The Historic Track (officially Goshen Historic Track) is a half-mile (900 m)

harness racing Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait (a trot or a pace). They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australia ...

track in Goshen,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. It was opened in 1838 and has been in operation ever since, the oldest continuously operated horse racing track in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. , retrieved from ustrotting.com July 23, 2007. Informal horse races had been held along neighboring Main Street, now part of NY 207, since the 1750s. The current track site was first used in 1838 when a ⅓-mile (530 m) circle around a

circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicy ...

ground near the south end of the track was cleared and prepared for regular racing. Later it would be succeeded by an oval track perpendicular to the current one, then a long square track around the whole site, until the current track was built in 1873.Interpretive panel near track entrance, visited July 25, 2007. In June 1873,

Ulysses Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as commanding general, Grant led the Union Army to victory in the American Civil War ...

, then

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

, attended races at the track as he was in town to check on the two children of the late John Aaron Rawlins, for whom Grant served as legal guardian. Historic Track mural in Goshen post office

Historic Track mural in Goshen post office

Regular events were held at the track until the late 1970s, when the parimutuel machines were taken out. Today the track operates a three day racing festival around the

July 4th Events Pre-1600 * 362 BC – Battle of Mantinea: The Thebans, led by Epaminondas, defeated the Spartans. * 414 – Emperor Theodosius II, age 13, yields power to his older sister Aelia Pulcheria, who reigned as regent and proclai ...

weekend, and more recently an additional day of racing around Labor Day. The track was designated as a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

in 1966 and was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

as 'Historic Track' later in the same year, when the National Register was created. The grandstands seat 2,200 fans. In 1980, it was identified as a

contributing property In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic dist ...

to the Church Park Historic District. The

Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame The Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame is a museum in Goshen, New York. The museum collects and preserves the history of harness racing and serves as a hall of fame for the American Standardbred horse. Orange County is the birthplace of Ham ...

, run by a separate organization, is located nearby. In 2017 a fire, possibly started in the

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

's shop, destroyed some of the barns and stables on the property. The horses housed in them were saved; the blaze did not affect the grandstand or any of the other buildings on the property. Replacement barns for those that burned were dedicated in 2019.

References

External links

Official website
{{National Register of Historic Places in New York National Historic Landmarks in New York (state) Horse racing venues in New York (state) Harness racing venues in the United States National Register of Historic Places in Orange County, New York Tourist attractions in Orange County, New York Sports venues completed in 1838 Goshen, New York 1838 establishments in New York (state) Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in New York (state) Sports venues on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) Sports venues in Orange County, New York

See also

References

External links