temporary location at the Canfield Casino in Congress Park.
“The long-range purpose,” Whitney said at the opening in the famous old casino, originally opened by Saratoga racing founder John Morrissey in 1870, “is to build a permanent home for the important memorabilia for the sport whose beginnings in this country antedate by 100 years or more the United States of America.”
Joining Whitney in the founding group that signed the charter for the Museum were Carleton F. Burke, Kenneth K. Burke, John C. Clark, Nelson Dunstan, Donald P. Ross, F. Skiddy von Stade, John Hay Whitney, and George D. Widener, Jr. Also recognized as organizers of the Museum were Francis Dorsey, Spencer Eddy, Howell E. Jackson, Walter M. Jeffords, Robert F. Kelley, Paul Kerr, Addison Mallery, Denis Mansfield, Dr. Charles H. Strub, and Bryce Wing.
The first gift for the Museum project was $5,000 from the Saratoga Association, which owned and operated Saratoga
Race Course. Harold O. Vosburgh, a steward for the Saratoga Association, donated the first piece of memorabilia, a shoe from the legendary horse Lexington.
The Museum has evolved with the times while staying true to its core concepts — preserving and promoting the history of thoroughbred racing in America and honoring its most accomplished participants with induction into the Hall of Fame. A major project was completed in 2020, when a dynamic new Hall of Fame and Race Day Gallery opened to the public. The new Hall of Fame includes the immersive signature film What It Takes: Journey to the Hall of Fame, which is narrated by iconic broadcaster Bob Costas. The reimagined Hall also features state-of-the-art interactive plaques for all 487 Hall of Fame inductees that include a variety of multimedia content.
“The Hall of Fame experience, which we will continually update, has been a true game-changer for the Museum. Our sport deserves the best and I believe we now have the greatest sports Hall of Fame in the country,” said John Hendrickson, the Museum’s chairman. “These are exciting times for the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. This is a vibrant and wonderful sport with a significant history and we are passionate about honoring that. We will always be looking for new ways to give our guests an exceptional visitor experience that is both entertaining and informative.”
The Museum has grown significantly in size and scope since its founding. After a few years in Congress Park, the Museum moved to a newly constructed facility at 191 Union Avenue, directly across the street from the historic track, in 1955. The Museum now occupies a sprawling building with some 45,000 square feet of space.
C. V. Whitney served as the first president of the Museum from 1950 to 1953. He was followed by Jeffords, 1953 to 1960; Widener, 1960 to 1968; John W. Hanes, 1968 to 1970; Gerard S. Smith, 1970 to 1974; Charles E. Mather II, 1974 to 1982; Whitney Tower, 1982 to 1989; John T. von Stade, 1989 to 2005; Stella F. Thayer, 2005 to 2014; Gretchen Jackson, 2014 to 2017; and Hendrickson, 2017 to present.
The Museum was popular from the beginning. During its first year of operation at the Canfield Casino in 1951, the Museum attracted more than 8,000 visitors. At the end of 1952, the register showed 11,500 names.
When it was announced the Museum would move out of its original quarters in the Canfield Casino into a structure being built specifically to house it, a Saratoga citizen and future city mayor, James E. Benton, applauded it. He sparked some of the impetus toward a Hall of Fame with a letter to journalists Nelson Dunstan and Gene Ward. He made an eloquent plea, noting that some aspects of Saratoga were changing — the demise of the Grand Union and United States hotels, for example — but that tradition was an important part of the area and racing.
“If a board of turf writers, for instance, were to elect annually to the Hall of Fame one or more jockeys, horses, or trainers, it would be of national importance,” Benton wrote. “An annual special award would be coveted.”
By early 1955, it was announced by Jeffords that the new
building would, indeed, include a Hall of Fame. The Museum board had passed the following: “Resolved that the National Museum of Racing create and be custodian of racing’s Hall of Fame and its president be empowered to appoint a committee whose duties it will be to recommend to the board of trustees ways and means of selecting candidates.”
Given that thoroughbred racing had been a part of life in America since the colonial days, a bit of catching up was needed. It was decided that the first group of Hall of Fame inductees would be comprised of horses which had raced prior to 1900 and jockeys and trainers who were no longer active.
The inaugural class of inductees included the horses Ben Brush, Boston, Domino, Hanover, Hindoo, Kingston, Lexington, Salvator, and Sir Archy; jockeys Laverne Fator, Edward Garrison,
Opposite page: Ground was broken on the Union Avenue home of the National Museum of Racing in Saratoga Springs, New York, in November 1954, and the cornerstone (pictured) was laid the following April. The Museum’s first home was in the Canfield Casino in Congress Park. Above: The Museum opened to the public in its new location on June 2, 1956.
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The Museum and Hall of Fame underwent significant renovations in 2020 that included updated galleries and a new state-of-the-art Hall of Fame, which features the signature film What It Takes: Journey to the Hall of Fame , as well as interactive plaques for every inductee.
Danny Maher, James McLaughlin, Walter Miller, Isaac Murphy, George Odom, Earl Sande, Tod Sloan, Fred Taral, Nash Turner, and George Woolf; and trainers William P. Burch, Thomas Healey, Sam Hildreth, A. J. Joyner, John Rogers, and James Rowe, Sr.
Ground was broken for the Museum’s permanent home during the final week of November 1954. The cornerstone was laid the following April and New York Gov. W. Averell Harriman presided over the formal dedication during the 1955 Saratoga racing season. Harriman spoke briefly prior to the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
“Racing must remain as a sport,” he said, “and not as a commercial enterprise. We must maintain the traditions of racing, and Saratoga is rich in such traditions.”
The National Museum of Racing opened to the public on June 2, 1956. The building was designed by New York City architect Augustus Noel. The New York Times’ report on the dedication said the building cost $300,000. In 1957, the first addition, called the Patrons of the Turf Gallery, was completed. More expansion followed. A third wing was added in 1979 and became the home of the Hall of Fame.
Until the mid-l980s, the Museum functioned primarily as a diversified set of galleries and was open only during the summer. The Museum then began evolving into a professionally managed institution. The Board of Trustees raised $6.4 million and hired an English design team experienced with thoroughbred racing to completely renovate the building and develop historical galleries covering three centuries of racing in America. The renovation took
10 months and the building reopened on July 14, 1988.
Between 1999 and 2000, a major renovation and a 10,000 square-foot expansion of the physical plant costing $18 million improved collections storage and created a changing exhibition space, a curatorial workroom, and a children’s gallery. The story line of the semi-permanent historical galleries also expanded to include 20th century history and current events in racing. Extensive audio and video presentations, as well as interactive exhibits for all ages, were added throughout the Museum.
There has been tremendous change in all areas of Museum operations in the 21st century. The unique horse racing simulator was developed and opened to the public in 2006; a new interactive Steeplechase Gallery opened in 2012; the Museum celebrated 150 years of racing at Saratoga with a two-year exhibit that opened in June 2013; in 2016, the Museum opened the Edward P. Evans Gallery, which displays some of the most coveted and prestigious trophies in the history of American racing; in 2018, the Museum unveiled its renovated interior courtyard, named in honor of C. V. Whitney; in 2023, the Museum celebrated the 50th anniversary of Secretariat’s Triple Crown sweep with both traveling and onsite exhibitions. Plans are also in development to celebrate the Museum’s 75th anniversary in 2025.
Now in its eighth decade — with a state-of-the-art Hall of Fame experience to inspire current racing fans and cultivate new ones — the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame continues to thrive as a dynamic and integral part of the sport it celebrates
The Passions of Paul Mellon: Horses, Art, and Philanthropy
Hall of Fame Pillar of the Turf Paul Mellon held a lifelong passion for horses and achieved lasting success as an owner and a breeder of thoroughbreds with numerous champion racehorses, including Hall of Fame members Arts and Letters and Fort Marcy. He became an avid art collector and donated thousands of works to various notable institutions, including the National Gallery of Art, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and Yale Center for British Art. He was also one of the greatest American philanthropists of the 20th century and his legacy connects many institutions and foundations today. The exhibition features selections from the Museum’s collection and archive gifted by Paul Mellon along with objects from other institutions that he impacted.
— On exhibition through March 2025
The Remarkable Ruffian
Hall of Fame filly Ruffian was one of the most brilliant horses of the 20th century. This charismatic dark bay won all five of her races as a juvenile, earning the Eclipse Award for Champion 2-Year-Old Filly. As a sophomore, Ruffian continued to demonstrate her incredible abilities with several record-breaking wins, including a sweep of the New York Filly Triple Crown. Lacking competition among the fillies, Ruffian met Kentucky Derby winner Foolish Pleasure in a match race on July 6, 1975, at Belmont Park. They went stride for stride until Ruffian broke down, which led to her being euthanized. The loss of Ruffian inspired advances in veterinary medicine and increased industry safety measures. The exhibit honors Ruffian’s incredible achievements and her enduring legacy.
— On exhibition through Oct. 6, 2024
Hot Dog! The Harry M. Stevens Concessions Experience
Have you ever sipped on a cold drink through a straw and enjoyed a delicious hot dog while watching the races at the track? We can all thank Harry M. Stevens for our modern food concessions at sports venues throughout the country. While in Ohio, Stevens attended his first baseball game in 1887 and recognized the need to clearly identify players. He obtained permission from the team’s owner to produce and sell an improved scorecard. Inspired by this early success, Stevens expanded the business to include food and drink concessions. Harry M. Stevens, Inc. catered to 20 racetracks throughout the country, including Belmont Park, Churchill Downs, Hialeah Park, Pimlico Race Course, and Saratoga Race Course. “From the Hudson to the Rio Grande” became the company’s slogan after opening its concessions at the racetrack in Juarez, Mexico. As an industry pioneer, some credit Stevens for innovations including the introduction of straws for soda bottles and even the hot dog. When Aramark purchased the company in 1994, it still operated food and drink concessions at some of the nation’s largest sports venues. This exhibit predominantly focuses on Harry M. Stevens concessions at racetracks in the first half of the 20th century.
— On exhibition through December 2024
Marylou Whitney Stables and John Hendrickson
congratulate the Hall of Fame Class of 2024 on your remarkable careers in thoroughbred racing
Joel Rosario
Gun Runner
Justify
Abe Hawkins
Aristides
Lecomte
Harry F. Guggenheim
Clement L. Hirsch
Joe Hirsch
Friends
Birdstone, winner of the 2004 Belmont Stakes and Travers Stakes, at Old Friends, Georgetown, Kentucky (photo by Laura Battles)
Hall of Famers in the News 2023
Mott at the pinnacle
In his 51st year of training, Hall of Famer Bill Mott (class of 1998) had arguably his finest campaign in 2023. Mott won his fourth Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer — his first since 2011 — and posted career-best earnings of $17,437,147. He won three races at the Breeders’ Cup, scoring repeat victories in the Dirt Mile and Sprint, with Cody’s Wish and Elite Power, respectively, and saddling Just F Y I for a win in the Juvenile Fillies. The three scores on racing’s biggest stage pushed Mott’s Breeders’ Cup career win total to 15. Cody’s Wish won the Eclipse Awards for Horse of the Year and Champion Older Male; Elite Power repeated as Champion Male Sprinter; and Just F Y I was named Champion 2-Year-Old Filly. Through 2023, Mott ranks fourth all time in purse earnings with $340,397,486 and eighth in wins with 5,376. He won 24 graded stakes in 2023, including 10 Grade 1s.
Asmussen
first trainer to 10,000 wins
Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen (class of 2016) became the first trainer to win 10,000 races in North America when he saddled Bet He’s Ready to win the fifth race at Oaklawn Park on Feb. 20, 2023. Asmussen concluded 2023 with 10,345 career wins. He set the all-time North American record when he won his 9,446th race in 2021 at Saratoga Race Course, surpassing the previous record of Dale Baird.
Castellano wins first Kentucky Derby and Belmont, record seventh Travers
Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano (class of 2017) demonstrated he is still among the elite in his profession with a remarkable year in 2023. The two-time Preakness Stakes winner completed his personal sweep of the races in the Triple Crown series when he piloted Mage to victory in the Kentucky Derby and champion Arcangelo to win the Belmont Stakes. A winner of four consecutive Eclipse Awards (2013 through 2016), Castellano also added to his record number of wins in the Travers Stakes when he partnered with Arcangelo to win Saratoga’s signature event for the seventh time. Castellano finished 2023 with earnings of $19,446,109, his highest total since 2019. Castellano ranks second all time in career earnings with $395,918,315 and has 5,740 wins through 2023.
Velazquez, Baffert team up for Preakness glory with National Treasure
There isn’t much Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez (class of 2012) hasn’t accomplished in his decorated career, but until 2023 the Preakness Stakes had eluded him. Velazquez, however, crossed that one off his list when he rode National Treasure to victory in the middle jewel of the Triple Crown for Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert (class of 2009). For Baffert, the Preakness win was his eighth, breaking a tie with Hall of Famer R. W. Walden (class of 1970) for the most in the race’s history. The Preakness victory was the sixth in a Triple Crown race for Velazquez, who also won his 20th Breeders’ Cup race in 2023, piloting champion Fierceness to a score in the Juvenile for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher (class of 2021), who earned his 15th Breeders’ Cup win.
Fisher atop NSA leaderboard once again
Hall of Fame trainer Jack Fisher (class of 2021) led the National Steeplechase Association with earnings of $1,005,760 in 2023. It marked the ninth time in his illustrious career that Fisher led the NSA earnings standings. Fisher also surpassed $1 million in earnings for the sixth time. No other steeplechase trainer has topped $1 million in earnings more than once.
Curlin
Cup sires
alone among Breeders’
It was a monumental Breeders’ Cup for Hall of Famer Curlin (class of 2014) in 2023. The two-time Horse of the Year was not only the leading sire by number of winners with three, he also took the top spot all time with eight Breeders’ Cup winners among his progeny. Elite Power’s repeat in the Sprint pushed Curlin to the top of the sire standings. Curlin, a son of Smart Strike, was also represented by Dirt Mile repeat winner Cody’s Wish and Distaff winner Idiomatic. All three of those Breeders’ Cup winners also won 2023 Eclipse Awards. Only one other sire has had three Breeders’ Cup winners in the same year; Godolphin’s leading European sire Dubawi accomplished the feat in 2021 with Modern Games (Juvenile Turf), Space Blues (Mile), and Yibir (Turf). Four sires are tied with seven career Breeders’ Cup winners apiece: Dubawi, Into Mischief, Tapit, and More Than Ready.
Cauthen inducted into QIPCO British Hall of Fame
Hall of Fame jockey Steve Cauthen (class of 1994) was honored in England with induction to the QIPCO British Champions Series Hall of Fame in 2023. Cauthen is the only jockey to win both the Kentucky Derby and Epsom Derby. After his brief career in North America, Cauthen starred in Europe, winning 10 English classics, all but one for Sir Henry Cecil. The QIPCO British Champions Series Hall of Fame was launched in 2021 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the formation of QIPCO British Champions Series. It focuses on the modern greats of the sport from 1970 to present. Cauthen, who won 954 races in North America and 2,794 worldwide, is the fifth jockey to be inducted into the British Hall of Fame, joining Lester Piggot, Pat Eddery, Frankie Dettori, and Willie Carson.
In Memoriam
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame mourns the loss of three icons of the sport who passed away in 2023
John M. Veitch
Jonathan E. Sheppard
Robert N. Ussery
The Home of Racing’s Treasured History
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame features one of the world’s finest collections of equine art, as well as thousands of historical artifacts, trophies, photographs, and various other items that tell the story of the sport dating back to America’s colonial days. Here are a few featured items from the Museum’s collection:
Match Race at Monmouth Park, by Charles L. Zellinsky Oil on canvas, 1885 Museum purchase 1996.2.6
Miss Woodford (red silks with blue sash), one of the elite racehorses of the 19 th century, met Freeland in a match race at Monmouth Park in 1885 with a stake of $2,500 per side, plus $2,500 added by Monmouth Park. With Hall of Fame jockey
James McLaughlin up, Miss Woodford won by a head at 1¼ miles. Miss Woodford was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1967.
Deputed Testamony (with Donny Miller, Jr. up, at Pimlico), by Jean Bowman
of Francis and Barbara Sears Family 2023.38
In 1983, Deputed Testamony, with Don Miller aboard, defeated Kentucky Derby winner Sunny’s Halo in the Preakness Stakes by 2¾ lengths.
Deputed Testamony is the most recent Maryland-bred horse to win the middle jewel of the Triple Crown. Named in his honor, the Deputed Testamony Stakes is held every February at Laurel Park in Maryland.
Iroquois, by Henry Stull Oil on canvas, 1882
Gift of Walter M. Jeffords 1955.13.1
Iroquois was the first American-bred colt to win the Epsom Derby, accomplishing the historic feat in 1881. Owned by Pierre Lorillard and trained by Hall of Famer Jacob Pincus, Iroquois also won the St. Leger Stakes at Doncaster that year and the Stockbridge Cup in 1883 before returning to America and retiring to stud at Belle Meade in Tennessee.
Jonathan Sheppard, by Sam Robinson Oil on canvas
Gift of Jonathan’s children: Daniel, Diana, and David Sheppard 2023.28
Jonathan Sheppard led the National Steeplechase Association in trainer earnings each year from 1973 through 1990 and topped that list 29 times throughout his career. He also led all steeplechase trainers in annual wins 26 times. Sheppard trained Hall of Fame members Café Prince and Flatterer, as well as flat champions and Breeders’ Cup winners Forever Together and Informed Decision.
Horse Auction at the Old Winter Garden, 1889, by Frederic Remington Grisaille on canvas, 1889 Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Cortright Wetherill 1955.33.2
Oil on canvas
Gift
California Chrome, by Linda Stinson
Bronze
Gift of Linda and Michael C. Stinson 2023.27
Hall of Famer California Chrome raced from 2013 to 2017 with a record of 16-4-1 from 27 starts and earnings of $14,752,650. He was voted Horse of the Year in 2014 and 2016 and earned Eclipse Awards for Champion 3-Year-Old Male in 2014 and Champion Older Male in 2016.
1874 Travers Stakes trophy, won by Attila
Tiffany & Co., silver-gilt bowl Gift of F. Skiddy von Stade 1960.1.1
Pierre Lorillard’s Attila finished in a dead heat with K. W. Sears’ Acrobat in the 1874 Travers Stakes at 1¾ miles in a time of 3:09. Instead of settling for the tie, the owners agreed to have a second heat to decide the contest.
Attila won in 3:08¾ to claim the victory and the trophy for his owner.
1973
Kentucky Derby trophy, won by Secretariat
Lemon & Son, gold
Loan from the Helen B. Chenery Trust L2023.12.1
In winning the 99 th running of the Kentucky Derby, Hall of Famer Secretariat set the track record for 1¼ miles at 1:59 2 � 5 . He went on to sweep the Triple Crown with record-setting wins in the Preakness and Belmont.
Rokeby Stables Silks
Grey with yellow froqs, yellow sleeves, and yellow cap Museum Collection 1996.14.172
Paul Mellon (1907–1999) began racing under the name Rokeby Stables in 1948 and his horses won more than 1,000 stakes races and earned more than $30 million. Among his stars were Hall of Fame members Arts and Letters and Fort Marcy. Mellon was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2013 as a Pillar of the Turf.
Fred Astaire Silks
Dark blue with a yellow sash and red cap Museum Collection 1996.14.113
Fred Astaire (1899–1987) was an actor and one of the greatest dancers in film history. Astaire had a keen passion for horse racing. The silks he selected to race under previously belonged to Henry Worthington Bell, who was the uncle of Fred’s wife, Phyllis. Astaire’s racehorse Triplicate won the Hollywood Gold Cup in 1946.
Augustin Stables Silks
White with green horizontal stripe and green cap Gift of George Strawbridge, Jr. D2010.11
George Strawbridge, Jr.’s Augustin Stables silks have been prominent on steeplechase and flat racers in America and Europe for more than 50 years. Augustin Stables champions include Hall of Famer Café Prince and champions Informed Decision, Forever Together, and Pompeyo
is proud to congratulate our partners on Triple Crown winner & two-time Eclipse Award champion
HALL OF FAME JOCKEYS
Hall of Fame Horses, Jockeys, Trainers, and Pillars of the Turf Rosters
VICTOR ESPINOZA
Hall of Fame Class of 2017
Exterminator Victor Espinoza
HALL OF FAME
OF THE TURF
With the induction of nine new members in 2024, the National Museum of Racing’s Hall of Fame now includes 227 thoroughbreds, 112 jockeys, 101 trainers, and 47 Pillars of the Turf. They are the immortals of the sport, the best of the best. Their achievements and impact on the game are both rare and timeless.
Angel Penna, Sr.
James R. Keene
HALL OF FAME HORSES
Horse Gender Foaled Career Dates Starts First Second Third Earnings Inducted
Boston
Parole Duke of Magenta Hanover
Colin Old Rosebud Exterminator Man o’ War
HALL OF FAME HORSES
Horse
Gender Foaled Career Dates Starts First Second Third Earnings Inducted
Fairmount
Top Flight
Black Helen
War Admiral
Count Fleet
Stymie
Bed o’ Roses Round Table
HALL OF FAME HORSES
Horse Gender Foaled Career Dates Starts First
Third Earnings Inducted
Kelso Bowl of Flowers Cicada Gamely
Horse Gender Foaled
Easy Goer
Flawlessly
Silver Charm McDynamo
Ashado
Tepin
Arrogate
HALL OF FAME JOCKEYS
Frank D. Adams 1970 1944-1956 Eight-time leading steeplechase rider, won 301 career steeplechase races
John Adams 1965 1934-1958 Three-time national riding leader, won 3,270 races, including the Preakness
Joe Aitcheson, Jr. 1978 1957-1977
Seven-time leading steeplechase rider, won record 440 career steeplechase races
Chris W. Antley 2015 1983-2000 Won 3,480 races, including two editions of the Kentucky Derby, one Preakness
G. Edward Arcaro 1958 1931-1962 Six-time national riding leader, won 4,779 races, including record 17 in Triple Crown series, rode Whirlaway, Citation, Kelso
Ted F. Atkinson 1957 1937-1959 Two-time national riding leader, won 3,795 races, including Preakness and Belmont, rode Tom Fool, Nashua, Bold Ruler
Braulio Baeza 1976 1960-1976
George Barbee
Shelby “Pike” Barnes
Two-time Eclipse Award winner, won 4,013 races, including three editions of the Belmont, one Kentucky Derby
Jerry D. Bailey 1995 1974-2006 Seven-time Eclipse Award winner, won 5,893 races, including 15 Breeders’ Cup races, six Triple Crown events
1996 1872-1884 Three-time Preakness winner, won Travers and Saratoga Cup twice each, Belmont once
2011 1885-1892 Two-time national riding leader, won the Belmont, Travers, Alabama, and inaugural Futurity
Carroll K. Bassett 1972 1929-1936 Won more than 100 steeplechase races, including several aboard Battleship
Russell Baze 1999 1974-2016 Won record 12,842 races, national leader in wins 13 times, George Woolf Award winner
Walter Blum 1987 1953-1975
Two-time national riding leader, won 4,382 races, including Belmont, Santa Anita Derby, Whitney
Bill Boland 2006 1949-1969 Won 2,049 races, including two editions of the Belmont, one Kentucky Derby
Calvin H. Borel* 2013 1983-present Has won more than 5,290 races, including three editions of the Kentucky Derby, one Preakness, Travers, Haskell, Alabama
George H. “Pete” Bostwick 1968 1927-1949 Six-time amateur steeplechase riding leader, later trained Neji and Oedipus
Sam Boulmetis, Sr. 1973 1948-1966 Won 2,783 races, including seven stakes aboard Tosmah, four-time riding leader at Monmouth
Steve Brooks 1963 1938-1975 Won 4,451 races, including the Kentucky Derby, riding titles at Arlington, Churchill, Monmouth
Don Brumfield 1996 1954-1989 Won 4,573 races, including the Kentucky Derby and Preakness, 16 riding titles at Churchill Downs
Thomas H. Burns 1983 1895-1913 Two-time national riding leader, won 1,333 races, including three editions of the Manhattan Handicap
James H. Butwell 1984 1907-1928 Won 1,402 races, including two editions of the Belmont, one Preakness
J. Dallett Byers 1967 1916-1932 Three-time steeplechase riding leader, won races aboard Jolly Roger and Fairmount
Javier Castellano* 2017 1997-present Four-time Eclipse Award winner, has won more than 5,780 races, 12 Breeders’ Cup events, four Triple Crown races, record seven Travers
Steve Cauthen 1994 1976-1992 Eclipse Award winner, won 2,794 races, including Triple Crown with Affirmed, 10 English classics
Frank Coltiletti 1970 1919-1934 Won 667 races, including the Preakness, Travers, Futurity, Metropolitan Handicap
Angel Cordero, Jr. 1988 1962-1992 Three-time national riding leader, won 7,057 races, three Eclipse Awards, six Triple Crown events, 14 Saratoga riding titles
Robert H. Crawford 1973 1916-1928 Four-time leading steeplechase rider, won the American Grand National three times
Pat Day 1991 1973-2005 Four-time Eclipse Award winner, won 8,803 races, 12 Breeders’ Cup races, nine Triple Crown events, rode Easy Goer, Lady’s Secret
Jockey Elected Career Summary
Ted Atkinson
Calvin Borel
George H. Bostwick Kent Desormeaux
Edward J. Delahoussaye 1993 1967-2002 Won 6,384 races, including seven Breeders’ Cup races, five Triple Crown events, rode A.P. Indy and Princess Rooney
Kent J. Desormeaux* 2004 1986-present Three-time Eclipse Award winner, has won more than 6,150 races, including seven Triple Crown events, rode Real Quiet, Big Brown
Ramon A. Dominguez 2016 1996-2013 Three-time Eclipse Award winner, won 4,985 races, including Saratoga record 68 in 2012, rode Havre de Grace and Gio Ponti
Lavelle “Buddy” Ensor 1962 1917-1945 Won 436 races, including Travers, Brooklyn, and Suburban, rode Exterminator and Grey Lag
Victor Espinoza* 2017 1993-present Has won more than 3,500 races, Triple Crown with American Pharoah, Kentucky Derby and Preakness with War Emblem, California Chrome
Laverne Fator 1955 1919-1933 Two-time national riding leader, won 1,075 races, including two editions of the Travers Earlie Fires 2001 1965-2008 Won 6,470 races, all-time leading rider at Arlington Park with 2,886 wins
Jerry Fishback 1992 1964-1987 Five-time leading steeplechase rider, won 301 career steeplechase races, rode Café Prince and Flatterer
Mack Garner 1969 1914-1936 Won 1,346 races, including two editions of the Belmont, one Kentucky Derby
Edward R. “Snapper” Garrison 1955 1882-1897 Famous 19th century rider, won the Belmont, American Derby, three editions of the Jerome Handicap
Avelino Gomez 1982 1944-1980 Sovereign Award winner, won 4,081 races, including four editions of the Queen’s Plate
Garrett K. Gomez 2017 1988-2013 Four-time national riding leader, won 3,769 races, two Eclipse Awards, 13 Breeders’ Cup races, including Classic with Blame
Henry F. Griffin 1956 1891-1897 Elite 19th century rider, won 569 races, rode Henry of Navarre and Clifford, won both Preakness and Belmont in 1896
O. Eric Guerin 1972 1941-1975 Regular rider of Native Dancer, won 2,712 races, including Kentucky Derby, Preakness, two editions of the Belmont
Anthony Hamilton 2012 1881-1904 Won American Derby and Futurity, as well as Brooklyn, Suburban, and Metropolitan handicaps
William J. Hartack 1959 1952-1974 Four-time national riding leader, won 4,272 races, including nine Triple Crown events, rode Northern Dancer, Tim Tam, Ridan
Sandy Hawley 1992 1968-1998 Eclipse and Sovereign Award winner, won 6,450 races, 12 Canadian Triple Crown events, 18 Woodbine riding titles
Lloyd Hughes 2014 1872-1883 First rider to win the Preakness three times, also won Belmont and Travers twice each
Albert M. Johnson 1971 1917-1929 Two-time winner of both the Kentucky Derby and Belmont, rode Exterminator and Crusader
William J. Knapp 1969 1901-1919 Won 649 races, including the Kentucky Derby with Exterminator, rode Upset to defeat Man o’ War
Julie Krone 2000 1981-2004 Won 3,704 races, first woman in Hall of Fame, first to win a Triple Crown race and Breeders’ Cup race
Clarence Kummer 1972 1916-1928 Won Preakness and Belmont twice each, rode Man o’ War, Sir Barton, Exterminator, Sarazen, and Zev
Charles E. Kurtsinger 1967 1924-1939
Two-time national riding leader, won 721 races, Triple Crown with War Admiral, Kentucky Derby and Preakness with Twenty Grand
John P. Loftus 1959 1909-1919 Rode Man o’ War, Sir Barton, and Pan Zareta, won Kentucky Derby and Preakness twice each, Belmont once
John Longden 1958 1927-1966
Three-time national riding leader, won 6,032 races, including Triple Crown with Count Fleet
Daniel A. Maher 1955 1895-1915 Won 1,421 races in England and 1,771 overall, nine English classic wins, 1912 Irish Derby
Eddie Maple 2009 1965-1998 Won 4,398 races, including the Travers and Belmont twice each, seven editions of the Saranac Handicap
Darrel McHargue 2020 1972-1988 Won 2,553 races, Eclipse Award, set single-year earnings record, won Preakness, rode John Henry, My Juliet, Ancient Title
Jockey Elected Career Summary
Eric Guerin
Bill Hartack
Clarence Kummer
Eddie Maple
HALL OF FAME JOCKEYS
J. Linus “Pony” McAtee 1956 1914-1932 Won 930 races, including two editions of the Kentucky Derby, one Preakness
Conn McCreary 1975 1939-1960 Won 1,263 races, including two editions of both the Kentucky Derby and Preakness
Rigan McKinney 1968 1929-1939 Four-time leading amateur steeplechase rider, won American Grand National twice
Chris McCarron 1989 1974-2002 Two-time Eclipse Award winner, won 7,141 races, including eight Breeders’ Cup races, six Triple Crown events
James McLaughlin 1955 1876-1892 Four-time national riding leader, won Belmont six times, Travers four times, Kentucky Derby and Preakness once each
Walter Miller 1955 1904-1909
Two-time national riding leader, won 1,094 races, including Preakness, Travers, and Alabama, rode Colin
Isaac B. Murphy 1955 1876-1895 First three-time Kentucky Derby winner, won American Derby and Clark Handicap four times each
Corey S. Nakatani 2023 1988-2018 Won 3,909 races, including 10 Breeders’ Cup events, 10 riding titles in Southern California, rode Lava Man, Serena’s Song, Shared Belief
Ralph Neves 1960 1934-1964 Won 3,772 races, including three editions of the Hollywood Derby, also won Santa Anita Derby, Santa Anita Handicap
Joe Notter 1963 1904-1918 Rode Colin, Fair Play, Maskette, Peter Pan, Regret, and Whisk Broom II
Winfield “Winnie” O’Connor 1956 1896-1923 National riding leader, won 1,229 races in America and Europe, won Futurity aboard Yankee
George M. Odom 1955 1898-1905 Won 527 races, rode and later trained a Belmont winner, trained Busher
Frank O’Neill 1956 1901-1930 Rode Beldame and Roseben before becoming an 11-time leading rider in France
Ivan H. Parke 1978 1923-1931
Two-time national riding leader, later trained Kentucky Derby winner Hoop Jr.
Gilbert W. Patrick 1970 1836-1879 Rode Boston, Lexington, Kentucky, and Ruthless, won inaugural editions of the Travers, Belmont, Saratoga Cup
Craig Perret 2018 1967-2005 Eclipse Award winner, won Kentucky Derby, Belmont, two editions of both the Travers and Queen’s Plate
Donald Pierce 2010 1954-1985 Won 3,546 races, including five editions of the Santa Anita Oaks, Santa Anita Handicap four times, Santa Anita Derby twice
Laffit Pincay, Jr. 1975 1966-2003 Seven-time national riding leader, won 9,530 races, five Eclipse Awards, seven Breeders’ Cup races, four Triple Crown events
Vincent Powers 2015 1907-1923 Two-time national riding leader, won Kentucky Derby, also leading steeplechase rider and trainer
Edgar S. Prado 2008 1986-2023 Three-time national riding leader, won 7,119 races, Eclipse Award, two editions of the Belmont, one Kentucky Derby
Samuel Purdy
1970 1800-1823 Amateur standout, rode American Eclipse to defeat Sir Henry in famous 1823 match race
John Reiff 1956 1898-1914 Won 1,016 races in America and Europe, including the Kentucky Oaks, English Derby, 2000 Guineas, French Derby, French Oaks
Alfred M. Robertson 1971 1927-1943 Won 1,856 races, including two editions of the Travers, rode Top Flight and Whirlaway
Randy P. Romero 2010 1973-1999 Won 4,294 races, including two editions of the Breeders’ Cup Distaff, rode Go for Wand and Personal Ensign
John L. Rotz 1983 1953-1973 Won 2,907 races, including the Preakness and Belmont, rode Gallant Bloom, Carry Back, and Ta Wee
Earl Sande 1955 1918-1953
Three-time national riding leader, won 968 races, including nine Triple Crown races, rode Gallant Fox, Grey Lag, and Zev
Jose A. Santos 2007 1984-2007 Four-time national riding leader, won 4,083 races, Eclipse Award, seven Breeders’ Cup races, three Triple Crown events, rode Funny Cide
John Sellers 2007 1955-1977 National riding leader, won 2,797 races, Kentucky Derby and Preakness with Carry Back, Belmont with Hail To All
Jockey Elected Career Summary
Isaac Murphy
Corey Nakatani
Vincent Powers
Edgar Prado
Carroll H. Shilling 1970 1904-1912 National riding leader, won 969 races, including Kentucky Derby, Travers, two editions of the Alabama
William Shoemaker 1958 1949-1990 Ten-time national riding leader, won 8,833 races, Eclipse Award, 11 Triple Crown events, 11 editions of the Santa Anita Handicap
Willie Simms 1977 1887-1901 National riding leader, won 1,125 races, including two editions of both the Kentucky Derby and Belmont, one Preakness
Tod Sloan 1955 1889-1900 Rode both Hamburg and Clifford in America, starred in England, won Ascot Gold Cup and One Thousand Guineas
Mike E. Smith* 2003 1982-present Two-time Eclipse Award winner, has won more than 5,740 races, record 27 Breeders’ Cup events, Triple Crown with Justify
Alfred P. “Paddy” Smithwick 1973 1947-1966 Four-time leading steeplechase rider, second all time with 398 steeplechase wins
Alex O. Solis 2014 1982-2017 Won 5,035 races, including three Breeders’ Cup races, Preakness, Dubai World Cup
Gary L. Stevens 1997 1979-2018 Eclipse Award winner, won 5,187 races, including 11 Breeders’ Cup events, nine Triple Crown races
James Stout 1968 1930-1954 Won 2,056 races, including three editions of the Belmont, one Kentucky Derby, rode Granville, Johnstown
Fred Taral 1955 1883-1908 Won 1,437 races, including the Kentucky Derby, Belmont, and two editions of both the Preakness and Travers
Fernando Toro 2023 1956-1990 Won 3,555 races, including 80 graded stakes, won stakes with Royal Heroine, Ancient Title, Cougar II, Manila
Bayard Tuckerman, Jr. 1973 1910-1930 Outstanding amateur steeplechase rider, later a trainer, breeder/owner, first president of Suffolk Downs
Ron Turcotte 1979 1961-1978 Won 3,032 races, Triple Crown aboard Secretariat, Kentucky Derby and Belmont with Riva Ridge
Nash Turner 1955 1895-1914 Won the Belmont, Alabama, Suburban, Jerome, and Clark in America before starring in France
Robert N. Ussery 1980 1951-1974 Won 3,611 races, including two editions of the Kentucky Derby and one Preakness
Ismael Valenzuela 2008 1951-1980 Won 2,545 races, including Kentucky Derby and Preakness twice each, rode Kelso
Jacinto Vasquez 1998 1959-1996 Won 5,231 races, including two editions of the Kentucky Derby, rode Ruffian, Forego, and Genuine Risk
Jorge Velasquez 1990 1963-1997 National riding leader, won 6,795 races, including Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Breeders’ Cup Classic
John R. Velazquez* 2012 1990-present Two-time Eclipse Award winner, has won more than 6,600 races, 20 Breeders’ Cup events, six Triple Crown races
Thomas M. Walsh 2005 1956-1967 Two-time leading steeplechase rider, won 253 career steeplechase races, including six editions of the American Grand National
Jack Westrope
James Winkfield
George M. Woolf
Raymond Workman
Wayne D. Wright
2002 1933-1958 National riding leader, won 2,467 races, including Santa Anita Derby, Hollywood Derby, Hollywood Gold Cup, and Suburban Handicap
2004 1898-1932
Two-time Kentucky Derby winner, also won Latonia Derby and Clark Handicap, later had success riding in France and Russia
1955 1927-1946 Won 721 races, including the Preakness and three editions of the Hollywood Gold Cup, rode Seabiscuit, Alsab, Challedon, and Whirlaway
1956 1926-1940
2016 1931-1949
Two-time national riding leader, won 1,169 races, including the Preakness, rode Equipoise, Top Flight, and Discovery
Two-time national riding leader, won 1,492 races, including Kentucky Derby, Preakness, Belmont, Travers, Santa Anita Handicap
Manuel Ycaza 1977 1957-1983 Won 2,367 races, including the Belmont and four editions of Kentucky Oaks, rode Dr. Fager, Damascus, Fort Marcy, and Ack Ack
*Active members
Visit racingmuseum.org for more detailed information on each Hall of Fame member
Jockey Elected Career Summary
Gary Stevens
Fred Taral
John Velazquez
George Woolf
HALL OF FAME TRAINERS
Steven M. Asmussen*
Roger L. Attfield*
Bob Baffert*
Lazaro S. Barrera
H. Guy Bedwell
Edward D. Brown
J. Elliott Burch
Preston M. Burch
William P. Burch
2016 1986-present Two-time Eclipse Award winner, has won a record 10,500-plus races, eight Breeders’ Cup wins, Preakness twice, Belmont once
2012 1972-present Eight-time Sovereign Award winner, has won more than 2,000 races, including 22 Canadian Triple Crown events
2009 1979-present Four-time Eclipse Award winner, has won more than 3,375 races, including record 17 Triple Crown events, 18 Breeders’ Cup wins
1979 1945-1991 Four-time Eclipse Award winner, won 2,268 races, Triple Crown with Affirmed, Kentucky Derby and Belmont with Bold Forbes
1971 1907-1951
Seven-time national training leader, won Triple Crown with Sir Barton, also trained Billy Kelly
1984 1874-1903 Won the Belmont as a jockey, Kentucky Derby, two editions of the Kentucky Oaks as a trainer, conditioned Hindoo, Ben Brush
1980 1955-1985
1963 1902-1957
1955 1866-1926
National training leader, won three editions of the Belmont, trained Sword Dancer, Arts and Letters, Fort Marcy, Bowl of Flowers
National training leader, won 1,236 races, including Preakness, trained Flower Bowl
Won Saratoga Cup, Maryland Handicap, Saratoga Handicap, Spinaway and Withers
Fred Burlew 1973 1889-1927 Won 977 races, trained Beldame, won Kentucky Derby with Morvich
Matthew Byrnes 2011 1881-1900
Trained Parole, Salvator, and Firenze, won the Belmont with Scottish Chieftain
Mark E. Casse* 2020 1979-present Record 16-time Sovereign Award winner, more than 3,700 wins, six Breeders’ cup victories, won Preakness and Belmont
Frank E. Childs
1968 1932-1972 Trained Kentucky Derby winner Tomy Lee, also won Kentucky Oaks, Blue Grass Stakes, Del Mar Oaks, and Hollywood Oaks
Henry S. Clark 1982 1929-1989 Won four editions of the Delaware handicap, two each of the Massachusetts and Diana handicaps, one Travers
W. Burling Cocks 1985 1941-1993 Four-time leading steeplechase trainer, won American Grand National six times, trained Zaccio
James P. Conway 1996 1946-1984 Won the Kentucky Derby and Belmont with Chateaugay, also trained Miss Request, Grecian Queen, Pucker Up
Warren A. “Jimmy” Croll, Jr. 1994 1940-2002 Won 1,909 races, trained Holy Bull and Housebuster, won the Belmont with Bet Twice
Grover G. “Bud” Delp 2002 1962-2006 Eclipse Award winner, won 3,674 races, including the Kentucky Derby and Preakness with Spectacular Bid
Neil D. Drysdale* 2000 1974-present Has won more than 1,550 races, Kentucky Derby and Belmont, trained A.P. Indy, Princess Rooney, Bold ’n Determined
William Duke 1956 1887-1925 Won the Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Travers, as well as five editions of the French Derby
Janet Elliot* 2009 1979-present Two-time leading steeplechase trainer, first woman trainer in the Hall of Fame, trained Census, Correggio, Flat Top, and Victorian Hill
Louis Feustel 1964 1908-1950 National training leader, conditioned Man o’ War, as well as Chance Play, Ladkin, and Rock View
Jack Fisher* 2021 1987-present 14-time leading steeplechase trainer in wins, nine-time leader in earnings, won 10 graded stakes with Hall of Famer Good Night Shirt
James “Sunny Jim” Fitzsimmons 1958 1894-1963
Five-time national training leader, won 2,275 races, Triple Crowns with Gallant Fox and Omaha, total of 13 Triple Crown race wins
Henry Forrest 2007 1938-1975 Won 1,837 races, including the Kentucky Derby and Preakness with both Forward Pass and Kauai King
Robert J. Frankel 1995 1966-2009 Five-time Eclipse Award winner, won 3,654 races, including six Breeders’ Cup races, trained Ghostzapper, won Belmont with Empire Maker
Trainer Elected Career Summary
Preston Burch
Neil Drysdale
James E. Fitzsimmons
Robert Frankel
John M. Gaver, Sr.
Carl Hanford
Thomas J. Healey
Samuel C. Hildreth
1966 1936-1977 Won three editions of the Belmont, Kentucky Derby and Preakness once each, trained Tom Fool, Devil Diver
2006 1939-1968 Trained five-time consecutive Horse of the Year Kelso, winning 31 stakes with the immortal gelding
1955 1888-1941 Won the Preakness five times, the Belmont once, trained Equipoise and Top Flight
1955 1887-1929
Nine-time national training leader, won the Belmont and Brooklyn Handicap seven times each, Suburban five times, trained Grey Lag, Zev
Hubert “Sonny” Hine 2003 1948-2000 Won 1,314 races, including the Breeders’ Cup Classic and a total of 16 stakes with Horse of the Year Skip Away
Maximillian Hirsch 1959 1900-1969 Won 10 Triple Crown races, trained Triple Crown winner Assault, as well as Gallant Bloom, Grey Lag, Sarazen, Stymie
William J. “Buddy” Hirsch 1982 1932-1982 Trained Gallant Bloom, won two editions of the Santa Anita Derby, also won the Santa Anita Handicap and Hollywood Derby
Thomas Hitchcock, Sr. 1973 1895-1941 Steeplechase pioneer, won two editions of the American Grand National as a trainer/owner, trained flat standout Salvidere
Jerry Hollendorfer* 2011 1979-present Has won more than 7,750 races, three editions of the Kentucky Oaks, trained Songbird, Blind Luck, Shared Belief
Hollie Hughes 1973 1914-1975 Won six editions of the American Grand National, trained Kentucky Derby winner George Smith, won the Whitney with Round View
John J. Hyland 1956 1886-1913
Two-time Belmont winner, also won three editions of the Futurity, trained Beldame and Henry of Navarre
Hirsch Jacobs 1958 1926-1970 National training leader in wins 11 times and earnings three times, won 3,596 races, trained Affectionately and Stymie
H. Allen Jerkens 1975 1950-2015 Eclipse Award winner, won 3,859 races, 14 training titles in New York, trained Sky Beauty, Beau Purple, and Onion
Philip G. Johnson 1997 1943-2004 Won 2,315 races, including Breeders’ Cup Classic with Volponi, eight training titles in New York
William R. Johnson 1986 1801-1849 America’s most prominent pre-Civil War trainer, conditioned Boston and Sir Archy
LeRoy S. Jolley 1987 1958-2017 Won the Kentucky Derby with Foolish Pleasure and Genuine Risk, also trained Manila, General Assembly, and Ridan
Benjamin A. Jones 1958 1909-1953
Four-time national training leader, won nine Triple Crown races, trained Whirlaway, Citation, Twilight Tear, Armed, Coaltown
Gary F. Jones 2014 1975-1996 Won 1,465 races, 15 training titles in Southern California, trained Best Pal and Turkoman
Horace A. “Jimmy” Jones 1959 1926-1964
Andrew J. “Jack” Joyner 1955 1884-1943
Five-time national training leader, won seven Triple Crown races, trained Citation, Bewitch, Tim Tam, and Two Lea
National training leader, won two editions of the Preakness, enjoyed considerable success training in England
Thomas J. Kelly 1993 1945-1998 Won 1,553 races, trained 65 stakes winners, including Plugged Nickle, Noble Dancer II, and King’s Bishop
William Lakeland 2018 1877-1908 Trained Domino and Hamburg, won more than 110 stakes races, including the Preakness and three editions of the Futurity
Lucien Laurin 1977 1942-1990 Eclipse Award winner, won 1,161 races, Triple Crown with Secretariat, Kentucky Derby and Belmont with Riva Ridge
King T. Leatherbury 2015 1959-2023 Won more than 6,508 races, 52 training titles in Maryland, 26 stakes with Ben’s Cat
J. Howard Lewis 1969 1901-1937 Trained Bushranger and Fairmount, won the Temple Gwathmey six times and the American Grand National five times
D. Wayne Lukas* 1999 1974-present Four-time Eclipse Award winner, has won more than 4,900 races, including 20 Breeders’ Cup races, 15 Triple Crown events
Trainer Elected Career Summary
Richard Mandella Frank Martin
Bill Mott
Eddie Neloy
Horatio A. Luro
HALL OF FAME TRAINERS
1980 1937-1984 Won the Kentucky Derby twice, Preakness once, three editions of the Queen’s Plate, trained Northern Dancer
John E. Madden 1983 1888-1912 Won the Kentucky Derby and Travers, trained Hamburg, bred 182 stakes winners, including 14 recognized as champions
James W. Maloney 1989 1935-1984 Trained 42 stakes winners, including Gamely and Lamb Chop, won the Travers, Santa Anita Derby, Hollywood Gold Cup
Richard E. Mandella* 2001 1974-present Has won more than 2,300 races, including nine Breeders’ Cup races, trained Beholder, Pleasantly Perfect, Kotashaan
Frank “Pancho” Martin, Sr. 1981 1947-2012 National training leader, won 3,241 races, trained Outstandingly, Sham, and Autobiography
Ronald L. McAnally* 1990 1956-present Three-time Eclipse Award winner, has won more than 2,590 races, trained John Henry, Paseana, Bayakoa
Frank McCabe 2007 1885-1907 Won the Belmont and Travers three times each, trained Hanover, Kingston, Miss Woodford, and Tremont
Claude R. “Shug” McGaughey* 2004 1979-present Eclipse Award winner, has won more than 2,300 races, including nine Breeders’ Cup races, Kentucky Derby, Belmont
Henry McDaniel 1956 1884-1947 Won the Kentucky Derby and Belmont, trained Exterminator, Reigh Count, Sun Beau, Sun Briar
MacKenzie “Mack” Miller 1987 1949-1995 Won 1,104 races, including the Kentucky Derby, two editions of both the Travers and Whitney, trained Sea Hero and Java Gold
Michael E. “Buster” Millerick 2010 1935-1984 Won 1,886 races, including 34 stakes with Native Diver, trained a total of 54 stakes-winning horses
William Molter 1960 1935-1960 Four-time national training leader, won 2,158 races, including the Kentucky Derby, trained Round Table and T.V. Lark
William I. Mott* 1998 1973-present Four-time Eclipse Award winner, has won more than 5,400 races, including 15 Breeders’ Cup events, trained Cigar, Royal Delta
W. F. “Bert” Mulholland 1967 1926-1967 Won the Travers a record five times, three editions of the Hopeful, Belmont once, trained Eight Thirty and Jaipur
Carl A. Nafzger 2008 1973-2022 Won more than 1,100 races, Kentucky Derby and Travers twice each, trained Street Sense, Unbridled, Banshee Breeze
Edward A. Neloy 1983 1945-1971
Three-time national training leader, trained Buckpasser, Gun Bow, Bold Lad, Successor
John A. Nerud 1972 1935-1978 Won 1,006 races, including the Belmont, trained Dr. Fager, Gallant Man, Ta Wee, Intentionally, Fappiano
Burley E. Parke
Angel Penna, Sr.
Jacob Pincus
1986 1927-1966
Defeated Citation four times with Noor, also trained Roman Brother, Raise a Native, Occupation, Occupy
1988 1950-1991 Trained Allez France, Bold Reason, Private Account, Relaxing, and Waya, won two editions of the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe
1988 1861-1907 Trained Iroquois, the first American-bred to win the Epsom Derby, also won the Belmont with Fenian, Travers and Jerome with Glenelg
Todd A. Pletcher* 2021 1996-present
Eight-time Eclipse Award winner, has won more than 5,700 races, Belmont four times, Kentucky Derby twice, 15 Breeders’ Cup wins
John W. Rogers 1955 1880-1907 Won the Preakness and Belmont, trained Artful, Clifford, Tanya, Burgomaster
James G. Rowe, Sr. 1955 1876-1929
Flint S. “Scotty” Schulhofer
Three-time national training leader, won 11 Triple Crown races, trained 10 Hall of Fame horses, including Colin, Miss Woodford, Regret
1992 1964-2002 Won 1,328 races, including two editions of the Belmont, trained Cryptoclearance, Lemon Drop Kid, Colonial Affair, Fly So Free
Jonathan E. Sheppard 1990 1966-2020 Won 3,426 races, led all steeplechase trainers in earnings 29 times and in wins 26 times, trained Café Prince, Flatterer
Robert A. Smith
1976 1894-1937
Two-time national training leader, won the Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Travers, trained Cavalcade, High Quest, Psychic Bid
Trainer Elected Career Summary
Thomas J. Healey
Allen Jerkens
Ben Jones
D. Wayne Lukas
Tom Smith 2001 1933-1957
D. M. “Mikey” Smithwick 1971 1952-2006
Woodford C. “Woody” Stephens 1976 1936-1997
Meshach A. “Mesh” Tenney 1991 1935-1973
H. J. “Derby Dick” Thompson 1969 1918-1937
Harry Trotsek
1984 1931-1988
Marion Van Berg 1970 1945-1966
John M. Veitch
Two-time national training leader, trained Seabiscuit, Kayak II, won the Kentucky Derby with Jet Pilot
Twelve-time leading steeplechase trainer, conditioned Neji, Bon Nouvel, Jay Trump, Top Bid
Eclipse Award winner, won 1,937 races, five consecutive editions of the Belmont, also won Kentucky Derby and Preakness
Two-time national training leader, won Kentucky Derby and Preakness, trained Swaps, Prove It, Candy Spots, Olden Times
Four-time Kentucky Derby winner, also won Preakness and Belmont, trained Blue Larkspur, Burgoo King
National training leader, won 1,690 races, including the Preakness, trained Moccasin, Hasty Road, Oil Capitol
Jack C. Van Berg 1985 1955-2017 Eclipse Award winner, won 6,523 races, Kentucky Derby, two editions of the Preakness, trained Alysheba
Fourteen-time leading owner in wins, four-time leading owner in earnings, owned most of the horses he trained
2007 1974-2003 Won 76 graded stakes, trained Alydar, Davona Dale, Sunshine Forever, Proud Truth, Our Mims, Before Dawn
Sylvester E. Veitch 1977 1946-1988 Two-time Belmont winner, trained Counterpoint, First Flight, Phalanx, Career Boy, What a Treat, Fisherman
Oscar White 2022 1940-1978 Won the Belmont twice, Travers and Alabama three times each, Saratoga Cup twice, trained One Count
Frank Y. Whiteley, Jr. 1978 1936-1986 Won 848 races, including two editions of the Preakness and one Belmont, trained Ruffian, Damascus, Forego, Tom Rolfe
Charles E. Whittingham 1974 1950-1999 Seven-time national training leader, won 2,534 races, three Eclipse Awards, trained five Hall of Famers, including Sunday Silence
Ansel Williamson 1998 1860-1881 Won the Kentucky Derby, Belmont, two editions of the Travers, trained Aristides, Norfolk, Asteroid, Tom Bowling
G. Carey Winfrey 1975 1917-1962 Won 940 races, trained Dedicate, Squared Away, Martyr, Son of Erin
William C. Winfrey 1971 1932-1978 National training leader, conditioned 38 stakes winners, won the Preakness and Belmont, trained Native Dancer, Bed o’ Roses, Buckpasser
Nicholas P. Zito* 2005 1972-present Has won more than 2,060 races, including the Kentucky Derby and Belmont twice each, Preakness once
*Active members
Visit racingmuseum.org
Trainer Elected Career Summary
Herbert J. Thompson
Jack Van Berg Sylvester Veitch
HALL OF FAME PILLARS OF THE TURF
Name Elected Summary
Elias J. “Lucky” Baldwin 2018 Prominent California owner/breeder, opened the original Santa Anita racetrack, campaigned four American Derby winners, Hall of Famer Emperor of Norfolk
James E. “Ted” Bassett III 2019 Longtime Keeneland president, chairman of Keeneland board, president Breeders’ Cup, Ltd., Eclipse Award of Merit 1996
August Belmont I 2018 Established Nursery Stud, influential in the creation of Jerome Park and Monmouth, as owner won the Travers twice, namesake Belmont once
August Belmont II 2013 Bred 129 stakes winners, including Man o’ War and Beldame, chairman of The Jockey Club from 1895 through 1924
James Cox Brady
2022 NYRA chairman, leadership roles with Jockey Club and TRA, successful owner and breeder, Thoroughbred Club of America Honored Guest
Edward R. Bradley 2014 Bred 128 stakes winners, including 15 champions, won the Kentucky Derby four times as an owner
Cot Campbell
2018 Pioneer of racehorse ownership syndication with Dogwood Stables, won Preakness and Belmont, Eclipse Award of Merit 2012
Marshall Cassidy 2022 Jockey Club executive secretary, NYRA racing director, devised the modern starting gate among many innovations
Alice Headley Chandler
Christopher T. Chenery
Penny Chenery
2020 Founder of Mill Ridge Farm, bred Epsom Derby winner Sir Ivor, Eclipse Award of Merit 2009, served as director of Breeders’ Cup, Keeneland, TOBA
2019 Established Meadow Stud, key figure in the restructuring of New York racing in the 1950s, bred 43 stakes winners, including Secretariat
2018 Campaigned Triple Crown winner Secretariat, served in leadership roles with TOBA, Grayson Foundation and others, Eclipse Award of Merit 2005
J. Keene Daingerfield, Jr. 2020 Eclipse Award of Merit 1985, Jockey Club member, Kentucky Chief State Steward 1973 through 1985, association steward at 17 racetracks
Richard L. “Dick” Duchossois 2019 Purchased Arlington Park in 1983, led Arlington Million into international prominence, Special Eclipse Award 1989, Eclipse Award of Merit 2003
William S. Farish
John R. Gaines
2019 Two-time Eclipse Award winner for Outstanding Breeder, Eclipse Award of Merit 2009, has bred more than 300 stakes winners, industry leader
2017 Organized the creation of the Breeders’ Cup, established Gainesway Farm as an elite international operation, Eclipse Award of Merit 1984
John W. Galbreath 2018 Established Darby Dan Farm, first person to breed and own a Kentucky Derby and English Derby winner, Eclipse Award 1974, bred 91 stakes winners
Harry F. Guggenheim 2024 Campaigned Kentucky Derby winner Dark Star, Hall of Famer Ack Ack, bred 43 stakes winners, influential in New York racing reorganization in 1950s
James Ben Ali Haggin 2022 Campaigned Hall of Famers Firenze and Salvator, transformational breeder, won Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes as an owner
Arthur B. Hancock, Sr. 2018 Founded Claiborne Farm, bred 138 stakes winners, including 10 champions, leading breeder in wins eight times, earnings five times
Arthur B. “Bull” Hancock, Jr. 2016 Bred 112 stakes winners at Claiborne Farm, which was leading stud farm in America four times under his direction
John W. Hanes II 2023 Spearheaded creation of NYRA and New York racing revitalization in 1950s, Jockey Club steward, bred 19 stakes winners
Hal Price Headley 2018 One of the founders of Keeneland, track’s president from 1936 to 1951, bred 88 stakes winners, including four champions
John Hettinger 2019 Eclipse Award of Merit 2000, leading aftercare advocate, influential figure in Fasig-Tipton resurgence early 1990s, successful New York breeder/owner
Clement L. Hirsch 2024 Co-founded Oak Tree Racing Association, organized modern Del Mar management structure, Jockey Club member, Special Eclipse Award, successful owner
Ted Bassett
August Belmont I
James Cox Brady
James Ben Ali Haggin
Joe Hirsch 2024 Multiple Eclipse Award winner, Daily Racing Form 1954-2003, founder and president National Turf Writers Association, author of five books
Leonard W. Jerome 2023 Influential in the creation of three major New York tracks, president of both Sheepshead Bay and Morris Park
James R. Keene 2019 Bred 113 stakes winners, including Colin, Sysonby, Kingston, Maskette, Commando, and Peter Pan, won the Belmont Stakes six times
Frank E. “Jimmy” Kilroe 2019 Revered racing secretary in both California and New York, Eclipse Awards of Merit 1979, Jockey Club member and steward
Paul R. Mellon 2013 Two-time Eclipse Award winner for Outstanding Breeder, only individual owner to win the Kentucky Derby, Epsom Derby, and Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe
John Morrissey 2018 Bare-knuckle boxing champion and later politician, established racing at Saratoga in 1863 and presided over the sport in the village until his death in 1878
Ogden Phipps 2019 Earned four Eclipse Awards, bred 108 stakes winners and 12 champions, including Buckpasser, Easy Goer, and Personal Ensign, Jockey Club chairman
Gladys Mills Phipps 2019 Established Wheatley Stable, bred 11 champions among 102 stakes winners, bred top sire Bold Ruler, leading owner by earnings 1964
Ogden Mills “Dinny” Phipps 2017 Chairman of The Jockey Club from 1983 through 2015, bred 89 stakes winners, including Inside Information, Eclipse Award of Merit 1978
Dr. Charles H. Strub 2018 Spearheaded the opening of Santa Anita Park and brought prominence to California racing, introduced the use of photo-finish cameras, electric starting gate
Edward P. Taylor 2014 Two-time Eclipse Award winner for Outstanding Breeder, bred more than 320 stakes winners worldwide, bred and owned Northern Dancer
Stella F. Thayer 2023 President of Tampa Bay Downs, has served in leadership roles with the National Museum of Racing, Thoroughbred Racing Associations, Jockey Club, etc.
Alfred G. Vanderbilt 2015 Bred and raced Hall of Famers Bed o’ Roses, Discovery, and Native Dancer, held various roles in the sport, including owner of Pimlico, NYRA chairman
Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney 2018 Bred 176 stakes winners, including five champions, won the Travers three times, Belmont twice, founder and first president of the National Museum of Racing
Harry Payne Whitney 2018 America’s leading breeder 11 times, leading owner eight times, bred 20 champions among 191 stakes winners, including Regret, Equipoise, Top Flight
Helen Hay Whitney 2019 Established Greentree Stable, won Kentucky Derby and Belmont with homebreds Twenty Grand and Shut Out, bred 79 stakes winners
John Hay “Jock” Whitney 2015 Bred 91 stakes winners, including four champions, campaigned Tom Fool and Belmont winner Stage Door Johnny
Marylou Whitney 2019 Eclipse Award of Merit 2010, Jockey Club member, as an owner won Belmont, Kentucky Oaks, and Travers with homebreds, industry leader
William Collins Whitney 2018 Led revitalization of Saratoga racing at the start of the 20th century, bred 26 stakes winners, including four champions, leading owner in 1903
George D. Widener, Jr. 2020 Chairman of The Jockey Club 1950 through 1963, as owner won five editions of the Travers and 1962 Belmont Stakes, bred 102 stakes winners
Matt Winn 2017 Formed a syndicate to purchase Churchill Downs in 1902, developed the Kentucky Derby into one of the world’s premier events, industry leader
William Woodward, Sr. 2016 Bred 101 stakes winners, including seven champions, chairman of The Jockey Club 1930 through 1950, won the Triple Crown with Gallant Fox and Omaha
Warren Wright, Sr. 2019 Bred 73 stakes winners at Calumet Farm, including 10 champions and eight Hall of Famers, leading owner seven times, leading breeder six times
Name Elected Summary
Leonard Jerome
Paul Mellon
John Morrissey
William Woodward, Sr.
Saratoga
Saratoga
Saratoga
Congratulations 2024 Hall of Famers
Gun Runner, Justify, Joel Rosario
Aristides, Lecomte, Abe Hawkins, Harry F. Guggenheim, Clement L. Hirsch and Joe Hirsch.
Tod Marks photos The aratoga
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35% of the state’s Thoroughbred farms are within a 60-mile radius of Saratoga Race Course.
Millions of dollars worth of NY-breds have been sold through Fasig-Tipton, a few strides from Saratoga Race Course.
No other breeding program can boast that their state-breds earn awards at historic Saratoga Race Course.
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DISCOUNT on regular admission prices to the National Museum of Racing
Educational programs and scholarships
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Annual Divisional Championships for NY-breds & awards ceremony
Khaki Jockey
Saratoga Benches
Pink Hat
HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2024
JOEL ROSARIO • JOCKEY
The Total Package
Known for his strength, intelligence, and cool demeanor in the irons, Joel Rosario has been one of the most successful jockeys of the 21st century
By Brien Bouyea Hall of Fame and Communications Director
While growing up in the Dominican Republic, Joel Rosario dreamed of becoming the Caribbean nation’s next great baseball player. Maybe someday he’d hit tape-measure home runs like David Ortiz and Vladimir Guerrero or fire blazing fastballs like Juan Marichal and Pedro Martinez, all Dominican-born ballplayers whose careers led them to the Baseball Hall of Fame. But by the time he hit his teenage years, Rosario accepted the reality he simply didn’t have the ideal physical traits needed to make his diamond aspirations a reality.
“I loved playing baseball growing up. It was my passion and I was pretty good, but I didn’t get that growth spurt that everyone else around me did,” Rosario said. “I had to find a different dream, a different path.”
That new path led Rosario to the racetrack, where the athleticism and strength he possessed in his small frame proved
to be an ideal combination. Born in San Francisco de Macoris in 1985, Rosario was introduced to racing by his brother, Juan, at the Quinto Centenario Racetrack in Santo Domingo. At the age of 12, with parental consent, Rosario began a two-year program at his country’s jockey school. He proved to be a quick learner and was riding in races at 14. Within a year, Rosario was the leading rider at Quinto Centenario.
“We had horses on the farm where I grew up,” Rosario said. “I enjoyed being around them. It felt natural to me when I started riding and I just loved it. There’s no feeling like riding a racehorse. It’s just incredible.”
After dominating the jockey standings for five years at Quinto Centenario, Rosario moved to California in 2006 with the help of Dominican trainer and bloodstock agent Herbert Soto. He started out at the Los Angeles County Fair at Fairplex Park then
Opposite page: Joel Rosario is all smiles after winning the 2019 Glens Falls Stakes at Saratoga Race Course with Mrs. Sippy . Above: Rosario is pictured at Saratoga in 2022. He set a single-meet record at the Spa that summer with 12 graded stakes wins.
Joel Rosario has won 15 Breeders’ Cup races and three Triple Crown races: the 2013 Kentucky Derby with Orb and the Belmont Stakes with Tonalist (2014) and Sir Winston (2019).
headed north to compete at Bay Meadows and Golden Gate Fields. Rosario had moderate success in his first year in America, winning 29 races from 219 mounts.
“It was all about learning when I first got to California,” Rosario said. “There were ups and downs. I just had to stay patient, be focused, work hard … try to get better every day.”
Rosario’s rise was meteoric. He rode 1,024 races in 2007, winning 154 (15 percent). His first graded wins came the following year when he increased his win total to 193. Rosario piloted five winners on a single card at Hollywood Park in 2008, including the Grade 3 Native Diver Handicap aboard Slew’s Tizzy for trainer Doug O’Neill. After his final mount at Hollywood that day, Rosario went straight to Puerto Rico to ride the colt Sicótico in the Clásico del Caribe (Caribbean Derby). Sicótico, bred in the Dominican Republic, had won that country’s Triple Crown earlier in the year and took a 16-race win streak into the Clásico del Caribe.
With Rosario aboard, Sicótico closed late for a 1½-length victory. It was the first time a Dominican-bred horse won the pres-
tigious race and a proud moment for Rosario, who was given the mount by Dominican trainer Eugenio Deschamps.
“That was a special experience. Winning a race like that for my country and a trainer who really supported me early in my career meant a lot,” Rosario said. “It was a great honor to ride that horse and be able to win that race. I’m very grateful I had the opportunity.”
“Joel rode an unbelievable race,” Deschamps told The BloodHorse in 2019. “He is the main reason why we celebrated that great victory. There is no question that was the most memorable victory of my career.”
Rosario was just getting started. He won his first Breeders’ Cup race in 2009 at Santa Anita in the Sprint aboard Dancing in Silks for trainer Carla Gaines at odds of 25-1. Rosario rode 284 winners that year with his mounts earning more than $13 million.
“Winning that first Breeders’ Cup race was big for me,” Rosario said. “It’s the championship event and it gave me a lot of confidence. I was building momentum and that’s one of those races that was important to my career.”
Joel Rosario is pictured winning the 2022 Travers Stakes at Saratoga aboard Epicenter, who was the Eclipse Award winner for Champion 3-Year-Old Male that year.
From 2009 through 2011, Rosario won six consecutive meet riding titles at Hollywood Park. During that period, he also won three titles at Del Mar and two at Santa Anita. But instead of being content with his status as the king of the California tracks, Rosario desired a new challenge. He decided to hire Ron Anderson as his agent and moved his tack to New York in 2012.
“I love California, but I wanted some different opportunities and going to New York was the best decision for me. The timing was right to make the move,” Rosario said. “I’ve been with Ron for about 12 years now and it’s been great. I’ve had amazing experiences and been very lucky to ride great horses for many great trainers.”
Rosario’s career went to another level after the move. He won the $10 million Dubai World Cup in 2013 with Animal Kingdom for trainer Graham Motion and that year’s Kentucky Derby with Orb for Hall of Fame conditioner Shug McGaughey. He won the Belmont Stakes the next year with Tonalist for Christophe Clement and piloted a second Belmont winner, Sir Winston, in 2019 for Hall of Famer Mark Casse. Rosario has also con-
tinued to thrive at the Breeders’ Cup. His 15 wins in the event include two editions of the Classic. Rosario’s 2021 Classic victory with Horse of the Year Knicks Go for Brad Cox was the cherry on top of his best year to date. He led all North American riders in earnings with $32,956,215 and was voted the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey.
“I put in a lot of hard work because I want to be the best I can for all the trainers and owners who believe in me and I really try to take good care of the horses,” Rosario said. “The horses always give you everything they have and it’s only right that I do the same. I study the PPs, get as much information as I can from the trainers, and really try to get to know the horses and make them feel comfortable with me. The horses have to trust you. The horse always comes first.”
Through May 2024, Rosario has ridden 3,621 winners with purse earnings of $320 million. Only Hall of Famers John Velazquez, Javier Castellano, and Mike Smith have higher career earnings. When given the news of his election to the Hall of Fame,
Joel Rosario is depicted by artist Robert Clark winning the 2021 Breeders’ Cup Classic with Horse of the Year Knicks Go. Rosario topped all North American jockeys in earnings that year and won the Eclipse for Outstanding Jockey.
Joel Rosario chats with Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott at Saratoga in 2023.
Through May 2024, Rosario has won 3,621 races and ranks No. 4 all time with mount earnings of more than $320 million.
in his first year of eligibility, Rosario said it is an honor he is both proud of and obligated to share.
“You can’t do it alone. You have to make the right decisions when you are on the horse, but so many people have helped me in my career and given me the opportunities,” Rosario said. “I’m very thankful for that and of course thankful for all the horses. Horses have given me everything.”
Other than planning his speech and on induction day, Rosario said he won’t spend much time reminiscing about the achievement. There will be a time for that sort of reflection eventually, but at only age 39, Rosario is entrenched in his prime and among the upper echelon in his profession.
“It’ll be amazing to be in the Hall of Fame with so many great jockeys that I admire, but I will still have to work as hard as I aways have if I want to keep doing well,” Rosario said. “That won’t change. My approach will stay the same. I love to ride and compete with the best. I hope to be able to do it for a long time. I’ve been very blessed.”
JOEL ROSARIO
Born: Jan. 14, 1985, San Francisco de Macoris, Dominican Republic
Career dates: 2003–present
Career Statistics (through May 2024)
Mounts: 19,716
Wins: 3,621
Win Percentage: 18.36
Earnings: $320,266,941
Notable:
• Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey 2021
• Ranks No. 4 all time in career earnings
• Won the Kentucky Derby with Orb (2013) and the Belmont Stakes with Tonalist (2014) and Sir Winston (2019)
• Has won 15 Breeders’ Cup races, including the Classic with Accelerate (2018) and Knicks Go (2021)
• Has ranked in the top six among North American jockeys in earnings for the past 15 years (2009 through 2023)
HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2024
GUN RUNNER • HORSE
Top Gun
Horse of the Year in 2017, Gun Runner won 10 graded stakes in his remarkable career
By Brien Bouyea Hall of Fame and Communications Director
Gun Runner showed talent early, delivered on his promise as a sophomore, and was a force of nature thereafter. When he was retired to stud following a smashing victory in the 2018 Pegasus World Cup Invitational — his fifth consecutive Grade 1 win — Gun Runner had established himself as one of the most prolific American racehorses of the 21st century.
“We’re not saying goodbye,” Gun Runner’s Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen remarked after the Pegasus. “What Gun Runner has given us will live in our memories forever.”
It’s hard to argue with Asmussen’s assessment. Gun Runner’s achievements place him in select company for his era. A chestnut colt bred in Kentucky by Besilu Stables, Gun Runner (Candy Ride—Quiet Giant, by Giant’s Causeway) won the Eclipse Awards for Horse of the Year and Champion Older Dirt Male in 2017. Racing from 2015 through 2018, Gun Runner completed his career with a record of 12-3-2 from 19 starts and earnings of $15,988,500, the second-highest total of any North Americanbased horse (behind Hall of Famer Arrogate).
Trained by Asmussen for owners Winchell Thoroughbreds and Three Chimneys Farm, Gun Runner’s championship season in 2017 included Grade 1 wins in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, Woodward, Whitney, and Stephen Foster. He also won the Grade 3 Razorback that year. As a 3-year-old in 2016, he won the Grade 1 Clark Handicap, earned Grade 2 wins in the Louisiana Derby and Risen Star, and won the Grade 3 Matt Winn. His victory in the 2018 Pegasus by 2½ lengths over West Coast was his 10th graded win (sixth Grade 1). Gun Runner won races at seven tracks (Churchill Downs, Keeneland, Fair Grounds, Oaklawn, Saratoga, Del Mar, Gulfstream).
After the Pegasus, which pushed his career earnings past Hall of Famer California Chrome, Asmussen thought about Gun Runner’s legacy.
“Now we’ll get to watch his videos in the Hall of Fame for as long as we’re around,” he said.
Gun Runner’s journey began with a one-mile victory in his career debut in September 2015 at Churchill Downs. A little more than a month later he scored by two lengths at Keeneland going
Opposite page : Gun Runner, Florent Geroux up, cruises to a 10¼-length victory in the Woodward Stakes at Saratoga Race Course on Sept. 2, 2017. Above: Gun Runner and Geroux are pictured in the winner’s circle following the Woodward victory.
few extra ounces of
11�16 miles. He then made his first attempt in a graded stakes event. Back at Churchill in late November for the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes, Gun Runner led in the stretch before fading to finish fourth in his final start as a juvenile.
Asmussen put his promising colt away until joining the 2016 Triple Crown trail in Louisiana at Fair Grounds. With Florent Geroux taking over as his regular rider, Gun Runner earned consecutive Grade 2 wins at Fair Grounds in the Risen Star and Louisiana Derby. As the third betting choice in the Kentucky Derby, Gun Runner had his head in front a mile into the race before finishing third behind Nyquist and subsequent Preakness winner Exaggerator.
Following the Derby, Gun Runner rebounded to win the Matt Winn Stakes at Churchill before finishing fifth in the Haskell, third in the Travers, and second in both the Pennsylvania Derby and Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile. Gun Runner returned to the win column in his final start as a 3-year-old, earning his first Grade 1 with a sharp performance in the Clark Handicap.
Gun Runner began his 4-year-old campaign in 2017 by winning the Razorback Handicap at Oaklawn. He then traveled to the Middle East and finished second to Arrogate in the Dubai World Cup. A string of exceptional performances followed, as Gun Runner never lost again.
Beginning with the Stephen Foster at Churchill in June, Gun Runner competed exclusively in Grade 1 events for the remainder of his career — and he was unstoppable. He won the Stephen Foster by seven lengths then traveled to Saratoga, where he romped in the Whitney by 5¼ lengths and decimated the Woodward field by 10¼.
“That was better than the Whitney — stronger, faster,” Geroux said of Gun Runner’s Woodward. “Overall, he is just getting better ... and I don’t think he is 100 percent cranked up yet. I really do think he has another step forward (in) him.
“When he starts leading on his left foot, he is very strong. From the three-eighths pole, I just knew it was a matter of how many lengths I (was) going to win (by). I was just hanging on. That is it.
Gun Runner’s 2017 Whitney Stakes victory at Saratoga is portrayed by artist Robert Clark. During the backstretch run of the race, pacesetter Cautious Giant sprung a horseshoe high into the air. It eventually landed behind Gun Runner, where it became entangled in his tail. The
weight were of no concern to Gun Runner, who won by 5¼ lengths.
Runner was voted the Eclipse Awards for Horse of the Year and Champion Older Dirt Male in 2017. He won five of his six starts during the campaign, including four Grade 1s.
He swaps back onto his left (lead), but he does not really get tired, he just has so much energy.”
Geroux was correct in evaluating that Gun Runner still had more in him. Two months later in the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar, Gun Runner had little trouble with a talented field that included future Hall of Famer Arrogate, champion West Coast, and five-time graded winner Collected. Gun Runner crept away from Collected in the stretch and was 2½ lengths clear at the finish line. It was his first win at 1¼ miles and he had to earn it with a hot pace and Collected pressuring him throughout.
“We let Gun Runner be who he is,” Asmussen said following the Classic. “I think the amount of success we’ve had with him ever since we quit worrying about who he was in with or where they were going to be — he’s let them adjust around him. ... The year that this horse has put together is a little hard to top. I think he’s better today than he’s ever been, and that was the plan all year.”
The Breeders’ Cup victory concluded Gun Runner’s 4-year-old campaign with a record of 5-1-0 from six starts and earnings of $6,950,700. He was an easy winner of the Eclipse Awards for Horse of the Year and Champion Older Dirt Male.
Gun
Gun Runner, Florent Geroux up, is led into the winner’s circle by co-owner Ron Winchell following the 2017 Woodward at Saratoga. Following the Woodward, Gun Runner capped his year with a victory in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. He made one start in 2018, winning the Pegasus World Cup.
Gun Runner’s cherry on top was the $7 million portion of the purse he earned for his Pegasus win two and a half months after the Classic. Not a bad way to call it a career.
“What I reflect on is how fortunate we are. How, for this horse, for whatever reason, everything has come so easy for him,” said Ron Winchell of Winchell Thoroughbreds, who co-owns Gun Runner along with Three Chimneys. “He’s just been one of those horses where things have gone so right for him. His recovery from races is unbelievable; he always has unbelievable energy levels. There are always positives when I get phone calls about Gun Runner — and that’s unusual in this game.”
Following the Pegasus, Gun Runner settled into retirement at Three Chimneys in Versailles, Kentucky, where he has become a prolific stallion. His graded stakes winners have included champion Echo Zulu, Preakness winner Early Voting, Cyberknife, Disarm, Gunite, Gun Pilot, Gun Song, Red Route One, Sierra Leone, Society, Taiba, Vahva, and Wicked Halo, among others.
GUN RUNNER (KY)
colt, foaled in 2013 By
(ARG)—Quiet Giant, by Giant’s Causeway
$15,988,500
Owner: Winchell Thoroughbreds and Three Chimneys Farm
Breeder: Besilu Stables
Trainer: Steven M. Asmussen
Notable:
• Eclipse Award winner for Horse of the Year and Champion Older Dirt Male 2017
• Won 10 graded stakes races (six G1s)
• Won at seven different tracks
Chestnut
Candy Ride
GULFSTREAM PARK MARYLAND JOCKEY CLUB SANTA ANITA PARK
CONGRATULATES
THE 2024 HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES
GUN RUNNER
Horse of the Year & Pegasus World Cup Winner
JUSTIFY
Horse of the Year & Triple Crown Winner
JOEL
ROSARIO
Champion Jockey & Pegasus World Cup Winner
25 G1 Wins at 1/ST Tracks
HALL
A Flash of Brilliance
In his lone campaign on the racetrack, the sensational Justify became America’s 13th Triple Crown winner in 2018
By Brien Bouyea Hall of Fame and Communications Director
It all happened in a whirlwind 111 days. Bob Baffert knew he had something special in Justify when he began training the talented chestnut son of Scat Daddy, but he never imagined the incredible, albeit brief, journey the colt would take him on.
“To go from unraced maiden in mid-February to the pinnacle of winning the Triple Crown in early June, through that gauntlet of a process, it tells you how truly remarkable Justify was,” Baffert said. “I certainly had high hopes for what he could become. To say he exceeded those would be an understatement. He was an absolutely special racehorse and I’m lucky and proud to have been his trainer.”
Bred in Kentucky by John D. Gunther, Justify was a $500,000 purchase at the 2016 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. His ownership included WinStar Farm, China Horse Club, Head of Plains Partners, and Starlight Racing. Out of the Ghostzapper mare Stage Magic (who was bred and owned by Gunther), Justify
made his career debut on Feb. 18, 2018, at Santa Anita. With Drayden Van Dyke in the irons, Justify immediately served notice he would be a force to be reckoned with by cruising to a 9½-length victory at seven furlongs.
Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith took over in the saddle for Justify’s next start, a 6½-length score at Santa Anita in an optional claimer on March 11. The hype reached a fever pitch when Justify crossed the finish line three lengths ahead of Bolt d’Oro in the Santa Anita Derby on April 7. With just three starts under his belt in a 48-day span, Justify had punched his ticket to Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Derby.
When he entered the starting gate for the Derby on May 5, Justify was attempting to break the “Curse of Apollo.” No horse had won the Run for the Roses without having raced as a 2-yearold since the curse’s namesake in 1882. Although inexperienced, Justify looked like a seasoned competitor at Churchill, turning
Opposite page: Justify poses with Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert during the 2018 Triple Crown season. Justify became Baffert’s second Triple Crown winner, joining 2015 winner American Pharoah. Above: Justify, Mike Smith up, is pictured winning the 2018 Belmont Stakes to complete his Triple Crown sweep.
back reigning 2-year-old champion Good Magic to win the Derby by 2½ lengths. Over a sloppy and sealed surface, Justify went the 1¼ miles in 2:04.20.
Two weeks later, Justify emerged from the foggy conditions at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore to hold off a determined Bravazo in the stretch to win the Preakness Stakes. At the wire, Justify was a half-length better than Bravazo, covering the 1 3/16 miles in 1:55.93. Tenfold finished a neck behind Bravazo in third, who was a neck better than Good Magic.
“That was a nail-biter,” Baffert said of the Preakness. “They put it to us. Somebody had to give, and I’m glad it wasn’t us. ... He had to really work for it.”
Following the Derby, Baffert began mentioning Justify in the same breath as his 2015 Triple Crown winner, American Pharoah. In the 150th Belmont Stakes, Justify had the opportunity to make his own Triple Crown history — and he was up for the task.
“I don’t have to really compare (Justify and American Pharoah)
because if they make it on that wall (of Triple Crown winners), that’s all you need to say.”
Justify silenced any remaining doubters in his Belmont coronation. Breaking cleanly from the rail, Justify set an honest pace of :23.37 for the first quarter. His stablemate, Restoring Hope, traveled wide around the first turn in second, and Bravazo was third. Smith slowed the pace a bit with a half-mile in :48.11.
When Justify reached the final turn after a mile in 1:38.09, the Todd Pletcher-trained Vino Rosso was just a half-length behind. Vino Rosso, however, was in an all-out drive to hang with Justify. Smith, meanwhile, was sitting chilly and hadn’t yet called on his mount.
“I just wanted to wait as long as I could before I really put the pedal to the metal,” Smith said. “He dug back in, and I felt at that point he would hold off anybody that was coming.”
As Justify entered the top of the stretch, longshot Gronkowski began to threaten. In his first start in America and first attempt on the dirt, Gronkowski, at odds of 25-1, was looming. Justify,
Above: A win composite photo from Justify’s career debut at Santa Anita on Feb. 18, 2018. Opposite page: Justify and Mike Smith win the Belmont Stakes on June 9, 2018 to become America’s 13th Triple Crown winner.
Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith looks skyward after piloting Justify to victory in the colt’s second career start at Santa Anita on March 11, 2018. It was Smith’s first time aboard the horse after Drayden Van Dyke rode Justify in his career debut.
however, had plenty in the tank to repel the son of Lonhro. He hit the wire in the 1½-mile test in 2:28.18, clear of Gronkowski by 1¾ lengths. America had its 13th Triple Crown winner.
“You can’t doubt Justify now,” said Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott, whose colt Hofburg finished third in the Belmont. “There’s no way. You’ve got to give him credit.”
Baffert was overcome with emotion following the race. Justify gave the trainer his second sweep of the Triple Crown series in four years. With the win, Baffert joined James “Sunny Jim” Fitzsimmons as the only trainers to saddle two Triple Crown winners.
“I’ve been through it and … if he was great, he was going to do it. And that’s what it’s about,” Baffert said of Justify. “To me, I wanted to see that horse, his name up there with the greats. If
they’re great, they’re going to win the Triple Crown. It takes a great horse to win the Triple Crown.”
Elliott Walden, the president of WinStar Farm, was also in awe of Justify’s rare achievement.
“To have the opportunity to be here and to make history like this is an incredible feeling,” Walden said. “These horses just … you buy them or whatever, but a horse like this just kind of happens. You can’t find these horses. They find you.”
Justify was under consideration to compete after the Triple Crown, but the decision was made to retire the colt after Baffert discovered some swelling in one of his ankles a few weeks after the Belmont.
“He is just not responding quick enough for a fall campaign,”
Artist Robert Clark painted Justify, Mike Smith up, winning the 2018 Belmont Stakes in the colors of China Horse Club, one of the colt’s owners. Justify defeated Gronkowski by 1¾ lengths.
Baffert said at the time. “We all wanted to see Justify run again, but ultimately it is my responsibility to make sure he is perfect. Without 60-90 days, I can’t be definite.”
Justify was retired to Coolmore’s Ashford Stud in Versailles, Kentucky, where he joined fellow Triple Crown winner American Pharoah on the stallion roster. With the Triple Crown and five triple-digit Beyer Speed Figures to his credit, Justify was an easy choice for the 2018 Eclipse Awards for Horse of the Year and Champion 3-Year-old Male. At Coolmore, he made an immediate impact in the breeding shed. Justify’s first two crops included notable stakes winners Arabian Lion (Woody Stephens Stakes), Aspen Grove (Belmont Oaks), Just F Y I (Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies), and Hard to Justify (Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf).
“Justify was a comet on the racetrack,” Baffert said after the horse was elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. “He came, he saw, he conquered, he retired to stud. A flash of brilliant light across the horizon. Nothing left to prove. He ended the Curse of Apollo and won the Triple Crown in the most spectacular and breathtaking five months any thoroughbred has ever had. We were lucky to be a part of it and will be forever grateful.”
JUSTIFY (KY)
Chestnut colt, foaled in 2015 By Scat Daddy—Stage Magic, by Ghostzapper
Owner: China Horse Club, Head of Plains Partners, Starlight Racing, WinStar Farm
Breeder: John D. Gunther
Trainer: Bob Baffert
Notable:
• America’s 13th Triple Crown winner 2018
• Eclipse Award winner for Horse of the Year and Champion 3-Year-Old Male 2018
HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2024 ARISTIDES • HORSE
The Original Derby Hero
Known as the “Little Red Horse,” Aristides won the inaugural Kentucky Derby, set three American records, and defeated Hall of Famers Ten Broeck and Tom Ochiltree twice each
By Brien Bouyea Hall of Fame and Communications Director
The name Aristides was derived from the ancient Greek words “aristos,” which means “best,” and “eidos,” defined as “type” or “species.” The name was carried by an obscure second-century saint and later more famously by a fifthcentury Athenian statesman, “Aristides the Just,” who was lauded for his integrity. On May 17, 1875, a small chestnut racehorse bearing the historic name Aristides proved to be the “best of his type” in a new sporting spectacle that generated tremendous anticipation prior to its debut — the inaugural Kentucky Derby. Facing 14 opponents at the new Louisville Jockey Club track — later to officially be named Churchill Downs — the overlooked
Kentucky-bred son of imported British sire Leamington put on quite a show for the 10,000 in attendance. Winning by two lengths and setting a new American record of 2:37¾ for a 3-yearold at the 1½-mile distance, Aristides was the first name recorded into the Derby record book.
Aristides was officially a Kentucky-bred from Fayette County, but New York can also stake a claim to his fame. In the spring of 1872, Aristides was foaled at the McGrathiana Stud Farm of his Kentucky breeder and owner, Henry Price “H. P.” McGrath. The actual breeding of Aristides, however, took place far from the Bluegrass State. In 1871, McGrath sent his mare Sarong, a
Opposite page: Aristides, depicted in a painting by Richard Stone Reeves, won the first Kentucky Derby in 1875. Above : Aristides is shown with his owner/ breeder H. P. McGrath and his jockey in the Derby, Oliver Lewis.
daughter of the mighty stallion Lexington, to New York to be covered by Leamington at a farm in Westchester County. Back in Kentucky the following spring, Sarong produced a blood-red chestnut colt with a pair of white socks and a star on his forehead. Following the mating with Sarong, Leamington was purchased by McGrath’s friend, Aristides Welch, and moved to his Erdenheim Farm in Pennsylvania. Hence, McGrath named Aristides in honor of Welch, not the Greek politician or the saint.
McGrath enjoyed significant success as both a breeder and owner of racehorses. In 1870, he bred the great Tom Bowling, who won 14 of 17 career races en route to the Hall of Fame. When it was time to send Aristides into training, McGrath turned to Ansel Williamson, who conditioned Tom Bowling and numerous other standouts in the pre- and post-Civil War years, including the undefeated 1861 foals Asteroid and Norfolk. Born into slavery in Virginia around 1806, Williamson became revered as one of America’s finest trainers — and eventually a Hall of Famer.
McGrath had a trio of promising 2-year-olds in the spring of 1874. Along with Aristides, the stable featured Calvin and Chesapeake, both of whom were half-brothers to previous McGrath runners. Calvin was a half to Tom Bowling out of McGrath’s mare Lucy Fowler, while Chesapeake was a half to Tipperary. Perhaps it was this history that initially led McGrath to favor those two more than Aristides.
Nevertheless, Aristides was regarded as a quality prospect when he arrived at the races for the first time on May 12, 1874, at the old Kentucky Association track in Lexington. He finished a respectable
Aristides set American records for 1½ miles, 2 1 � 8 miles, and 2½ miles. He is retrospectively acknowledged as the Champion 3-Year-Old Male for 1875.
second in a half-mile sweepstakes before going unplaced in both the Juvenile Stakes at Jerome Park in New York and the Hopeful Stakes at Long Branch in New Jersey. Aristides was then second in the Thespian Stakes at Long Branch and off the board in a six-furlong event at Saratoga. He finally broke his maiden in his sixth attempt, winning a one-mile handicap at Saratoga on Aug. 18. In his three remaining starts that year, Aristides won twice with a second-place effort sandwiched between.
Although on the improve, Aristides remained overshadowed among the McGrath horses. Chesapeake was regarded as the leading juvenile of 1874 thanks to Saratoga victories in the August Stakes and Kentucky Stakes. Calvin, meanwhile, was also well thought of after winning the July Stakes at Long Branch. By the spring of 1875, Aristides was starting to be referred to as the “little red horse,” perhaps a slight when being mentioned alongside his more accomplished stablemates.
A reporter for the Kentucky Live Stock Record had a different take on Aristides when he visited McGrath’s farm that April to analyze the runners. The reporter described Aristides as a “lengthy, wiry, evenbalanced horse, deep through the heart, and with long, muscular thighs. … Ansel has got him pretty near a racing form already.”
Aristides, however, struggled in the mud during his sophomore debut in the Phoenix Hotel Stakes at Lexington, a race easily won by the emerging sensation Ten Broeck. Chesapeake, meanwhile, won the first race of his 3-year-old season, defeating Ten Broeck and three others in the Citizens’ Stakes at Lexington.
Based on those efforts, Chesapeake was considered the horse to
beat in the first Kentucky Derby, which was held on a Monday. The track and the race were both conceptualized and developed by Meriwether Lewis Clark, Jr., who envisioned following the style of the English classic races with a 1½-mile distance (which remained the Kentucky Derby distance until shortened to its present 1¼ miles in 1896).
The Louisville Courier-Journal foreshadowed what the Derby would become: “Today will be historic to Kentucky annals,” the paper commented, “as the first ‘Derby Day,’ of what promises to be a long series of annual turf festivities which we confidently expect our grandchildren 100 years hence, to celebrate in glorious continuous rejoicings, because the president (Clark) hopes to make this a duplicate for the great English turf event.”
With both Chesapeake and Aristides entered in the Derby, McGrath desired a fast early pace to set up the late-charging Chesapeake. Aristides was designated the “rabbit” for the task, but those plans never came to fruition. In the irons aboard Aristides
for the Derby was 19-year-old Oliver Lewis, one of the 13 Black jockeys among the 15 riders in the field. Lewis understood the intentions of McGrath and rode as instructed.
Aristides pushed the issue early, battling for the lead with McCreery through a quarter in :25½ and a half of :50 flat, brisk fractions for the era. Lewis nudged Aristides into the lead on the backstretch and the contenders began to separate from the pretenders.
“The others seemed to be outpaced,” reported the CourierJournal, “for Aristides was cutting out the running at an awful speed, getting back to the finish of the mile in the neighborhood of 1:43.”
Aristides was keeping up his end of the bargain, but where was Chesapeake? As Aristides entered the far turn, Lewis began to rein him in a bit, but Chesapeake was well out of contention. McGrath was standing at the top of the stretch and knew his hopes were alone with Aristides. With Chesapeake beaten, McGrath signaled Lewis to “go on with the good little red horse and win if he could
Aristides was a chestnut son of imported English stallion Leamington out of the Lexington mare Sarong. He was trained by Hall of Famer Ansel Williamson.
all alone,” according to the memoirs of Matt Winn, the Churchill impresario who attended every Derby from 1875 through 1949.
Even though he was pushed through demanding early fractions, Aristides had plenty left in the tank in the homestretch.
“Right gallantly did the game and speedy son of Leamington and Sarong answer the call on his forces,” reported the CourierJournal, “for he held his own all down the stretch, in spite of a most determined rush on the part of Volcano and Verdigris, and dashed under the wire the winner of one of the fastest and hardest races ever seen on a track. Aristides forced the pace all the way for his stable companion Chesapeake, and so had no respite at all, which makes his performance a very remarkable one.”
The Kentucky Live Stock Record added that once Aristides turned for home the race “was never in doubt, Aristides winning by two lengths with something in hand.”
Aristides earned a purse of $2,850 for the historic victory.
Following the Derby, Aristides won the Withers Stakes at Jerome Park, then finished third in the Belmont to Calvin. Unfortunately for the legacy of Aristides, McGrath again favored the stablemate. Earlier in the year, McGrath had staked a huge sum on Calvin winning the Belmont. As was the case in the Derby, Aristides led into the stretch of the race (then held at Jerome Park) when Lewis geared down his mount. This time, McGrath got the result he
Aristides was immortalized at Churchill Downs with both a stakes race and a bronze statue in his honor. The statue, by Carl Regutti, was unveiled in 1987.
desired; Calvin came rumbling home the winner as Aristides was restrained by Lewis. McGrath was said to have pocketed $30,000 on his wager. Racing historian Walter S. Vosburgh wrote that Aristides “could and should have won the Belmont also, but Lewis nearly pulled his head off to allow (jockey) Bob Swim to win with Calvin, and the crowd shouted: ‘Let go that horse’s head!’”
After the Belmont, Aristides finished second in the Ocean Hotel Stakes at Long Branch and third in the Travers at Saratoga. He then met Calvin in the Jerome Stakes. With no restrictions dictated by McGrath, Aristides delivered a sharp effort to defeat Calvin at two miles (Hall of Famer Tom Ochiltree was fourth). He later won the Breckinridge Stakes in Maryland (Tom Ochiltree finished third) to end the year regarded as the champion 3-year-old of 1875.
Aristides made only three more starts in his career, two of which were spectacular efforts. He won both of his races as a 4-year-old in 1876, prompting Vosburgh to say, “ … at the time he seemed to be the best horse in training.” Aristides faced Ten Broeck at the Lexington track on May 10, 1876, for what turned out to be a match race. Ten Broeck was developing into a superstar at the time, but McGrath now had unwavering confidence in Aristides. No other owners were interested in opposing the two standouts at the distance of 17 furlongs (2⅛ miles).
The match vs. Ten Broeck was perhaps Aristides’ finest performance. The result was never in doubt, Aristides winning by a widening eight lengths in a new American record of 3:45½ for the distance. It was the only loss of the year for Ten Broeck, who finished his career with six American records to earn a spot in the Hall of Fame. Three days after dominating Ten Broeck, Aristides recorded his third American record, winning a 2½-mile purse in 4:27½. Aristides collared Bazar (carrying 14 less pounds than Aristides), in the final 100 yards to win by a length, breaking the previous record by a full second.
Aristides was then sidelined for two years because of injury and presumed to be retired. On May 13, 1878, Aristides attempted a comeback as a 6-year-old, but he struggled on a wet and heavy track at Lexington and finished unplaced in an easy victory by Ten Broeck. Following the disappointing performance, Aristides was retired with a record of 9-5-1 from 21 starts and earnings of $18,325.
Aristides was underwhelming as a stallion and changed hands several times after McGrath’s death in 1881. The “little red horse” died at the age of 21 in St. Louis on June 21, 1893.
“It is the gallant Aristides, heir to a mighty name, that strides with sweeping gallop toward victory,” the Courier-Journal said of the 1875 Derby, “and the air trembles and vibrates again with the ringing cheers that followed.”
The saint and the statesman would have been proud.
ARISTIDES (KY)
Chestnut colt, 1872–1893 By Leamington (GB)—Sarong, by Lexington
Owner: H. P. McGrath
Breeder: H. P. McGrath
Trainer: Ansel Williamson
Notable:
• Won the inaugural Kentucky Derby 1875
• Set American records for 1½ miles (for a 3-year-old), 21�8 miles, and 2½ miles
• Defeated Hall of Fame member Ten Broeck twice
• Defeated Hall of Fame member Tom Ochiltree twice
• Retrospective Champion 3-Year-Old Male 1875
Above: Born in Fayette County, Kentucky, Oliver Lewis rode Aristides to victory in the inaugural Kentucky Derby. Right: H. P. McGrath, the breeder and owner of Aristides, was a famous Kentucky horseman and notorious gambler.
HALL
The Legend of Lecomte
Pre-Civil War hero set American records for one and four miles and was the only horse to defeat Lexington
By Brien Bouyea Hall of Fame and Communications Director
In terms of pedigree, Lecomte had the goods. In terms of performance, he developed the promise of his exquisite bloodlines into a lasting legacy as one of the elite American racehorses of the pre-Civil War era.
Bred in Kentucky by Gen. Thomas Jefferson Wells, Lecomte was a chestnut son of Boston out of the Glencoe mare Reel. The colt was named by Wells in honor of Ambrose Lecomte, a prominent southern horseman and member of the old Louisiana Jockey Club.
Lecomte’s sire, Boston, was elected to the Hall of Fame thanks to winning 40 of 45 starts from 1836 through 1843. Boston also sired Lecomte’s great rival, Hall of Famer Lexington, who proved to be the most influential stallion in American history. Lecomte’s dam, Reel, was one of the top four-mile runners of the early 1840s. She was campaigned by Gen. Wells and won her first seven contests before being forced to retire after suffering an injury in her eighth race. Reel
produced 13 foals, including such notables as Fanny Wells, Prioress, Starke, and War Dance.
Reel was by Glencoe, winner of England’s 2,000 Guineas Stakes in 1834 and the Ascot Gold Cup in 1835. Glencoe was one of the earliest stallions imported into the United States and was a top broodmare sire. Numerous great sons of Lexington were out of Glencoe mares, including Hall of Famer Kentucky and the undefeated Asteroid and Norfolk — all three foals of 1861. Glencoe was America’s leading sire eight times between 1847 and 1858.
Racing from 1853 through 1857, Lecomte posted a record of 11-4-1 from 17 starts.
Lecomte made his debut at the Metairie Course in New Orleans on April 5, 1853, in a 2-year-old sweepstakes at mile heats. Although he was a foal of 1850, Lecomte was still considered a 2-year-old. Southern racing rules that were in effect prior to the Civil War designated ages of horses as calculated from May 1. Lecomte proved to be the precocious sort, winning both mile heats, including a time of 1:45½ in the second heat, the fastest ever raced in America at the time.
Lecomte did not compete again until November. He returned to win at two-mile heats at the Pharsalia Course in Mississippi before winning three races in three weeks back at Metairie to remain undefeated through five starts. His victory on Jan. 6, 1854, was in mile heats against Sallie Ward, considered one of the best mares in the South prior to the Civil War. Lecomte was finally defeated when he met up with Lexington at Metairie in the Great State Post Stakes in consecutive four-mile heats. The field also included Arrow and Highlander, but neither factored in the outcome. Lexington, owned by Richard Ten Broeck and partners, beat Lecomte by three lengths in the first heat in 8:08¾ and by four lengths in the second in 8:04.
The Spirit of the Times, one of the leading sources of racing coverage in the 19th century, reported favorably on Lecomte on Nov. 9, 1856: “Lecomte … is in a fine racing form, and well spread throughout his frame, with such an abundance of bone, tendon, and muscle that he would be a useful horse for any purpose. His temper is excellent; he is easily placed in a race, and yet responds promptly to the extent of his ability. He never tears himself and his jockey to pieces by attempting to run away. His action is low, smooth, and easy. His stride is about twenty-three feet, and he gets away from the score like a quarter-horse. He has a constitution of iron, the appetite of a lion, would eat sixteen quarts of feed if it was given to him, and can stand as much work as a team of mules. In a word, he has all the good points and qualities of both sire and dam, without their defects; consequently he is about as fine a specimen of a Thoroughbred as can be found in this or any other country.”
At Metairie a week later, Lecomte and Lexington met in the Jockey Club Purse, again at four-mile heats. Lecomte won the first heat by six lengths in 7:26, more than six seconds faster than the record set by Hall of Famer Fashion a dozen years earlier. With the great Abe Hawkins in the irons, Lecomte won the second heat by four lengths in 7:38¾, which handed Lexington the lone defeat of his career.
Lecomte then won the Association Purse in Mississippi, walked over for a purse two days after that, then returned to New Orleans to win another Jockey Club purse. At this point, early in 1855, Lecomte had won nine of the 10 events he had entered and owned American records for one and four miles. Lecomte and Lexington met once more at Metairie in April 1855. Lecomte appeared to be in poor condition and was easily defeated by Lexington in the first heat. Lexington covered the four-mile distance in race-record time of 7:23¾ (Lexington previously went four miles in 7:19¾ in a timed exhibition). When Lecomte acting lethargic between heats Gen. Wells received permission to withdraw his horse and concede the victory to Lexington.
While Lexington was retired after his record-setting victory, Lecomte returned in the fall to defeat Arrow at four-mile heats, then lost to Arrow three weeks later. He had one more victory, a walkover. Gen. Wells sold Lecomte in April 1856 for $10,000 to old rival Ten Broeck, who sent the horse to Kentucky and bred him to a few mares before shipping him to England to race. The few matings in Kentucky produced Umpire (out of Alice Carneal, Lexington’s dam), winner of five stakes in England; Sherrod, one of the top American runners during the Civil War years; and an unnamed filly who became the third dam of Hall of Fame member Domino.
Lecomte didn’t make it to the races in England in 1856 and was experiencing interruptions in his training the following year before finally making a start in the Warwick Cup on Sept. 3, 1857. Lecomte was running last in the three-horse field when he pulled up lame. He soon developed a severe case of colic and died on Oct. 7. Lecomte’s overall record was 11-4-1 from 17 starts with earnings of $12,360. The Lecomte Stakes at Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans was inaugurated in his honor in 1943.
LECOMTE (KY)
Owner: Gen. Thomas Jefferson Wells, Richard Ten Broeck
Breeder: Gen. Thomas Jefferson Wells
Trainer: Hark, W. J. Minor
Notable:
• Set American records for one mile and four miles
• Won nine of his first 10 events
• Defeated Hall of Fame member Lexington
Chestnut colt, 1850-1857 By Boston—Reel, by Glencoe (GB)
A N N E ' S W A S H I N G T O N I N N
W h e r e r a c i n g f a n s a n d H a l l o f F a m e J o c k e y s s t a y i n S a r a t o g a S p r i n g s .
ABE HAWKINS • JOCKEY
A Prince on a Horse
Although enslaved for most of his life, Abe Hawkins was recognized as one of the great jockeys of the 19th century
By Brien Bouyea Hall of Fame and Communications Director
Abe Hawkins lived a life that was extraordinary, tragic, and mysterious. One of the most talented and accomplished American athletes both before and in the immediate aftermath of the Civil War, Hawkins was revered for his exceptional skills as a jockey. He won major events, set records, received praise in the press, and had his innovative riding style popularized by jockeys of subsequent generations.
Those triumphs and glories, however, were juxtaposed against a difficult and sad reality — Hawkins was an enslaved person for much of his life and there are numerous gaps in his story. Many of his most celebrated achievements as a jockey occurred while he was the property of wealthy southern slaveholder Duncan F. Kenner, one of the most prominent breeders and owners of racehorses in the country. Little is known about Hawkins other than his athletic accomplishments. The date and location of his birth has never been discovered and there are no records about his family or even his last name. Who were his parents? Did he have any siblings? It is unlikely those questions will ever be answered. It is also unknown if Hawkins ever married or had children. When he became a rider in the early 1850s, he was referred to simply as “Abe” or “Old Abe.”
sum of $2,300, a transaction that was reported in the papers alongside livestock sales.
Northern Louisiana horseman Gen. T. J. Wells entered his horse Lecomte in a $2,000 Jockey Club purse, which also featured the mighty Lexington. Both Lecomte and Lexington were sons of the prolific stallion Boston. Lexington was undefeated at the time and generally considered peerless. A week earlier, he easily defeated Lecomte in the Great State Post Stakes. Lecomte’s trainer, an enslaved person known only as Hark, convinced Wells to use Kenner’s jockey against Lexington, reportedly saying, “If you can get Abe to ride Lecomte he will beat Lexington certain.”
Hawkins was initially mentioned in press accounts at the Metairie Course in New Orleans in 1851. He was praised for his talent, intelligence, and honesty. Hawkins had developed into one of the best in the sport by the time he etched his name into history at Metairie in April 1854. The legacy-defining event for Hawkins came shortly after he was purchased by Kenner for the considerable
With Hawkins aboard, riding at 89 pounds, Lecomte shockingly defeated Lexington in consecutive four-mile heats. In winning the first heat by six lengths, Lecomte completed the distance in 7:26. The dazzling time was more than six seconds faster than the previous standard set by Hall of Fame member Fashion a dozen years earlier. Lecomte finalized the victory in the second heat with a fourlength score in 7:38¾. It was the only defeat of Lexington’s career.
Hawkins continued to win with regularity at Metairie that spring.
Another of his notable victories was with Kenner’s colt Arrow in a $1,000 Jockey Club purse. With Hawkins up, Arrow set the best time on record at the three-mile distance with heat times of 5:36½ and 5:34, respectively.
For the next decade, Hawkins rode with distinction while enslaved at Ashland, the Louisiana plantation owned by Kenner. Various contemporary reports assert Kenner kept hundreds of slaves at Ashland and other plantations he owned throughout the state.
Ashland was a sugarcane operation and thoroughbred nursery that also featured a training track for Kenner’s racing stable. Involved in Louisiana and Confederate States of America politics, Kenner also had an ownership stake in Metairie and was a founding member of the Louisiana Jockey Club.
Wearing Kenner’s colors of red jacket and cap, Hawkins was a major reason his owner’s racing stable was “acknowledged to be the strongest in the South,” according to an 1859 Spirit of the Times article. Among the top horses Hawkins rode to victory for Kenner were the undefeated colt Whale and the standout filly Minnehaha, who was said to be “the pet of Louisiana … believed to be the fastest nag in the world,” according to Spirit. With Whale and Minnehaha each winning twice at the 1858-59 Metairie winter meeting, the New Orleans Daily Picayune stated, “We cannot omit the admirable manner in which Mr. Kenner’s horses are brought out. With Graves to train, Abe to ride … Duncan F. Kenner is truly hard to beat.”
With his victory against Lexington and the continued success that followed, Hawkins became known in the press as “The Black Prince,” “The Dark Sage of Louisiana,” and “The Slayer of Lexington.” He was arguably the most famous and successful jockey in America prior to Isaac Murphy, as well as the first Black athlete to gain national notoriety.
The Civil War and Emancipation Proclamation gave Hawkins his liberation. The Union Army seized New Orleans in the spring of 1862, confiscating much of Kenner’s property and freeing his slaves. Hawkins made his way north for riding opportunities and won a documented 25 races from 1864 through 1866. During this time, Hawkins furthered his remarkable reputation and reportedly made good money, particularly at Saratoga Race Course, Jerome Park, and the course at Paterson, New Jersey.
In 1866, while riding for Woodburn Farm’s R. A. Alexander, Hawkins won the third running of the Travers Stakes and the second Jersey Derby aboard Merrill (trained by Hall of Famer and former slave Ansel Williamson). He also took the inaugural Jerome Stakes with Watson (for Hall of Fame trainer Jacob Pincus). The year prior, he won the first Jersey Derby aboard Richmond for owner Oden Bowie, who later became Maryland’s governor.
Kenner, meanwhile, regained his land after the war in the early days of Reconstruction. He invited Hawkins to return at Ashland as a free man, which he did late in the fall of 1866. Hawkins rode for Kenner during Metairie’s races that December, but by the following May, Turf, Field and Farm reported the jockey’s death following an illness.
“As a rider and a jockey he had no equal in this country … Good riders and strictly honest ones are rare; therefore, the death of Old Abe is an irreparable loss to the American turf.”
Hawkins, however, was not dead. Days after his obituary was published, Hawkins read of his own demise in the St. Louis Republican. After a brief recuperation, he felt well enough to travel to Cincinnati with plans to ride in the Buckeye Jockey Club’s spring meet. Unfortunately, his illness returned and Hawkins was unable to rally a second time. Old Abe died of consumption on May 27, 1867, and his body was shipped back to Ashland. Kenner buried him, not
in the property’s slave cemetery, but in a brick tomb under a live oak tree that overlooked the plantation’s training track.
In its second obituary of the great rider, Turf, Field and Farm said of Hawkins, “It would appear that in the first heat of his contest with Death, Old Abe successfully jockeyed his formidable opponent, but in the second heat he was distanced by the grim phantom. Peace to his weary old bones.”
Hawkins was gone, but his legacy as arguably the premier jockey of his time lived on. His riding techniques — making use of short stirrups and a crouching posture — later came to be known as the “American seat.” Later in the 19th century, Hall of Fame jockeys Willie Simms and Tod Sloan notably utilized the methods Hawkins introduced decades earlier
ABE HAWKINS
Born: Unknown
Died: May 27, 1867
Notable:
• Rode Lecomte to victory against Lexington in record-setting time 1854
• Won the Jersey Derby 1865, 1866
• Won the Travers Stakes 1866
• Won the Jerome Stakes 1866
A marker near the burial spot of Abe Hawkins at the Ashland Plantation in Louisiana notes some of the great jockey’s historic achievements.
JUST ONE LENGTH FROM IMMORTALITY!
The Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association, The Pennsylvania Breeders Association, Parx Racing, and all of America Salute...
SMARTY JONES with Jockey Stewart Elliott in the 2004 Kentucky Derby Winner’s Circle. Owned by Someday Farm (Roy and Pat Chapman) Trained by John Servis
ON HIS 20 TH ANNIVERSARY OF WINNING THE KENTUCKY DERBY AND PREAKNESS!
Smarty Jones IS “The People’s Champion!” A real-life equine “Rocky” story straight out of Philadelphia, PA.
◆ 9 Lifetime Races: 8 Wins, 1 Second Place
◆ 7 Stakes Victories
◆ $7,613,155 Lifetime Earnings
◆ 107 Beyer Speed Figure in The Kentucky Derby, HIGHER than American Pharoah and Justify
◆ Won The Preakness by a RECORD 111/2 LENGTHS with an all-time highest 118 Beyer Speed Figure
◆ Drew a RECORD CROWD of 120,139 fans to The Belmont Stakes
Photo by Barbara D. Livingston
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HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2024
HARRY F. GUGGENHEIM • PILLAR OF THE TURF
The Captain of Cain Hoy
Capt. Harry F. Guggenheim enjoyed a prolific career as a breeder and owner of racehorses and served both his country and the sport of racing as a prominent leader
By Edward L. Bowen Hall of Fame Nominating Committee Chairman
Capt. Harry F. Guggenheim was a distinguished American in various in aspects of life in addition to becoming a highly significant international breeder and owner of thoroughbreds.
As his name would hint, he was from the family renowned for the Guggenheim Museum of Art. In a diverging sphere, he was also a combat veteran in two wars and was regarded by Charles Lindbergh as one of the two most significant leaders in aeronautics of his era. The twists of life also placed Guggenheim in the position of a major newspaper publisher as well as a diplomat.
As a turfman, Guggenheim owned a winner of the Kentucky Derby, bred and owned champions, was North America’s leading owner one year, and led England and Ireland’s breeders another year. Along the way, he answered a call to help the industry. Guggenheim was one of a committee of three racing leaders whose vision rescued the nation’s most important racing circuit and created the New York Racing Association.
Guggenheim revered the thoroughbred and the sport of racing but always maintained it was appropriate to keep the activity from becoming his key business preoccupation. He remembered his father having written that, as he grew older, he realized “how much I miss in not having a hobby with which . . . I might occupy myself.”
Harry Guggenheim entered the sport while in his 40s, and wrote years later that “I have always believed that racing should be a man’s outlet, even though it sometimes grows into big business. This isn’t to say that racing should not be taken seriously. It should be, but in my own case I wouldn’t want it to be my sole or even chief concern.” The place he gave the sport in his own life allowed him to comment, “I like my racing and everything to do with it.”
Guggenheim was born in West End, New Jersey, in 1890. He got a taste of racing as child by being taken to the old Sheepshead Bay track in New York. Later, while a student at Cambridge, he expanded his experience to include England’s Newmarket and the race courses of Paris. After graduation, he spent a few years in the copper division of Guggenheim Brothers and then settled into lengthy service in administrating philanthropies for the Guggenheim Foundation. The latter post involved a level of supervision of the Guggenheim Museum.
War interrupted, and he was a combat pilot in World War I. Afterward, his activities included establishing the Daniel Guggenheim Foundation (named for his father) promoting aeronautics. After Lindbergh’s historic trans-Atlantic flight in 1927, the pioneering pilot was engaged for a cross-country tour stressing the safety of air travel and the potential of commercial airlines. In the next decade, Harry
Opposite page: From left, Woody Stephens, James Carey, Manny Ycaza, and Harry Guggenheim are pictured in the winner’s circle at Saratoga following the 1959 Schuylerville Stakes, which was won by Guggenheim’s Make Sail. Above: From left, Ycaza, Leslie Combs II, Guggenheim, and Kentucky Gov. Louie B. Nunn chat in the paddock at Keeneland Race Course in 1968.
Guggenheim guided the David Guggenheim Foundation into pioneering rocket research in support of Dr. Robert Goddard. Lindbergh rated Guggenheim and Goddard as the two most important visionaries in aeronautics.
Guggenheim went back to airborne combat during World War II, with distinguished service in Okinawa and Sakishima, and attained the rank of Captain. While that service overlapped with his developing a racing stable, his life certainly followed the credo of racing not dominating. In 1940, Guggenheim purchased the Long Island paper Newsday to support the profession of his third wife, the former Alicia Patterson. This project so engrossed Guggenheim that, on his wife’s death in 1963, he took over as editor and publisher for four years.
Guggenheim’s worldly view led to connection to foreign affairs. He once served as U.S. Ambassador to Cuba through appointment by President Herbert Hoover. Years later, in 1950, Guggenheim delivered a speech on cooperation among North American and South American countries. The address came to be looked upon as virtually an outline for the Organization of American States (OAS).
In his nearly four decades in racing, Guggenheim bred 43 stakes winners. Numerically, this is not a particularly impressive number compared to others who rose to high rank. However, from the beginning he tapped into bloodlines which developed into major and lasting influences, not only in America but also in Europe. The first purchase was a $1,400 yearling at the 1934 Saratoga sale. Named Touch and Go, this colt also became the first stakes winner for Guggenheim’s Falaise Stable. Before the 1930s were over, the purchase of the filly Red Eye for $850 resulted in a victory in the highly important Ladies Handicap. Moreover, Red Eye later produced Fantan, from whom Guggenheim bred Ragusa. A son of the great international champion and sire Ribot, Ragusa was sold to James Mullion as a yearling in Ireland. As a sophomore in 1963, Ragusa won the classic Irish Derby and English St. Leger as well as the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. His earnings lifted Guggenheim to top rank among breeders in the British Isles for the year.
During the 1940s, Guggenheim changed his stable name to Cain Hoy. He had purchased a large tract of farm land in the low country of South Carolina. The area produces cane hay, which
From left, Louis Wolfson, Henry Moreno, Burley Parke, and Harry Guggenheim are pictured during the winner’s circle presentation following the 1960 Champagne Stakes at Belmont Park.
is used to make rattan furniture, and in the charming Gullah dialect of that area, cane hay is pronounced as “cain hoy.” Both the property and the racing stable were thus christened.
In 1951, Guggenheim’s yearling purchases included a $6,500 colt named Dark Star, who shockingly defeated Native Dancer as a 25-1 winner of the 1953 Kentucky Derby. Dark Star was injured in the Preakness and retired to become a moderately successful stallion. Guggenheim bred six of Dark Star’s 25 stakes winners, and three of them were high class: Iron Peg, who defeated Kelso in the Suburban Handicap; Kentucky Oaks winner Hidden Talent; and Matron Stakes winner Heavenly Body.
In the early 1950s, the New York State Racing Commission let it be known that if the leaders of New York racing could not fix a perceived decline in the sport, the state government would step in. Ogden Phipps, then vice chairman of The Jockey Club, turned to three paragons of American business who were also devoted to
the sport of thoroughbred racing. Capt. Guggenheim was one of that committee, along with Christopher T. Chenery and John W. Hanes. The threesome recognized that the fragmentation of New York racing did not present an optimal prospect for prosperity. It was the opinion of the committee that a degree of consolidation was desirable. The plan was developed to purchase and close the New York track known as Jamaica. That would leave the state with two metropolitan tracks, Aqueduct and Belmont Park, and the popular upstate resort track of Saratoga. A quasi-governmental agency would be created for the purpose, and at the same time, the Aqueduct track would need massive renovation.
The plan, originally called the Greater New York Racing Association, was put into play. Eventually, the term “Greater” was omitted, with its potential confusion of indicating the city rather than the state. The streamlined New York Racing Association was brought to fruition. In 1959, a grand new version of Aqueduct
From left, Manny Ycaza, Harry Guggenheim, Joan van der Maele, and Woody Stephens are photographed at Belmont Park in 1961.
reopened with the popular nickname of “The Big A” and, along with Belmont Park, conducted the calendar’s meetings in the New York City area. A traditional August respite for upstate Saratoga racing was continued, and the track and quality of meeting was upgraded.
The key years for Cain Hoy came during a phase when future Hall of Famers Woody Stephens (trainer) and Manuel Ycaza (jockey) were under contract to Guggenheim. The team statistically reached the top in American standings in 1959, as Cain Hoy was the leading owner with $742,081. The stars of that year included homebred Bald Eagle, who won the first of his two Washington, D. C., Internationals on turf, as well as major races on dirt. Bald Eagle then became the Champion Older Male in 1960. He sired the Guggenheim-bred San San, winner of France’s climactic Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in 1972 in the colors of Countess Margit Batthyany.
Perhaps the most striking examples of enduring Cain Hoy bloodlines involve the family and achievements of the spectacular juvenile champion Never Bend. This saga embraces such great international runners and sires as Mill Reef and Galileo. Never Bend’s dam, Lalun, was produced by Col. E. R. Bradley’ s vaunted Idle Hour Stock Farm. The Bradley-bred Be Faithful was
sold to John S. Phipps, and Guggenheim came into the picture by leasing her and seven other mares from Phipps. Be Faithful foaled Lalun, who would become one of four Kentucky Oaks winners raced by Guggenheim
Lalun’s son Never Bend, by the great sire Nasrullah, was the impressive Champion 2-Year-Old Male of 1962. While he did not succeed in winning a Triple Crown race, Never Bend won the Flamingo Stakes and had career earnings of $641,524. His 60 stakes winners included Mill Reef, who was bred in Virginia by Paul Mellon. Mill Reef paraded through victories in a series of the most important races in Europe, including the Epsom Derby, Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, Eclipse Stakes, and King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. Mill Reef was a major sire of lasting influence in Europe, as was another son of Never Bend, the Guggenheim-bred Riverman.
The influence of Never Bend’s dam, Lalun, moreover, would see another lasting potency. Lalun’s stakes-winning son Bold Reason sired the filly Fairy Bridge. In turn, Fairy Bridge was destined to foal Sadler’s Wells, the 14-time leading sire in England whose own offspring included another epic stallion, Galileo.
In 1969, Guggenheim decided it was a proper time to step back from the demanding aspects of operating a breeding and
Above left: A portrait of Harry Guggenheim by artist Everett R. Kinstler from the collection of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. Above right:
From left, Manny Ycaza, Leslie Combs II, Guggenheim, Woody Stephens, and Kentucky Gov. Louie B. Nunn visit in the paddock at Keeneland Race Course prior to the 1968 Forerunner Stakes.
HARRY F. GUGGENHEIM
racing operation. He staged dispersals at Keeneland and Belmont Park, where 137 head grossed $4,751,200, an average of $34,650. The gross topped by some $3,000 the previous record set over several years (1947-50) by the dispersal of horses owned by Louis B. Mayer. The Mayer sales, however, included 100-plus more horses, a total of 248.
Guggenheim did keep one runner, Ack Ack, along with a few stallion shares. A proven stakes winner, Ack Ack was in California with another Hall of Fame trainer, Charlie Whittingham. In January 1971, Ack Ack won the San Carlos Stakes at Santa Anita as a 5-year-old. Guggenheim, 80, passed away the following week. Ack Ack was sold to E. E. “Buddy” Fogelson and his wife, the actress Greer Garson. Whittingham continued to train Ack Ack, who went on to earn Horse the Year honors in 1971. Typical of the history of Cain Hoy, Ack Ack had an impact on the breeding world. His 54 stakes winners included American champion and international winner Youth, in turn the sire of Epsom Derby winner Teenoso. Sons of Ack Ack also included Santa Anita and Suburban handicaps winner Broad Brush, himself America’s leading sire of 1994.
Born: Aug. 23, 1890, West End, New Jersey Died: Jan. 22, 1971, Sands Point, New York
Notable:
• Bred 43 stakes winners
• Campaigned 1953 Kentucky Derby winner Dark Star
• Campaigned Hall of Fame member Ack Ack and champions Bald Eagle, Crafty Admiral, and Never Bend
• Bred and owned Kentucky Oaks winners Lalun, Hidden Talent, Make Sail, and Sally Ship
• North America’s leading owner in earnings 1959
• Leading breeder in earnings in England and Ireland 1963
• Won 540 races as an owner and bred the winners of 1,230 races
• Key figure in the reorganization of New racing and the foundation of NYRA in the 1950s
• Member of The Jockey Club
Harry Guggenheim, middle, is pictured with Woody Stephens in 1962.
“CELEBRATING 30 YEARS ON BROADWAY”
“Where
—Natalie A. Sillery,
Owner
HALL
CLEMENT L. HIRSCH • PILLAR OF THE TURF
For the Love of the Game
Clement L. Hirsch was a successful breeder and owner of racehorses, but his lasting legacy in thoroughbred racing was that of an impactful and respected leader
By Jay Hovdey
APillar of the Turf must make a difference, a simple enough definition for an honor bestowed upon so very few. And yet, for the difference to be honestly measured, time and distance are required, because a Pillar of the Turf is not of a particular moment. They are forever.
For more than half a century, Clement Lang Hirsch was someone who made a difference at whatever he tried. In business, in philanthropy, in the world of thoroughbred racing, there always was Before Hirsch and After Hirsch.
Hirsch gets no credit, however, for moving from his native St. Louis to the burgeoning boomtown of Los Angeles in 1920. After
all, he was only six years old. His parents, Urban and Florence Hirsch, transferred Midwestern success as retailers to their new community, while young Clement attended Beverly Hills High and later Menlo College in the Bay Area, cultivating his business instincts along the way.
Back in L.A., young Hirsch fell in with a crowd at a greyhound track and caught the competitive bug. When he got wind of a pup heading for the scrap heap, Hirsch and friends intervened, buying the dog for a song and nursing it back to racing health on a diet of quality meat. The hound made them some money, a good thing during the Depression. Better yet, he gave Hirsch an idea for a
Opposite page: Clement L. Hirsch delivers remarks at a California Thoroughbred Breeders Association event. Above: Hirsch presents Hall of Fame jockey Bill Shoemaker with an award from the Oak Tree Racing Association.
better way to nourish pets, and in 1936 the Dog Town Packing Company of Vernon, California, entered the pet food marketplace. He was all of 22.
In August of 1942, while future Hall of Famers Whirlaway, Alsab, and Count Fleet campaigned in the East and Midwest, Clement Hirsch could be found alongside his fellow U.S. Marines among the first waves of the invasion of Guadalcanal. More than 7,000 U.S. servicemen were killed during that terrible island campaign.
Hirsch survived, returned to L.A., and picked up where he left off with his pet food company, now called Kal Kan. At the same time, with the end of the war in 1945, horse racing returned to the sports scene of Southern California, and Hirsch found a new passion in the thoroughbred game. He bought his first horse, a foal of 1942 named Domirood, for $3,000, then got lucky with Blue Reading, a 1949 claim who won nine stakes and nearly $200,000 during the next four seasons.
In the mid-1950s, Hirsch began importing horses from South America. The Chilean mare Alga gave Hirsch a thrill with a near miss in a New York stakes race, then later produced Most Host, the horse who upset Damascus in the 1968 Charles H. Strub Stakes.
Figonero was a blazing fast Argentine stallion who traveled up and down the state to win a half-dozen stakes, including the 1969 Hollywood Gold Cup, at a mile and one-quarter, and the ninefurlong Del Mar Handicap in 1:46 1/5, an American record on dirt. Snow Sporting, also from Argentina, put the Hirsch stable on the national map with victories in the 1970 Charles H. Strub Stakes at Santa Anita and the Gulfstream Park Handicap in Miami.
In a business of shifting loyalties, Hirsch employed only two trainers – first H. R. “Red” McDaniel, a national champion, and then, for more than four decades, Warren Stute.
Homebreds like Grade 1 winner Magical Maiden and her brother, Magical Mile, were winning stakes for Hirsch well into the 1990s, but his everlasting pride and joy was June Darling, purchased from breeder E. B. Johnston in the summer of 1970. Under Stute’s care and Hirsch’s black and gold colors, June Darling won five stakes, including the Del Mar Futurity and Oak Tree’s Norfolk Stakes against colts. (Among the also-rans in the Futurity was 1971 Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner Canonero II.) June Darling went on to be rated North America’s second best 2-year-old filly of the 1970 season.
Clement L. Hirsch, center, is pictured with George M. Peavey, left, and Michael W. Burns
From left, John Mabee, Clement L. Hirsch, and Joe Harper representing the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in 1985.
All the while, from the days of Blue Reading through June Darling and Magical Maiden, Hirsch led a parallel life as an energetic advocate for all aspects of thoroughbred racing. He was active in the early years of the California division of the Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, securing a stronger position for owners and trainers. He was the primary backer of an attempted expansion of pari-mutuel racing into the growing Las Vegas region.
Hirsch’s everlasting impact is dramatically evident in the ongoing success of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, operators of the California seaside racetrack. Thanks to the efforts of Hirsch and a group of owners and breeders in the late 1960s, the formation of a not-for-profit business structure has provided stability for Del Mar racing spanning more than half a century.
In 1968, Hirsch led the charge in the formation of the Oak Tree Racing Association, which proposed to add a month’s worth of racing to the California calendar with a non-profit meet at Santa Anita Park, operated “for horsemen, by horsemen.” Hirsch helped steer the concept through political and logistical minefields, arriving finally at opening day of the first Oak Tree meeting on Oct. 7, 1969.
In short order, the Oak Tree brand became known for first-class racing – showcasing such stars as John Henry, Cougar II, Ack Ack, Ferdinand, and Kotashaan - as well as a dedication to its core principals in support of veterinary research, backstretch worker welfare, and the promotion of the sport nationwide.
Oak Tree was on board early with its backing of the Breeders’ Cup concept and the formation of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA). Donations from Oak Tree helped fund studies through the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation and the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium. With the support of Oak Tree, the University of California-Davis School of Veterinary
Medicine was able to undertake a number of vital projects, including a study of exercise induced pulmonary hemorrhage and the development of advanced equine ambulance technology.
Hirsch was rightfully proud of Oak Tree’s contributions to the sport and its players, both man and beast, and the industry responded by acknowledging his significant role. Hirsch was elected to The Jockey Club and in 1988 was awarded the first Commissioner’s Cup by the NTRA. At one time he had two Grade 1 events named in his honor – the Clement L. Hirsch Handicap at Del Mar and the Clement L. Hirsch Memorial Turf Championship during the Oak Tree meet. In 1999, Hirsch accepted the Special Eclipse Award on behalf of Oak Tree.
In addition to his leadership of Oak Tree and his contributions as a member of Del Mar Thoroughbred Club board, Hirsch was a director of the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association, a member of the World Affairs Councils of America and the Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, and a Life Trustee of Chapman University.
Just as Hirsch enhanced the value of autumn racing with his Oak Tree concept, he did the same in his business interests. Kal Kan Foods, which grew into a national leader, was purchased by giant Mars, Inc., in 1968, and in 1988 its dog food line was renamed Pedigree and its cat food line named Whiskas. Hirsch then was prominent helping his family start Stagg Foods, a leader in the canned chili market in the western U.S.
Hirsch served as Oak Tree president until his death in March of 2000, while Oak Tree presented its final Southern California meeting in 2010, having played host to no less than five presentations of the Breeders’ Cup and donated more than $27 million to its many beneficiaries. The mission of Oak Tree has continued in the support of such vital organizations as the American Horse Council, the Race Track Industry Program at the
University of Arizona, and the Winners Foundation.
The legacy of Hirsch’s thoroughbreds has continued as well through his son, Bo Hirsch, who won the 2009 Arkansas Derby with the fittingly named Papa Clem and the 2021 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint with champion Ce Ce, who came from a third generation of stakes-winning Hirsch family mares.
“I remember Clement for his frankness and his unselfish dedication to being honest,” said Dr. Jack Robbins, who assumed the role of Oak Tree president upon the death of Hirsch. “He was not at all self-seeking. His logic was so good, and he never jumped into decisions. He would speak last, after hearing out all the others.”
Robbins was far from alone in his praise. Pillars of the Turf linger for their impact, long after they are gone.
“In 17 years of negotiating agreements and operating with various track managers, I can say I never had a more straightforward, more upstanding, more pleasant and honorable group of individuals than Clement and his board of directors,” said former Breeders’ Cup president D. G. Van Clief, Jr., in tribute to Hirsch. “He truly loved the horse industry.”
CLEMENT L. HIRSCH
Born: April 26, 1914, St. Louis, Missouri
Died: March 15, 2000, Newport Beach, California
Notable:
• Co-founder of the Oak Tree Racing Association and its president from its 1968 inception to his death in 2000
• Helped establish a successful not-for-profit business structure for the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club
• Member of The Jockey Club
• Served as a director of the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association
• Awarded the inaugural NTRA Commissioner’s Cup 1988
• Accepted the Eclipse Award of Merit on behalf of Oak Tree 1999
• Had two Grade 1 events named in his honor – the Clement L. Hirsch Handicap at Del Mar and the Clement L. Hirsch Memorial Turf Championship during the Oak Tree meet
Above left: The Oak Tree Racing Association founding directors are pictured together in 1969. Seated left to right, Clement L. Hirsch, Dr. Jack Robbins, and Hal Ramser; standing left to right, Louis Rowan, Ben Ridder, and William Pascoe. Opposite page: Hirsch is pictured with his wife, Lynn.
“Clement taught me what it means to be a leader, how to deal with people and how to be a friend. A man could not have asked for a better mentor.”
– Joe Harper, Chief Executive Officer of Del Mar Thoroughbred Club
Del Mar is proud to honor the induction of Clement L. Hirsch into the National Museum of Racing’s Hall of Fame.
As a key founder of both the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club and Oak Tree Racing Association, Clement Hirsch’s impact on the sport is immeasurable and was recognized previously with a Special Eclipse Award for his racing contributions. A board member of the Thoroughbred Racing Association and the California Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association, Clement owned and bred racehorses for more than 50 years, including dozens of major stakes winners. Each summer, we’re honored to host the Grade I Clement L. Hirsch Stakes at Del Mar. Hearty congratulations to the Hirsch family on a true Hall of Famer.
Oak Tree Racing Association Founding Directors
Seated L–R:
The Oak Tree Racing Association is proud to have been a part of the legacy of Clement L. Hirsch. We salute the recognition of his many contributions to the sport and his induction to the National Museum of Racing’s Hall of Fame as a Pillar of Racing.
Clement L Hirsch, Dr. Jack Robbins, Hal Ramser. Standing L–R: Louis Rowan, Ben Ridder, William Pascoe.
HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2024
JOE HIRSCH • PILLAR OF THE TURF
Not Your Average Joe
The dean of American racing writers, Joe Hirsch covered the sport with distinction and flair for half a century
By Edward L. Bowen Hall of Fame Nominating Committee Chairman
Joe Hirsch was a racing journalist and so, strictly speaking, had many compatriots during his career. Hirsch, however, is difficult to fit into any category. He fulfilled the best ambitions of the racing journalists, including integrity, accuracy, dogged work ethic, and a ceaseless gathering of knowledge of his subject. Along the way, however, he came to be seen as a veritable ambassador of the Turf. This mantle was not sought consciously but was settled upon him as a result of an unfailing gentlemanliness and a devotion to the best of the thoroughbred sport which guided the use of his talents.
A writer can crusade for integrity and sportsmanship, and in most cases this involves expounding on various ways some elements dishonor the game. Somehow, Joe Hirsch stood for the good and made his eloquent case for it by occupying the higher realm virtually always and only. Perhaps his career can be said to have illustrated that constancy in being high class makes the case for quality and integrity without the need to describe the nether ugliness of those who would bring dishonor.
Upon Hirsch’s death at the age of 80 in 2009, memories elicited from his fellow racing writers were indicative not only of admiration but of a keen wish that their own words might do him justice.
“Hirsch leaves behind a legacy that transcends his profession, and the best of what is now a bygone era,” wrote Steve Haskin in The BloodHorse. “Slowed in his later years by Parkinson’s disease, Hirsch still managed to make his backstretch rounds and turn out his daily columns with the same elegance and enthusiasm he had since 1954.”
Dan Liebman, then editor-in-chief of The BloodHorse, extolled that “Joe was the epitome of class, strolling the backside in his trademark dark sunglasses and wearing a sport coat and tie. He was famous for using a tiny notebook and writing very little in it. He would listen to a trainer for 15 minutes, jot down three or four words, and later pound out a column with verbatim quotes and accurate workout times. The notebook that did have a lot written in it was Joe’s compilation of phone numbers. Every trainer was
Opposite page: Joe Hirsch is pictured at Keeneland Race Course in April 1967. Above: Hirsch visits with trainer Loyd Gentry and his colt Graustark at Keeneland.
happy to be called to his stable office when Joe was on the line.”
“Joe Hirsch was much more than just the dean of American racing writers for half a century,” wrote Steven Crist, a longtime colleague of Hirsch and former publisher of Daily Racing Form. “He was a global ambassador for the sport, a mentor to two generations of journalists, and probably the most universally respected figure in the world of horse racing.”
Leaders in other aspects of the sport were equally conscientious about doing Hirsch justice in memory.
“Respected by his peers, revered by his colleagues, he was truly one of racing’s treasures,” said Ted Bassett, longtime head of Keeneland and of the Breeders’ Cup.
Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey said, “I was always flattered whenever he wrote an article about me and quoted me because he always made me sound a lot better in print. He will be missed by me and, more importantly, by horse racing.”
When Hirsch was remembered in a special ceremony at Belmont Paark several months after his death, trainer Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas described his importance in terms of other sports: “Joe at any race was like Tiger Woods with an eight-foot putt to win a major or Michael Jordan with a clear look to win a championship. He always made the game look special.”
Born in New York City in 1928, Joe Hirsch enjoyed a prolific journalism career that carried him from the eras of Citation and Native Dancer to the dawn of the 21st century. He earned a degree in journalism from New York University, then served in the United States Army for four years. Following his time in the military, Hirsch worked briefly for The New York Times before joining the staff at The Morning Telegraph. He then transitioned to the Telegraph’s companion publication, Daily Racing Form, where he spent 49 years (1954 through 2003) and became one of racing’s most visible and impactful figures. Hirsch became the Form’s executive columnist in 1974 and held that title until his retirement in 2003.
Hirsch’s signature work occurred each spring as he chronicled the quest for the American classics in his Kentucky “Derby Doings” for the Form, but beyond that the entire racing world was included in his writing. His support was helpful in the creation of the Arlington Million in 1981, a midsummer special for older runners that reached out to the best stables of Europe. Likewise, Hirsch was there at the dawn of the Japan Cup, the Breeders’ Cup, and the Dubai World Cup, stamping each event with the imprimatur of his formidable reputation.
The “Derby Doings” columns, however, did underline his particular affection for the first race of the Triple Crown. Hirsch wrote that, “There have been so many good stories over the years, so many wonderful people. All three (Triple Crown) races have their own flavor and in their own unique ways are equally colorful, but the Derby is the one I’ve enjoyed most over the years. It has its own mystique because it is first. The Preakness has its own charm, and the Belmont can be climactic, the real test of the champion. But the Derby is special to me.”
Opposite page bottom: Joe Hirsch visits with jockey Steve Cauthen. Above: Hirsch is pictured with Ted Bassett at Keeneland in 1975.
A lifelong bachelor, Hirsch was able to devote much of his spare time to the game in a social sense. During a typical year, he traveled from winters at the Miami Springs Villas for the Hialeah and Gulfstream meetings to Kentucky in the spring and eventually back to his New York apartment. Many a nice dinner in good restaurants had as Hirsch’s guests members of the Turf, whether they be distinguished or not. Many times, his guests would include a youngish sort on the way upward in some aspect of the racing industry.
Haskin described Hirsch as having “lived a flamboyant life, thanks in part to the years 1965-76, when he roomed with New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath, known in the Big Apple as ‘Broadway Joe.’ Hirsch was friends with Jets owner Sonny Werblin, who asked him to stay close to his star athlete and act as a stabilizing influence.”
Haskin described Hirsch as existing “on a different plane than other people, though he would never admit it. Whether he was fraternizing with the Whitneys — Sonny and Marylou — or sharing a banana with the jocks’ room attendant at Monmouth Park, he made everyone feel equally comfortable in his presence.”
There was also a recognition that Hirsch developed a close personal tie with the remarkable individual who for years owned Daily Racing Form. This was Walter Annenberg, an American businessman, investor, philanthropist, and diplomat. Annenberg owned and operated Triangle Publications, whose eclectic stable of periodicals ranged from the racing paper to TV Guide and Seventeen magazine, etc. Annenberg was appointed the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom by President Richard Nixon in 1969. Hirsch spoke of an occasion when he asked Form management to provide special transportation to a
race track for a particular event. When management resisted, Hirsch remarked, “I’d hate to have to phone the Ambassador!” Point made.
Hirsch was a leader among Turf writers in an organizational way as well as setting his example. In 1959, he became the founding president of the National Turf Writers Association (now the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters.) He also was voted a remarkable list of honors, including some primarily associated with Turf writers but also others of broader scope. The Thoroughbred Club of America selected him as Honor Guest for its annual Testimonial Dinner, and Hirsch also was voted The Jockey Club Medal and an Eclipse Award of Merit (as well as an Eclipse specifically for his writing).
Other honors include the Engelhard Award, the Big Sport of Turfdom Award, the Turf and Field’s Governor’s Dinner citation, and the Harry L. Straus Award. The NTWA founder fittingly received that association’s trio of the Walter Haight Award, Joe Palmer Award, and Mr. Fitz Award. In England, Hirsch was voted the Lord Derby Award given by British racing writers.
Unique honors also were conferred on Hirsch, both during and after his lifetime. These include press boxes at Saratoga and
Churchill Downs being named for him, a pair of scholarships given in his name, and the naming of the Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor. Following his death, the Media Roll of Honor was established by the National Museum of Racing, not as a category of its Hall of Fame but as a way of honoring individuals who earn distinction in Hirsch’s specific career paths. The New York Racing Association changed the name of its Turf Classic to the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic in 2004, following his retirement.
The five books Hirsch authored included two about Hall of Fame trainers: The Winner’s Circle: The Jones Boys of Calumet Farm (co-authored with Gene Plowden) and The Grand Senor: The Fabulous Career of Horatio Luro. His other books were First Century, chronicling 100 years of Daily Racing Form; a Treasury of Questions and Answers, and Kentucky Derby: The Chance of a Lifetime (co-authored with Jim Bolus)
Among Hirsch’s friends and admirers was Chick Lang, the colorful Pimlico executive instrumental in the modern promotion of the Preakness Stakes. Lang’s role gave him particular appreciation for what Hirsch brought to the Turf, and he was enthusiastic in his regard. Lang said Hirsch “was one of a kind. Everyone loved and respected him. There will never be another like him.”
Above: Joe Hirsch and Laffit Pincay, Jr. are photographed at the 1979 Eclipse Awards. Opposite page top: Hirsch is pictured at Keeneland in 1959. Opposite page bottom: Hirsch is depicted by artist Pierre “Peb” Bellocq.
JOE HIRSCH
Born: Feb. 27, 1928, New York City
Died: Jan. 9, 2009, New York City
Notable:
• Graduated from New York University
• Worked for Daily Racing Form 1954–2003
• Two-time Eclipse Award winner
• Founded the National Turf Writers Association in 1959 and served as its first president
• Voted the Lord Derby Award in England
• Author of five books
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HALL OF FAME PROFILE
EQUIPOISE AND TWENTY GRAND
The Chocolate Soldier and Twenty Grand
The Whitney and Greentree racing legacies were greatly enriched by a pair of Hall of Fame legends in the early 1930s
By Brien Bouyea Hall of Fame and Communications Director
The 1928 American thoroughbred foal crop produced a quartet of exceptional racehorses dubbed “The Big Four” by the Chicago Tribune. The group was comprised of Equipoise and Twenty Grand — both future Hall of Famers — as well as champion Jamestown and classic winner Mate. Each member of this fantastic foursome took their respective turns in various winner’s circles throughout the country while playing musical chairs for divisional supremacy. As America was beginning to experience the devastating hardships of the Great Depression, these gifted colts kicked off the 1930s with numerous outstanding performances that built lasting reputations.
While Jamestown and Mate both made an impact on the sport, it was Equipoise and Twenty Grand who became immortals through their superiority on the racetrack. In the early 1930s, Equipoise and Twenty Grand were among the most popular and
accomplished athletes in the country. Representing different branches of the Whitney family, Equipoise and Twenty Grand combined to make 75 starts in the first half of the decade, winning 34 stakes races.
Equipoise and the passing of the Whitney racing torch
Bred and initially campaigned by Harry Payne Whitney, Equipoise (Pennant—Swinging, by Broomstick) was an immediate standout, winning the Keene Memorial, National Stallion, Juvenile, Great American, Pimlico Futurity, and Eastern Shore Handicap as a 2-year-old for trainer Freddy Hopkins. Nicknamed “The Chocolate Soldier,” Equipoise’s best performance as a juvenile came in the Pimlico Futurity when he defeated Twenty Grand and Mate after being left at the post, grabbing a quarter, and running out of his shoes. A Baltimore newspaper headline called it the
“Most Spectacular Race in a Decade.” H. P. Whitney, however, died prior to the race and his stable passed to his son, Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney. Equipoise was the first horse to run in the name of the younger Whitney. At the conclusion of his 2-year-old season, Equipoise had won half of his 16 starts and was recognized as the champion juvenile male.
Equipoise’s 3-year-old campaign never took off. He raced only three times as a sophomore in 1931 while battling a quarter crack. He had an easy win at Havre de Grace to start the year, was pulled up in the Chesapeake Stakes, and finished fourth in his only Triple Crown race attempt in the Preakness.
As a 4-year-old in 1932, Equipoise established himself as one of the greats. Regularly carrying top weight, Equipoise won the Harford Handicap, Metropolitan Handicap, Toboggan Handicap, Stars and Stripes Handicap, Arlington Gold Cup, Wilson Stakes, Havre de Grace Handicap, and Whitney Handicap. He won seven in a row at one point and finished the year with a record of 10-2-1 from 14 starts and earnings of $107,375. In the Delavan Handicap at Arlington Park, a prep for the Stars and Stripes, Equipoise defeated Jamestown by three lengths and set a world record of 1:342 �5 for one mile.
“When he was right, I don’t know of a horse that could handle him except maybe Exterminator,” said Equipoise’s first trainer,
Freddy Hopkins. “He could sprint, go two miles. Wet or dry, it made no difference.”
Hall of Famer Tom Healey took over Equipoise’s training in 1933 and the horse continued to thrive. Although purse money was significantly diminished because of the Great Depression, Equipoise still banked $55,760 by winning seven of nine starts, including repeats in the Metropolitan and Wilson, as well as victories in the Saratoga Cup, Arlington Handicap, Suburban Handicap, and Hawthorne Gold Cup. He carried 135 pounds in the Arlington, won the Suburban under 132, and carried 26 pounds more than the runner-up in the Metropolitan.
As a 6-year-old, Equipoise won the Philadelphia and Dixie handicaps and the Whitney Gold Trophy at the United Hunts meet. He raced three times in 1935 as a 7-year-old without a victory before being retired with a career record of 29-10-4 from 51 starts and earnings of $338,610. He was acknowledged as Horse of the Year in both 1932 and 1933 and the older male champ in 1932, 1933, and 1934.
Equipoise sired only four crops in a short stud career before his death. In 1942, he topped the sire list when his progeny earned $437,141. Equipoise died Aug. 4, 1938, at the age of 10. His greatest son, Shut Out, won the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes in 1942.
Opposite page left: Equipoise, from a Franklin Voss painting; opposite page right: Twenty Grand, from a Richard Stone Reeves painting. Above: Equipoise won 29 of his 51 career starts and was Horse of the Year in 1932 and 1933.
Twenty Grand: The Greentree Great
Bred and raced by Greentree Stable, Twenty Grand (St. Germans—Bonus, by All Gold) was Horse of the Year in 1931. He won eight major stakes that year, including the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes.
Greentree Stable was established by Payne Whitney, Harry’s brother, after his steeplechase horse won the 1911 Greentree Cup at Great Neck, New York. Payne Whitney then decided to use the Greentree name for several of his properties and the racing stable. Following Payne Whitney’s death in 1927, his widow, Helen Hay Whitney, took over the operation.
Twenty Grand was in the first crop of horses foaled and raised at the Greentree farm in Kentucky that Payne Whitney purchased in 1925. Trotting horseman Tom Murphy trained Twenty Grand as a juvenile. The bay colt broke his maiden in his career debut, winning a five-furlong contest at Jamaica by five lengths on April 30, 1930. In his subsequent start, Twenty Grand finished second to Phantom Star and suffered bucked shins in the process. He returned to the races two months later and won an allowance at Aqueduct by three lengths.
Later in the campaign, Twenty Grand defeated Equipoise in back-to-back showdowns in the Junior Champion Stakes and Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes, winning by one length and a nose, respectively. Twenty Grand’s time of 1:36 for one mile in the Kentucky Jockey Club was the best on record for a 2-yearold at the distance. Equipoise, however, turned the tables in the memorable Pimlico Futurity by a half-length. Twenty Grand concluded his 2-year-old season with wins in half of his eight starts. Murphy resigned as Greentree’s trainer at the end of the year
and offered Helen Hay Whitney $125,000 for Twenty Grand on behalf of a syndicate; the offer was not seriously entertained and Twenty Grand passed into the care of trainer James G. Rowe, Jr.
As a 3-year-old in 1931, Twenty Grand opened with a victory in the Wood Memorial before advancing to the Triple Crown series. The Preakness was contested prior to the Kentucky Derby and Twenty Grand suffered an unfortunate defeat. He was badly bumped and knocked off stride at the clubhouse turn. Although he rallied in the stretch, Twenty Grand finished second to Mate by 1½ lengths. A week later, Twenty Grand won the Derby by four lengths in track-record time of 2:014�5 for 1¼ miles. Mate finished third. A month later, Twenty Grand won the Belmont by 10 lengths in stakes-record time of 2:293�5 for 1½ miles.
Following the Belmont, Twenty Grand won the Dwyer Stakes before finishing third in the Arlington Classic. It was reported that Twenty Grand had suffered a back injury in the Dwyer and he was later shelved for five weeks. Arriving at Saratoga to contest the Travers, Twenty Grand was back in top form, winning the Midsummer Derby by 1¾ lengths. Next up was the 1¾-mile Saratoga Cup and a showdown with Sun Beau, having his best year as the world’s greatest money earner. The race was no contest, as Twenty Grand romped home a 10-length winner. Twenty Grand then won the Lawrence Realization by six lengths and was sent off at odds of 1-50 for the two-mile Jockey Club Gold Cup — which he won with ease — in his final start of the year. Twenty Grand, however, struck his left front pastern in the Gold Cup and suffered significant nerve damage.
Rowe died in the fall of 1931 and Twenty Grand passed into the care of William Brennan, who spent considerable time
Twenty Grand, pictured with owner Helen Hay Whitney, was Horse of the Year in 1931, when he won the Kentucky Derby, Belmont, Travers, Saratoga Cup, and Jockey Club Gold Cup, among others.
Racing’s Hall of Fame in 1957.
trying to get the horse back to the races. Twenty Grand returned in the fall of 1932 but was no longer a standout. He won an allowance and finished second in a minor handicap before being retired to stud.
When he proved sterile, Twenty Grand was brought back to the track as a 7-year-old in 1935. He won once in five starts (via a disqualification) and was no factor in finishing 10th in the inaugural Santa Anita Handicap. It was thought a change in climate might rejuvenate Twenty Grand and he was shipped to England in the care of Capt. Cecil Boyd-Rochfort. The idea proved unsuccessful and Twenty Grand finished off the board in two starts abroad.
Following the overseas experiment, Twenty Grand was retired for good with a career record of 14-4-3 from 25 starts and earnings
EQUIPOISE (KY)
Chestnut colt, 1928—1942
(Pennant—Swinging, by Broomstick)
of $261,790. He spent some time at King Ranch in Texas before returning home to Greentree. Twenty Grand died at the age of 18 on March 2, 1948.
Legacies
Equipoise and Twenty Grand concluded their respective careers with reputations as all-time great American racehorses. The Chocolate Soldier was ranked No. 21 by The BloodHorse in the book Thoroughbred Champions: Top 100 Racehorses of the 20 th Century , while Twenty Grand was rated No. 52. They shared the spotlight for a final time when they were appropriately inducted together into the National Museum of Racing’s Hall of Fame in 1957.
TWENTY GRAND (KY)
Bay colt, 1928—1948
Twenty Grand (St. Germans—Bonus, by All Gold)
Breeder: H. P. Whitney
Owner: H. P. Whitney, C. V. Whitney
Trainers: Freddy Hopkins, Thomas J. Healey
Primary Jockey: Raymond Workman (45 starts)
Breeder: Greentree Stable
Owner: Greentree Stable
Trainers: Thomas W. Murphy, James G. Rowe, Jr., William Brennan, Cecil Boyd-Rochfort
Primary Jockey: Charles Kurtsinger (13 starts)
Twenty Grand (above left) and Equipoise (above right) were both inducted into the National Museum of
THE WORLD IS OUR BUILDING
The American Invader
After a successful but brief career in the United States, Danny Maher moved his tack overseas while still a teenager and became one of the all-time great jockeys in England
By Brien Bouyea Hall of Fame and Communications Director
Opposite page: Danny Maher, shown in a hand-colored autographed photo from 1901, was one of the top jockeys in America before moving to England at the age of 18. Above: One of Maher’s most famous mounts was Rock Sand, winner of the English Triple Crown in 1903. Maher rode the champion in the final two races of the series, the Epsom Derby and St. Leger. Maher won a total of nine English classics, as well as the 1912 Irish Derby.
Danny Maher was only 14 years old when he rode a racehorse to victory for the first time. Within a few years, the teen sensation was among the best jockeys in America. Maher’s meteoric rise, however, did not come without some controversy, which led the young rider to leave the United States and head to England for a fresh start.
The move proved to be a brilliant one for Maher, who became one of the most accomplished and revered jockeys in the history of the sport. He won nine English classic races and topped the national standings in wins twice. The Daily Telegraph described Maher as “the true artist” and “the aristocrat of riders.”
Maher’s story began in Hartford, Connecticut, where he was born in 1881 to Irish immigrant parents. At the age of seven, he was sent to work in the stables of trainer William “Father Bill” Daly. A respected horseman, Daly was known for developing the skills of jockey hopefuls. Among the young riders tutored by Daly were Edward “Snapper” Garrison, Henry Griffin, James McLaughlin, and Winnie O’Connor, all eventual Hall of Famers.
Daly began putting Maher in the saddle in 1895. The young rider was reported to be no more than 65 pounds at the time. Showing great aptitude, Maher won his first race with his second
mount, Phoebus, in Providence, Rhode Island. Maher began to win often and his skills caught the attention of several notable trainers, including future Hall of Famer Andrew J. Joyner.
In 1897, Maher began riding for top owners such as William H. Clark and David Gideon and he was thriving in many of the top stakes races in New York. His notable wins at the metropolitan tracks included the Dash Stakes (1897, 1898, 1900), Champagne Stakes (1898), First Special (1898), Flatbush Stakes (1898), Test Handicap (1898, 1899), Eclipse Stakes (1899, 1900), Tremont Stakes (1899, 1900), Brooklyn Handicap (1899), Gazelle Handicap (1899), Carter Handicap (1900), Golden Rod Stakes (1900), Toboggan Handicap (1899), Ladies Handicap (1900), and Metropolitan Handicap (1900), among others.
But what appeared to be a career on the rise quickly fell apart for Maher. After the 1899 Suburban Handicap at Sheepshead Bay, Clark — without presenting any evidence — accused the young rider of conspiring with gamblers. The owner made it his mission to ruin Maher’s career. Maher vehemently denied the accusation and there was never any proof validating Clark’s claim. The episode that prompted the allegation was Maher’s ride on the Clark-owned Banastar in the 16th edition of the prestigious Suburban. Maher had
previously piloted Banaster to victory in the Brooklyn Handicap and the Suburban was being billed as a showdown between the 4-yearold colt and the 5-year-old mare Imp, a future Hall of Famer.
Banastar was a temperamental horse and was at his worst prior to the Suburban, attempting to dump Maher multiple times on the way to the post. It got worse at the start. Banaster refused to line up and delayed the contest for almost 45 minutes. Once coaxed into line, Banastar again tried to toss Maher after the break. The frustrated Maher responded by pulling his mount up and striking him in the head with his whip. Imp easily won the race. Following the contest, Clark told the stewards that Maher had intentionally thrown the race, disregarding the ample evidence his horse was simply being unruly.
Although they fined Maher $200 for his misuse of the whip, the stewards cleared him of any other wrongdoing. Clark, however, refused to move on. Maher was not seen at any of the New York tracks for the rest of the year. Clark, as the holder of Maher’s riding contract, refused to put him on any of his horses and kept him from accepting mounts from other stables. Maher was 17 at the time and had no recourse. Jockey contracts were ironclad and owners possessed all the control. Just as he was becoming a star, Maher was grounded.
Maher’s banishment ended in February 1900. All it took was Clark’s death. No longer in racing purgatory and a free agent, Maher returned to his winning ways. In the first half of the year he won the Ladies Handicap with Oneck Queen, the Tremont with Blues, the Carter with Box, both the Dash and Golden Rod with Bellario, and the Metropolitan with Ethelbert (in which Imp finished third). But the fallout from his forced exile by Clark lingered. On occasions when he didn’t win aboard a favorite, the newspapers were quick to pounce on Maher.
jockeys of the period “were all superb horsemen, but they were made to look stilted and inept when the Americans arrived with their crouched and unattractive seat and their almost indecent tendency to make the pace a cracking one from flagfall right to the finish.” Maher quickly earned an elite reputation in England. He won with his first two mounts at Manchester and caught the attention of Newmarket-based trainers such as George Blackwell and Peter Gilpin, as well as a variety of top owners, including Lord Cadogan, Sir David Cooper, Maj. Eustace Ladder, and Sir James Miller. Maher’s arrangement with Lorillard allowed him the ability to freelance for other stables, which proved to be most advantageous.
In April 1901, Maher won his first English classic, riding the filly Aida to victory in the 1,000 Guineas for Sir James Miller at Newmarket. Maher was also winning regularly that spring and early summer at the Epsom and Royal Ascot meetings. Lorillard died in July and from that point forward Maher rode primarily for the top English stables.
“Some day when Maher realizes that he is paid to ride horses as they should be ridden, to win, his efforts will be more appreciated by the spectators and he will win more races for those who employ him,” quipped one contemporary reporter.
Maher was tired of the attacks on his character and was looking to make a change. In August 1900, famed sportsman Pierre Lorillard made Maher an offer he couldn’t refuse. Lorillard signed Maher to a lucrative contract to ride for the English division of his powerful stable. Lorillard had competed in England with success for more than 20 years with American horses such as Hall of Famer Parole and standout Iroquois. Maher wasn’t the only American rider to jump to England. Upon his arrival, Maher was competing against fellow American exports such as Tod Sloan, John “Skeets” Martin, and brothers John and Lester Reiff, among others.
The Americans enjoyed tremendous success. In his book The History of the Derby Stakes, Roger Mortimer said the leading English
Maher returned to Connecticut in December 1902 to spend a short break with his parents. He had won 106 races that year to finish third in the English standings. Greeted by reporters upon his arrival back in America, Maher said he had “been most fortunate this past season in that I rode two of the best 2-year-old colts in England, Flotsam and Rock Sand. I am looking forward to next year’s racing but will find it difficult to decide which of them I shall ride in the classics.”
Flotsam was Maher’s choice for the 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket, but the decision backfired. Rock Sand, ridden by Skeets Martin, collared Flotsam in the final 100 yards. Maher then took over on Rock Sand to win the Epsom Derby and Doncaster St. Leger as the colt became England’s 10th Triple Crown winner. Following his racing career, Rock Sand was sold to August Belmont II for $125,000. Among others, he sired Mahubah, the dam of Man o’ War.
In 1905, Maher won his second Epsom Derby aboard Cicero for Archibald Primrose, the 5th Earl of Rosebery. He partnered with Maj. Eustace Loder’s colt Spearmint to win the race again the following year, giving him his third win the classic in four years. Three days after the victory with Spearmint, Maher piloted Keystone II to win the Epsom Oaks for Lord Derby. A week after pulling off the Epsom classic double, Maher traveled to France and won the Grand Prix de Paris aboard Spearmint.
Maher had become a superstar. He led the English standings with 139 wins in 1908. The next year, he won his second St. Leger with Bayardo for owner Alfred Cox. Maher said Bayardo was “the best horse I ever rode, the best ever.” Along with the St. Leger, Maher partnered with Bayardo to win the Prince of Wales Stakes, Eclipse Stakes, Champion Stakes, Chester Vase, and Ascot Gold Cup, among others.
Above: Danny Maher was one of several jockeys based in England who were profiled in a series by Vanity Fair . The “Danny” artwork was published by the magazine on Sept. 10, 1903, when Maher was 21. That year, he won the final two legs of the English Triple Crown aboard Rock Sand.
The only English classic that had eluded Maher at this point was the 2,000 Guineas, which he crossed off the list in 1910 aboard Neil Gow for Lord Rosebery. For good measure, Maher won it again in 1912 with Sweeper for American owner Herman Duryea, who had moved most of his horses to Europe following the passing of the Hart-Agnew anti-gambling legislation in New York. Maher also won the Irish Derby at the Curragh that year aboard Civility.
In 1913, Maher was once again England’s leading rider with 115 wins. Away from the track, he became a naturalized English citizen that year and married actress Dorothy Fraser. Maher, however, was beginning to struggle physically from years of using dangerous methods to keep his weight down. He contracted tuberculosis and spent most of 1914 in South Africa in hopes the climate would help him recover.
After his heath improved to an extent, Maher attempted an ill-advised comeback in September 1915. He was greeted with warm applause by the crowd at Newmarket, but after almost two years away, Maher could no longer ride. His mount, Sun Yat, was well beaten and the once mighty rider was shaking after the race. Fourteen months later, at the age of 35, Maher died of consumption. Maher’s record was an exceptional one. He won 1,771 races (1,421 in England and 350 in America) from 6,781 mounts (26.1 percent). More than a century after his death, Maher is still regarded as one of the greatest jockeys in the rich history of the English turf. Although the majority of his success took place in England, Maher was inducted into the National Museum of Racing’s Hall of Fame as part of the inaugural class in 1955.
“It was Maher’s natural charm and his exceptional intelligence that appealed,” English journalist Sidney Galtrey wrote. “He had character and personality.”
DANNY MAHER
Born: Oct. 29, 1881, Hartford, Connecticut
Died: Nov. 9, 1916, London, England
Career dates: 1895–1915
Mounts: 6,781
Wins: 1,771
Win percentage: 26.1
Notable
• Won the Epsom Derby 1903, 1905, 1906
• Won the St. Leger Stakes 1903, 1909
• Won the 2,000 Guineas 1910, 1912
• Won the 1,000 Guineas 1901
• Won the Epsom Oaks 1906
• Won the Irish Derby 1912
• Leading rider in England 1908, 1913
• Inducted into the National Museum of Racing’s Hall of Fame 1955
•
•
Let's follow Victoria, one of the students in our K-Prep class, and learn how she spends her day.
She arrives bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for a brand-new day of learning. First up on the schedule is helping to set up stations for the day and practicing art skills at an easel
The entire class gathers together to practice letter formation and writing skills afterwords, which also improves their self-help skills.
Please
Our K-prep group does their morning gathering routine: Welcome song, saying good morning to everyone, and then sitting down together for breakfast This morning, they enjoyed cereal with milk and a clementine If it was Victoria's choice, we would have blueberry muffins every morning!
Anthony and Victoria finished their Science Rocks activity faster than the rest of the group, so they decided to sit down and read together while waiting for everyone else to finish their work
Victoria jumped to the rescuehelping Ramon to zip up his coat correctly before leaving Anna House for the day! Victoria embodied our Excellence value in our HEART principles by paying attention to the smallest details, noticing that Ramon had not zipped up his coat Then, she demonstrated the Respect value by asking Ramon if he needed help. Finally, she showed excellent Teamwork skills by zipping up Ramon's coat while talking him through each step: lining up the zipper, then pulling it up Ramon was empowered to feel confident putting on his coat alone next time
Photo Credit: Alex Zhang
JURIED
EXHIBITION
Photo Finish 2023
Since 2019, the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame has presented Photo Finish, an annual juried photography exhibition. Amateur and professional photographers are invited to submit entries for consideration; the only requirement is that all photographs must relate to the sport of thoroughbred racing in North America. Now entering its sixth year, the next Photo Finish exhibition will debut in the von Stade Gallery in time for Breeders’ Cup weekend in November 2024. We hope you enjoy these selections from the 2023 Photo Finish exhibition. More images from the exhibition can be found on the Museum’s website at racingmuseum.org.
1. “Pure Love,” Canterbury Park, Shakopee, Minn., by Heather Grevelis 2. “The First Foal,” Mahoney Edden Manor, Saratoga Springs, N.Y., by Samantha Decker 3. “Chris Antley and Dickie Small,” Belmont Park, Elmont, N.Y., by Lynn Grabowski 4. “American Pharoah Enters,” Saratoga Race Course, Saratoga Springs, N.Y., by Dennis G. Hogan 5. “Vallelujah Victorious,” Saratoga Race Course, Saratoga Springs, N.Y., by Samantha Decker 6. “No Regrets,” Hyde County, S.D., by Sheryl Schuette 7. “Serenity Morning,” Saratoga Race Course, Saratoga Springs, N.Y., by Sue Jeffreys 8. “Jockey For Position,” Churchill Downs, Louisville, Ky., by Heather C. Jackson 9. “October Sunrise,” Saratoga Race Course, Saratoga Springs, N.Y., by Connie Bush 10. “Winning,” Canterbury Park, Shakopee, Minn., by Heather Andreasen 11. “The Next Generation,” Gainsborough Farm, Versailles, Ky., by Sara Gordon 12. “Three Noses at the Wire,” Tampa Bay Downs, Tampa, Fla., by Sophie Shore 13. “Pride and Joy,” South Branch, N.J., by Darren R. Sussman 14. “All Thrust, No Vector,” Louisiana Downs, Bossier City, La., by Ann Switalski 15. “Arcangelo Wins the Belmont and Connections Celebrate,” Belmont Park, Elmont, N.Y., by Sue Kawczynski 16. “Champion Travers Palette,” Saratoga Race Course, Saratoga Springs, N.Y., by Frank J. Panucci 17. “Mud on Manny,” Saratoga Race Course, Saratoga Springs, N.Y., by Debbie Krohl 18. “A Sticky Sendoff,” Arlington Park, Arlington Heights, Ill., by Greta L. Polites 19. “Thank You and Goodnight – Malathaat,” Keeneland Race Course, Lexington, Ky., by Anika Miskar 20. “Horsemanship at Its Finest – Steve Asmussen and Disarm,” Churchill Downs, Louisville, Ky., by Anika Miskar
THANK YOU!
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame thanks the numerous sponsors and vendors who supported the 2024 Derby Party fundraiser!
We were so grateful to welcome more than 400 guests to celebrate the 150th running of the Kentucky Derby in the Hall of Fame. The event was a tremendous success, raising significant funds for the Museum. We thank our numerous community partners and the guests who made this event a memorable occasion.
SAVE THE DATE for the Ninth Annual Derby Party: Saturday, May 3, 2025!
Angel Cordero, Jr.
Training Track
The Museum offers exclusive guided tours of Saratoga Race Course’s Oklahoma Training Track from May through October! Go behind the scenes on this 90-minute experience to see why this famous training track is a favorite spot for leading trainers such as D. Wayne Lukas, Shug McGaughey, Bill Mott, and Todd Pletcher.
JOE HIRSCH Media Roll of Honor
During a career that encompassed the eras of Citation and Native Dancer to the beginning of the 21st century, Joe Hirsch received every conceivable honor that could have been bestowed upon someone who considered himself merely lucky to be able to write about the sport he loved.
A native New Yorker and a graduate of New York University, Hirsch made his mark in thoroughbred racing as both a tireless reporter for Daily Racing Form and a peerless ambassador of the game. His signature work occurred each spring when he followed the quest for the American classics in his “Derby Doings” for the Form, but beyond that the entire racing world was his oyster. He was instrumental in the creation of the Arlington Million in 1981, a midsummer classic for older runners that reached out to the best stables of Europe. Likewise, Hirsch was there at the dawn of the Japan Cup, the Breeders’ Cup, and the Dubai World Cup, stamping each event with the imprimatur of his formidable reputation.
Thoroughbred Club of America’s testimonial dinner. The National Turf Writers Association, which was founded by Hirsch in 1959, honored him with the Walter Haight Award for excellence in turf writing (1984), the Joe Palmer Award for meritorious service to racing (1994), and the Mr. Fitz Award for typifying the spirit of horse racing (1998).
A grateful racing industry gave Hirsch both an Eclipse Award for Outstanding Newspaper Writing (1978) and the Award of Merit (1992) for a lifetime of service. His British colleagues recognized Hirsch’s international reach with the Lord Derby Award (1981). Hirsch won the Big Sport of Turfdom Award (1983), The Jockey Club Medal (1989), and was the 1994 Honor Guest at the
The Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame is not the only institution that bears the imprint of Hirsch’s name. Press boxes at Saratoga Race Course and Churchill Downs have been named for him, along with the Joe Hirsch Breeders’ Cup Writing Award, the Joe Hirsch Scholarship of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Invitational, and a major grass race run each fall at Belmont Park. Hirsch retired from Daily Racing Form in 2003 and died in 2009 in New York, at the age of 80.
The National Museum of Racing’s Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor was established in 2010 to recognize individuals whose careers have been dedicated to, or substantially involved in, writing about thoroughbred racing (non-fiction), and who distinguished themselves as journalists. The criteria has since been expanded to allow the inclusion of individuals who have contributed to racing through other forms of media.
THE JOE HIRSCH MEDIA ROLL OF HONOR
Steven Crist (2010)
Charles Hatton (2010)
William Nack (2010)
Walter “Red” Smith (2010)
Dr. Russ Harris (2011)
Joe Palmer (2011)
Jay Hovdey (2012)
Whitney Tower (2012)
Andrew Beyer (2013)
Kent Hollingsworth (2013)
George F. T. Ryall (2013)
Jennie Rees (2014)
Jim Murray (2014)
Steve Haskin (2015)
Raleigh Burroughs (2015)
Maryjean Wall (2016)
Jim McKay (2016)
Michael Veitch (2017)
Jack Whittaker (2017)
Barney Nagler (2017)
Joe Burnham (2018)
Tom Hammond (2018)
Charlsie Cantey (2019)
Billy Reed (2019)
Pierre “Peb” Bellocq (2020)
William Leggett (2020)
Walter Haight (2021)
Jack Mann (2021)
Jay Priivman (2021)
Heywood Hale Broun (2022)
Bert Morgan (2022)
Damon Runyon (2022)
John L. Hervey (2023)
Dick Jerardi (2023)
Paul Moran (2023)
Upcoming Events at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
For a complete list of events and exhibits and additional details, please visit racingmuseum.org
Saturday, July 13 – Saturday Morning Social, presented by Saratoga Economic Development Corporation
The Museum will offer free admission from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. thanks to the sponsorship from the Saratoga Economic Development Corporation. There will be complimentary coffee and doughnuts courtesy of Stewart’s Shops and water courtesy of Saratoga Spring Water. The morning program will feature a book signing by Patricia McQueen, author of Secretariat’s Legacy. There will also be a handicapping seminar by Tom Amello of Trackfacts and a showing of the documentary film Mill Reef: Legacy of Heart. Time: 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Cost: Free to attend, books and products available for purchase.
Tuesday, July 16 – ThoroFan Racing Trivia Night
The Museum will partner with ThoroFan for an evening of racing trivia. Contestants can compete individually or as a team (maximum of four people) for great prizes. The event is sponsored by Saratoga Spring Water and Saratoga Eagle. For more information, visit thorofan.com. Time: 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Cost: $15 Museum members, $25 non-members.
Saturday, July 20 – Saturday Morning Social, presented by New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association and the New York Thoroughbred Breeders
The Museum will offer free admission from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. thanks to the sponsorship from the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association and the New York Thoroughbred Breeders. There will be complimentary coffee and doughnuts courtesy of Stewart’s Shops and water courtesy of Saratoga Spring Water. The morning’s activities will include a celebration for the upcoming 150th anniversary of the birthdate of Hall of Fame trainer James “Sunny Jim” Fitzsimmons and a demonstration by the Saratoga Clay Arts group. There will be a handicapping seminar by Tom Amello of Trackfacts and a showing of the documentary film Mill Reef: Legacy of Heart. Time: 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Cost: Free to attend.
Saturday, July 20 – Old Friends at Cabin Creek farm tour
Take a behind-the-scenes tour of popular local thoroughbred retirement farm Old Friends at Cabin Creek. A knowledgeable guide will give you a comprehensive look at how the farm operates. Then, we’ll give you the chance to meet with the farm’s retired equine athletes, getting up close and personal with real thoroughbred racehorses. Finally, at the close of the tour, guests will have the opportunity to ask their guide any questions they may have about the care and keeping of these beautiful animals. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended on this tour. This tour takes place at Old Friends at Cabin Creek and includes free admission to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. When: 10:30 a.m. Where: Old Friends at Cabin Creek, 483 Sand Hill Road, Greenfield Center, NY 12833. Cost: $30 Museum member, $40 non-member. For more information: (518) 584-0400 ext. 118.
Saturday, July 27 – Saturday Morning Social
The Museum will offer free admission from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. There will be complimentary coffee and doughnuts courtesy of Stewart’s Shops and water courtesy of Saratoga Spring Water. The morning program will feature a book signing by Jim Reisler, editor of I Got the Horse Right Here: Damon Runyon on Horse Racing. There will also be a handicapping seminar by Tom Amello of Trackfacts and a showing of the documentary film Mill Reef: Legacy of Heart Time: 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Cost: Free to attend, books available for purchase.
Saturday, July 27 – Racing and Rosé Fashion Show
Join us for a fashion show and brunch party at the Museum featuring racing-inspired designs by Miss Scarlett Boutique’s Jen Marcellus. The Garden Ticket includes early arrival at 10:30 a.m. and a pre-party in the newly renovated Beautiful Pleasure East Garden. The main event starts at 11 a.m. — sip on bubbly and rosé from 90+ Cellers and La Crema, snack on light fare courtesy of PDT Market, and explore the Museum’s Sculpture Gallery. Around noon, the racing-inspired fashions of Jen Marcellus will take center stage, as ladies from Saratoga and the racing world present a one-of-a-kind fashion show through the Sculpture Gallery. Time: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Cost: Regular ticket $100; Garden ticket $150. Please visit racingmuseum.org for more details.
Friday, Aug. 2 – Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
The Museum will induct the 2024 Hall of Fame class at Fasig-Tipton. The 2024 class is comprised of racehorses Aristides, Gun Runner, Justify, and Lecomte; jockeys Abe Hawkins and Joel Rosario; and Pillars of the Turf Harry F. Guggenheim, Clement L. Hirsch, and Joe Hirsch. Tom Durkin will serve as master of ceremonies. Time: 10:30 a.m. Cost: Free to attend (limited seating). Where: Fasig-Tipton, 153 George Street, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866.
Saturday, Aug. 3 – Saturday Morning Social, presented by Groff NetWorks
The Museum will offer free admission from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. thanks to the sponsorship from Groff NetWorks. There will be complimentary coffee and doughnuts courtesy of Stewart’s Shops and water courtesy of Saratoga Spring Water. The morning program will feature book signings by Jennifer Kelly, author of The Foxes of Belair: Gallant Fox, Omaha, and the Quest for the Triple Crown and Sir Barton and the Making of the Triple Crown. There will also be a handicapping seminar by Tom Amello of Trackfacts and a showing of the documentary film Mill Reef: Legacy of Heart Time: 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Cost: Free to attend, books available for purchase.
Saturday, Aug. 10 – Saturday Morning Social
The Museum will offer free admission from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. There will be complimentary coffee and doughnuts courtesy of Stewart’s Shops and water courtesy of Saratoga Spring Water. The morning program will feature a book talk and signing by Patricia McQueen, author of Secretariat’s Legacy. There will also be a handicapping seminar by Tom Amello of Trackfacts and a showing of the documentary film Mill Reef: Legacy of Heart. Time: 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Cost: Free to attend, books and products available for purchase.
Saturday, Aug.10 – Racing Partnership and Syndicate Meet and Greet
Learn how to get involved in thoroughbred ownership at any level by speaking with some of the top partnerships and syndicates in racing. Time: 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Cost: Free to attend.
Saturday, Aug. 17 – Saturday Morning Social, presented by Trane
The Museum will offer free admission from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. thanks to the sponsorship from Trane. There will be complimentary coffee and doughnuts courtesy of Stewart’s Shops and water courtesy of Saratoga Spring Water. The morning program will feature a book signing by Paul Miller, author of False Riches . There will also be a handicapping seminar by Tom Amello of Trackfacts and a showing of the documentary film Mill Reef: Legacy of Heart. Time: 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Cost: Free to attend, books available for purchase.
Saturday, Aug. 17 – North Country Horses farm tour
Take a behind-the-scenes tour of North Country Horses, one of upstate New York’s premier equine service facilities, offering lessons, boarding, training, sales, and adoption services. A knowledgeable guide will give you a comprehensive look at how the farm operates and. Then, we’ll give you the chance to meet with some of the equine athletes, getting up close and personal with retired thoroughbred racehorses. Finally, at the close of the tour, guests will have the opportunity to ask their guide any questions they may have about the care and keeping of these beautiful animals. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended on this tour. This tour takes place at North Country Horses and includes free admission to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. When: 10:30 a.m. Where: North Country Horses, 438 Clark Road, Gansevoort, NY 12831. Cost: $30 Museum member, $40 non-member. For more information: (518) 584-0400 ext. 118.
Friday, Aug. 23 – Travers Eve Member Wine and Cheese
Celebrate the Saratoga racing season at the Museum on Travers Stakes Eve. Enjoy refreshments in the Museum’s Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Courtyard with fellow Museum members and racing enthusiasts. Thank you to sponsors Saratoga Spring Water and Saratoga Eagle. Time: 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Cost: Free for members, $10 for non-members.
Saturday, Aug. 24 – Saturday Morning Social
The Museum will offer free admission from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. There will be complimentary coffee and doughnuts courtesy of Stewart’s Shops and water courtesy of Saratoga Spring Water. The morning program will feature a book signing with Brien Bouyea and Mike Veitch, authors of The Travers: Saratoga’s Midsummer Derby, 1864-2023. Artist Greg Montgomery will be on hand to sign his 2024 Travers Stakes poster. There will also be a handicapping seminar by Tom Amello of Trackfacts and a showing of the documentary film Mill Reef: Legacy of Heart Time: 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Cost: Free to attend, books and posters available for purchase.
Saturday,
Aug.
31 – Saturday Morning Social
The Museum will offer free admission from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. There will be complimentary coffee and doughnuts courtesy of Stewart’s Shops and water courtesy of Saratoga Spring Water. The morning program will feature a book signing with Brien Bouyea and Mike Veitch, authors of The Travers: Saratoga’s Midsummer Derby, 1864-2023. Artist Celeste Susany will be on hand to sign prints of her Man o’ War artwork, which is featured on the book’s cover. There will also be a handicapping seminar by Tom Amello of Trackfacts and a showing of the documentary film Mill Reef: Legacy of Heart Time: 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Cost: Free to attend, books and prints available for purchase.
Saturday, Aug. 31 – Ethos Awards Gala
The Ethos Awards recognize individuals who advance the engagement of Black and Brown people in the world of equestrian sports. It is a bi-annual event that partners with different equine venues that share the mission to provide opportunities to participate in equestrian sports. Time: 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Cost: $50 adults, $25 children 12 and under. Ticket includes admission to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, a buffet-style champagne brunch (with the adult ticket), the Ethos Awards ceremony, and admission to the Saratoga Race Course on Aug. 31. Tickets are available at racingmuseum.org on the events page.
Saturday, Sept. 21 – Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga farm tour
Take a behind-the-scenes tour of Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga. A knowledgeable guide will give you a comprehensive look at how the farm operates. Then, we’ll give you the chance to meet with some of the equine athletes, getting up close and personal with retired thoroughbred racehorses. Finally, at the close of the tour, guests will have the opportunity to ask their guide any questions they may have about the care and keeping of these beautiful animals. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended on this tour. This tour takes place at Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga and includes free admission to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. When: 10:30 a.m. Where: Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga, 683 Route 29, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866. Cost: $30 Museum member, $40 non-member. For more information: (518) 584-0400 ext. 118.
Saturday, Oct. 19 – Sugar Plum Farm tour
Take a behind-the-scenes tour of Sugar Plum Farm, home of stallion War Dancer and one of New York’s most beautiful thoroughbred farms. A knowledgeable guide will give you a comprehensive look at how the farm operates and what makes it tick. Then, we’ll give you the chance to meet with some of the equine athletes, getting up close and personal with real thoroughbred racehorses. Finally, at the close of the tour, guests will have the opportunity to ask their guide any questions they may have about the care and keeping of these beautiful animals. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended on this tour. This tour takes place at Sugar Plum Farm and includes free admission to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. When: 10:30 a.m. Where: Sugar Plum Farm, 96 Gilbert Road, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866. Cost: $30 Museum member, $40 non-member. For more information: (518) 584-0400 ext. 118.
Saturday, Oct. 26 – Breeders’ Cup Preview Panel
Racing experts will analyze the fields and make predictions for the 2024 Breeders’ Cup World Championships. Time: 12 p.m. Cost: Free for members, included with Museum admission for non-members.
Friday, Dec. 6 – Museum Members’ Holiday Party
Celebrate the holiday season with a members-only gathering, featuring food, drink, music, and a special gift shop discount. Time: 5:30 p.m. To RSVP: Call (518) 584-0400 ext. 112.
Anthony M. Alonso — Pg. 33 Ruffian
Pierre “Peb” Bellocq — Pg. 133 Joe Hirsch (Keeneland Library)
Brien Bouyea — Pg. 38 Bill Mott; Pg. 38 Pg. Steve Asmussen; Pg. 38
Javier Castellano; Pg. 38 Bob Baffert and John Velazquez; Pg. 39 Jack Fisher; Pg. 39 Jonathan Sheppard; Pg. 63 Bill Mott; Pg. 64 D. Wayne Lukas; Pg. 73
Stymie; Pg. 53 Bed o’ Roses; Pg. 58 Ted Atkinson; Pg. 59 Eric Guerin; Pg. 61 George Woolf; Pg. 62 Preston Burch; Pg. 62 James E. Fitzsimmons; Pg. 65 Sylvester Veitch; Pg. 112 Harry F. Guggenheim; Pg. 113 Harry F. Guggenheim; Pg. 114 Harry F. Guggenheim; Pg. 115 Harry F. Guggenheim; Pg. 116 Harry F. Guggenheim (top right); Pg. 117 Harry F. Guggenheim
Keeneland Library Jim Raftery/Turfotos Barbara Livingston Collection Pg. 39 John Veitch; Pg. 64 Ben Jones; Pg. 170 Joe Namath and Joe Hirsch
Keeneland Library Thoroughbred Times Collection — Pg. 54 Gamely
Library of Congress — Pg. 50 Parole; Pg.148 Danny Maher
Barbara Livingston — Pg. 62 Neil Drysdale; Pg. 64 Allen Jerkens
Tod Marks — Pg. 65 Tom Voss
Judy Mudd — Pg. 66 Ted Bassett
National Museum of Racing Collection — Cover: Going to the Start (Sir Alfred J. Munnings); Pgs. 20-21 The First Futurity (Louis Maurer); Pgs. 26-27 National Museum of Racing (Celeste Susany); Pg. 28 Museum exterior; Pg. 28 Canfield Casino; Pg. 29 Museum exterior; Pg. 31 Hall of Fame (Gary Gold); Pg. 33 Paul Mellon (William F. Draper); Pg. 39 Steve Cauthen (Bill Mochon). Pg. 39 Robert N. Ussery (Bill Mochon); Pg. 42 Match Race at Monmouth Park (Charles L. Zellinsky); Pg. 43 Jonathan Sheppard (Sam Robinson); Pg. 43 Deputed Testamony (Jean Bowman); Pg. 43 Horse Auction at the Old Winter Garden, 1889 (Frederic Remington); Pg. 43 Iroquois (Henry Stull); Pg. 48 Exterminator (Franklin Voss); Pg. 48 Victor Espinoza (Greg Montgomery); Pg. 49 Angel Penna, Sr. (Anthony M. Alonso); Pg. 49 James R. Keene (Frederick W. Meinz); Pg. 50 Boston (Edward Troye); Pg. 50 Hanover (Charles L. Zellinsky); Pg. 51 Colin; Pg. 51 Old Rosebud; Pg. 54 Kelso; Pg. 54 Bowl of Flowers (Bert and Richard Morgan); Pg. 54 Cicada; Pg. 55 John Henry; Pg. 55 Spectacular Bid (Bill Mochon); Pg. 59 Bill Hartack (Bill Mochon); Pg. 59 Eddie Maple; Pg. 60 Isaac Murphy; Pg. 61 Fred Taral; Pg. 63 Eddie Neloy (Vic Stein & Associates); Pg. 66 James Cox Brady (Everett Kintsler); Pg. 66; Pg. 67 Leonard Jerome (unknown artist); Pg. 67 Paul Mellon (William F. Draper); Pg. 72 Joel Rosario (Bob Mayberger); Pg. 74 Joel Rosario (Bob Mayberger, bottom right); Pg. 75 Joel Rosario (Bob Mayberger); Pg. 99 Aristides; Pg. 100 Aristides statue (Bob Mayberger). Pg. 116 Harry F. Guggenheim (Everett Kintsler, top left); Pg. 120 Clement L. Hirsch; Pg. 146 Danny Maher; Pg. 149 Danny Maher (Vanity Fair print)
New York Racing Association — Pg. 39 Curlin; Pg. 55 Secretariat; Pg. 55 Ruffian; Pg. 56 Easy Goer; Pg. 57 Ashado; Pg. 57 Wise Dan; Pg. 57 Tepin; Pg. 58 Kent Desormeaux; Pg. 60 Edgar Prado; Pg. 61 John Velazquez; Pg. 62 Bobby Frankel; Pg. 63 Frank Martin; Pg. 74 Joel Rosario (top right, top left, bottom left); Pg. 80 Gun Runner; Pg. 81 Gun Runner; Pg. 83 Gun Runner; Pg. 84 Gun Runner; Pg. 85 Gun Runner; Pg. 89 Justify; Pg. 91 Justify (top)
Richard Stone Reeves — Pg. 96 Aristides, Pg. 138 Twenty Grand
Saratoga Springs History Museum — Pg. 67 John Morrissey (unknown artist)
Henry Stull — Pg. 50 Duke of Magenta
Franklin Voss — Pg. 138 Equipoise
Future Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Namath of the New York Jets celebrates Daily Racing Form writer Joe Hirsch’s birthday in 1965 at Hialeah Park in Florida. Namath and Hirsch were roommates in New York City for several years. Hirsch was posthumously elected to the National Museum of Racing’s Hall of Fame as a Pillar of the Turf in 2024.
Photo by Jim Raftery/Turfotos, from the Barbara D. Livingston Collection/Keeneland Library
Horse of the Year Gun Runner will take his rightful place alongside racing’s all-time greats upon induction into the Racing Hall of Fame.
