National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame

A Race Meeting at Jacksonville, Alabama (Proper), W. S. Hedges, British, 1831 - 1847, Birmingham Museum of Art

The First Pastime: Horse Racing in the Early 1800s

The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame has 29,000 items in our collection. We use those items to tell the stories of the past. You've already seen a few of those objects in the previous activities. Now, you'll have the chance to analyze these objects a little closer. In this activity, a moderator will select three objects from our collection. If you need some context, you might want to go back into the previous activities to refresh your memory. The moderator will place these objects onto a Venn diagram, and it'll be up to you to label the diagram. Once you do, you'll have the chance to defend your choice, and then the moderator will select a winner based on who had the best labels and the best explanation for them. The moderator will continue in different rounds until a winner is declared. You can play this game as individuals or as teams. The objects contain descriptions, so feel free to click on each to learn a bit more. Ready? Good luck!

Changing Times: Racing Before & After the War

How could a country founded on the principles of freedom permit the evils of slavery? Was war inevitable, or was there an alternative solution? Before diving into the course, it's important to outline the path America took to reach this point. This activity will catalogue the most important and notable events that would eventually snowball into the American Civil War. Discuss these events with your classmates, and analyze their significance on the war to come.

The Tragic Prelude: Events Leading Up to the Civil War

The Confederacy surrendered in 1865, bringing an end to the Civil War and restoring the Union. The passage of the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments banned slavery, defined citizenship, and outlawed discrimination in voting. These amendments form the bedrock of American democracy.

This escape room activity will test your knowledge of the people and horses who helped to forge America's postwar future. Click on the images, answer the questions, and find the secret code to escape the room. Good luck!

When the Dust Clears: What Remains After the War

With the Civil War's end, the face of racing changed. Freed slaves from the American South became professional equestrians in the sport. New names from the North became key players in the revitalized American racing scene, while important breeders from Kentucky continued their influence on the sport. In this slideshow, you'll find some of the colorful characters that helped to shape the future of horse racing in a reunited America. As you read, keep in mind the historical context of emancipation in a postwar America. Many of thoroughbred racing's biggest names were former slaves or the descendants of slaves, and you'll see that many of America's leading jockeys were black. Black athletes dominated the sport until Jim Crow laws gradually forced them out of racing by 1920, and the post-Civil War period was something of a "golden age" for black equestrians.

New Blood: The Key Figures of a Postwar Racing World

During the Civil War, horse racing was mostly suspended across the country, with a handful of exceptions. Horses were needed for the war effort, and some tracks were repurposed as army camps. Nevertheless, despite the hostilities, racing still continued in one form or another in certain parts of the country. However, it did mean that the sport had to adapt. Much of America's racing moved into the North and away from the frontline. Southern farms and plantations were routinely destroyed or occupied by Union forces, pushing the epicenter of racing further north. The South's stranglehold on the sport gradually vanished by the war's end, and the North became the new center of the sport. Examine this map of the United States to see some of the most notable events in horse racing during the war, and analyze how the sport adapted to the new situation. Click the circles to view different events. Colors indicate year. Purple: 1861/1862. Blue: 1863. Green: 1864. Red: 1965. Zoom in to see more.

Turf War: Horse Racing in Wartime

In the 1800s, horse racing was so popular that there were dozens if not hundreds of unique sporting newspapers and periodicals that focused solely on horse racing, Practically every single major city had at least one dedicated racing newsletter that reported on key races and celebrity racehorses. Below is an example of one of these periodicals: The Spirit of the Times. First published in 1831, The Spirit was one of the most prominent racing periodicals of the 1800s. This particular issue is from October of 1839. Beside it is an issue of the Los Angeles Times from October of 2017. Use the annotation tools here to compare and contrast the two newsletters. Read through each, looking for similarities and differences. These two newspaper were written nearly 180 years apart. Circle and connect key elements from both, and consider how horse racing in the 1800s was similar to major American sports coverage today. Feel free to zoom in and write notes upon this document, then discuss.

Sign of the Times: A Horse Racing Periodical

From America's inception, horse racing has been our most beloved national pastime. In the 1800s, a city wasn't truly a city until it had a racetrack. The equivalent of "water cooler conversation" back then was to discuss horses. Millions flocked to the turf annually to see talented thoroughbreds race for gold and glory.

This course will follow the trajectory of America's greatest sport during America's greatest national crisis. The American Civil War changed the face of the nation, and likewise, changed the sport forever. Racing historians split the sport into two distinct categories: pre-Civil War, and post-Civil War. In many ways, the history of horse racing mirrored the history of America itself. They were intertwined in a way that few sports are. How did this happen? What was racing like before the war, and how did it change? What were the key figures that made racing what it is today? Follow along during this journey through America's sport, and America's crisis.

From Track to Trench Educator Overview.pdf

From Track to Trench: Civil War on the Turf

U.S. History

Social Studies

Williamson was born a slave in Virginia and then purchased by R. A. Alexander in 1864 for his Woodburn Stud farm in Kentucky. Once he was free, he remained at Woodburn Stud to train Alexander’s racehorses. He trained two horses that won the Travers Stakes and in 1875, he trained both Aristides, who won the inaugural Kentucky Derby, and Calvin, who won the Belmont Stakes. Williamson is a member of the Hall of Fame.

Picture: Reproduction of an 1864 Edward Troye portrait of Asteroid with his trainer, Ansel Williamson, holding saddle on right (Keeneland Library)

In 1852, McGrath opened a gambling house in New Orleans. It was the first gambling house in the American South. He also bred the horse Aristides, who won the first Kentucky Derby in 1864. 

Travers made a career for himself as a lawyer. He was asked by John Morrissey to help found the Saratoga Race Course, opened in 1864, and he eventually served as the first president of the racecourse. The Travers Stakes, held at Saratoga and named for him, is the oldest major thoroughbred race in the US. He was a part-owner of Kentucky, the first horse to win the Travers Stakes. Travers also backed the opening of Sheepshead Bay Race Track on Coney Island. 

Picture: William Travers (Museum Collection

Oil on canvas. William R. Travers supported John Morrissey in his efforts to host the first thoroughbred racing meet in Saratoga in 1863. Travers signed the paperwork that allowed the land that is now the Saratoga Racetrack to be purchased. The first race there the following year was called the Travers Stakes.

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William R. Travers

Clark Jr. was the grandson of William Clark of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, and his mother was a Churchill, one of the first families to settle in Kentucky. He was the founder of the Louisville Jockey Club and Churchill Downs, built on his mother's family's original land. His cousins, John and Henry Churchill, provided the financial support for building Churchill Downs while Clark was the track's president and oversaw its construction. 

Brown was born into slavery at Woodburn Stud in Kentucky and remained at Woodburn as an employed jockey after being freed. He rode Woodburn’s Asteroid, who won all nine starts in 1864/65. He won the 1870 Belmont Stakes as a jockey and following his retirement from jockeying, won the 1877 Kentucky Derby as a trainer. He is a member of the Hall of Fame.

Picture: Edward D. Brown (Museum Collection)

Belmont II was born in New York City but spent a large portion of his childhood in the Netherlands. He eventually became a banker, taking over August Belmont & Co., his father’s bank. When his father died, he bought seven of his mares in order to continue running his family’s horse farm, Nursery Stud, in Kentucky. He bred 129 stakes winners including Man o’ War. He was a founding member of The Jockey Club in 1894 and served as its chairman from 1894 to his death in 1924. He also served as the chairman of the New York Racing Commission and founded the National Steeplechase Association and Westchester Racing Association. He opened Belmont Park on Long Island and had three horses win the Belmont Stakes, a race named for his father. At the age of 65, he sold his horses to go to Spain and serve in the US Army during World War I. He is a member of the Hall of Fame.

Picture: August Belmont II (Keeneland Library Cook Collection)

At the age of 19, Lewis won the inaugural Kentucky Derby on Aristides and concurrently set the American record for a mile-and-a-half race. The same year, 1875, Lewis and Aristides came in second during the Belmont Stakes.  

Murphy was born into slavery in Kentucky and in 1867 he and his mother moved in with prominent horse trainer and family friend, Eli Jordan. He began racing at age 14. Murphy was the first jockey to win three Kentucky Derby races, the first jockey to be inducted in the Hall of Fame, and the only jockey to have won the Kentucky Derby, Kentucky Oaks, and the Clark Handicap in the same year. He was one of the first jockeys to do a “grandstand finish,” meaning overcoming the leading horse to win right near the finish line. In 1890 he participated in a match race against rival Edward “Snapper” Garrison, the dominant white jockey in racing at the time. It was the first time a photo finish was needed, and it ended in a dead-heat victory (a tie). Murphy had a career win percentage of 34% which is still the record percentage. During his career, he was the highest paid athlete in the world, and retired from racing in 1895 to become a trainer and horse owner. The Isaac Murphy Award was created in 1995 and is given to the jockey with the highest win percentage each year. He is a member of the Hall of Fame. 

Picture: Isaac Burns Murphy (Keeneland Library Hemment Collection/Museum Collection)

McLaughlin was orphaned and homeless as a teenager but was taken in by “Father Bill” Daly, a horse trainer. He began his racing career in the 1870s. Throughout his career, he won 1 Kentucky Derby, 1 Preakness Stakes, 6 Belmont Stakes, and 4 Travers Stakes. He is tied for the most Belmont Stakes wins by a jockey. From 1884 to 1887, he won the most races out of all jockeys in the US each year. McLaughlin retired in 1892 and became a trainer and track official. He is a member of our Hall of Fame. 

Picture: James McLaughlin (Keeneland Library Hemment Collection)

Hamilton began his jockey career at 15 and was known as “The Black Demon."  In1881, he achieved his first notable win in the Phoenix Handicap. Hamilton is the only black jockey to have won all three of New York’s major handicaps (Brooklyn, Suburban, and Manhattan). He also won the third running of the Futurity Stakes. He rode for many prominent horseracing families, including the Belmont family. He enjoyed a successful career racing abroad as well until he was thrown from a horse in 1904 and died later that year. He is a member of the Hall of Fame

Picture: Anthony Hamilton, front row, second from left (Keeneland Library Hemment Collection)

Willie Simms raced for many prominent figures including August Belmont I. He was the leading jockey in America in 1893 (182 wins) and 1894 (228 wins) and won the Kentucky Derby twice, the Preakness stakes once, and the Belmont Stakes twice. Simms had a brief career in England and is credited with showing them the American way of riding (shorter stirrups). He is a member of the Hall of Fame.

Picture: Willie Simms (Keeneland Library Hemment Collection) 

In 1888, Barnes became the first jockey to win over 200 races in a year. George Covington held second place for most wins that year with 95 wins. That same year, James McLaughlin had 72 wins, Edward “Snapper” Garrison had 71 wins, and Isaac Murphy had 37 wins. He won the 1888 Futurity Stakes (the first running of the race) at the Coney Island Jockey Club. It had the highest purse to date in an American horse race. In 1889, he won 170 races and once again was the leading American jockey in wins. He won the Travers Stakes the same year and the Belmont Stakes the following year. He is a member of the Hall of Fame.

Picture: Shelby "Pike" Barnes, center, in a group portrait of a jockey colony (Keeneland Library Hemment Collection)

Resource Kits

Object Library

Museums

From Track to Trench: Civil War on the Turf

New Blood: The Key Figures of a Postwar Racing World

Ansel Williamson, 1806 - 1881