Sheepshead Bay Race Track was an American

Thoroughbred horse racing Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...

facility built on the site of the Coney Island Jockey Club at

Sheepshead Bay Sheepshead, Sheephead, or Sheep's Head, may refer to: Fish * '' Archosargus probatocephalus'', a medium-sized saltwater fish of the Atlantic Ocean * Freshwater drum, ''Aplodinotus grunniens'', a medium-sized freshwater fish of North and Central ...

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

Early history

The racetrack was built by a group of prominent businessmen from the New York City area who formed the Coney Island Jockey Club in 1879. Led by Leonard Jerome,

James R. Keene James Robert Keene (February 8, 1838 - January 3, 1913) was a Wall Street stockbroker and a major thoroughbred race horse owner and breeder. Biography He was born in London, England in 1838. He was fourteen years of age when his family imm ...

, and the track's president,

William Kissam Vanderbilt William Kissam "Willie" Vanderbilt I (December 12, 1849 – July 22, 1920) was an American heir, businessman, philanthropist and horsebreeder. Born into the Vanderbilt family, he managed his family's railroad investments. Early life William Kiss ...

, the Club held seasonal race cards at nearby Prospect Park fairgrounds until construction of the new race course was completed. On June 19, 1880 the track hosted its first day of

Thoroughbred racing Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...

. Old maps and railroad track diagrams for the

Manhattan Beach Branch The Manhattan Beach Branch, Manhattan Beach Line, or Manhattan Beach Division was a line of the Long Island Rail Road, running from Fresh Pond, Queens, south to Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn, New York City, United States. It opened in 1877 and 18 ...

of the Long Island Rail Road showing the spur that served both the club and the racetrack indicates the entrance to the club was located on the east side of Ocean Avenue between Avenues X and Y. The Sheepshead Bay Race Track station contained six tracks and three

island platform An island platform (also center platform, centre platform) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway interchange. Island platforms are popular ...

s. In its first year of operations, the new Sheepshead Bay track hosted a 1½ mile

match race A match race is a race between two competitors, going head-to-head. In sailboat racing it is differentiated from a fleet race, which almost always involves three or more competitors competing against each other, and team racing where teams consis ...

between two of the top horses racing at the time in the United States. The Dwyer Brothers' Luke Blackburn was ridden by Jim McLaughlin, and Pierre Lorillard's

Uncas Uncas () was a ''sachem'' of the Mohegans who made the Mohegans the leading regional Indian tribe in lower Connecticut, through his alliance with the New England colonists against other Indian tribes. Early life and family Uncas was born n ...

was ridden by Tom Costello. Luke Blackburn won by twenty lengths. Sheepshead Bay had both a dirt and a turf course. Principal backers were: *

August Belmont Jr. August Belmont Jr. (February 18, 1853 – December 10, 1924) was an American financier. He financed the construction of the original New York City subway (1900–1904) and for many years headed the Interborough Rapid Transit Company, which ran ...

* Leonard Jerome * James G. K. Lawrence *

Pierre Lorillard IV Pierre J. Lorillard IV (October 13, 1833 – July 7, 1901) was an American tobacco manufacturer and Thoroughbred race horse owner. Early life Born in Westchester, New York, he was the son of Pierre Lorillard III (1796–1867) and Catherine Gr ...

A. Wright Sanford A is the first letter of the Latin and English alphabet. A may also refer to: Science and technology Quantities and units * ''a'', a measure for the attraction between particles in the Van der Waals equation * ''A'' value, a measure of ...

William R. Travers William Riggin Travers (July 1819 – March 19, 1887) was an American lawyer who was highly successful on Wall Street. A well-known cosmopolite, Travers was a member of 27 private clubs, according to Cleveland Amory in his book ''Who Killed Soci ...

The new Sheepshead Bay Race Track's premier event was the

Suburban Handicap The Suburban Stakes is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is now run at the mile distance on dirt for a $700,000 purse. Named after the City and Su ...

, first run on June 10, 1884 and conceived by James G. K. Lawrence, who became the track's president. Four years later Lawrence would also create the Futurity Stakes, first run on

Labor Day Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday in September to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements of the United ...

in 1888. At the time, the Futurity was the richest race ever run in the United States. Today, both the Suburban and the Futurity are ongoing

Graded stakes race A graded stakes race is a thoroughbred horse race in the United States that meets the criteria of the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA). A specific grade level (I, II, III or listed) is the ...

s held at the

Belmont Park Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse racing facility in the northeastern United States, located in Elmont, New York, just east of the New York City limits. It was opened on May 4, 1905. It is operated by the non-profit New York Raci ...

racetrack in

Elmont Elmont may refer to: Places In the United States *Elmont, Missouri * Elmont, New York **Elmont station, a Long Island Rail Road station in Elmont, New York *Elmont, Virginia Fictional people *Elmont (Doonesbury), a character in the Doonesbury comi ...

on Long Island. The Lawrence Realization Stakes was named for James G. K. Lawrence.

First turf course in the United States

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

Demise

In 1908, the administration of

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Charles Evans Hughes Charles Evans Hughes Sr. (April 11, 1862 – August 27, 1948) was an American statesman, politician and jurist who served as the 11th Chief Justice of the United States from 1930 to 1941. A member of the Republican Party, he previously was the ...

signed into law the Hart–Agnew bill that effectively banned all racetrack

betting Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three ele ...

in the

state of New York New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...

. The legislation allowed for fines and up to a year in prison which was strictly enforced. Compounding matters for the Sheepshead Bay track was intense competition. In a summary of 1909 racing, the ''

Daily Racing Form The ''Daily Racing Form'' (DRF) (referred to as the ''Racing Form'' or "Form" and sometimes "telegraph" or "telly") is a tabloid newspaper founded in 1894 in Chicago, Illinois, by Frank Brunell. The paper publishes the past performances of raceho ...

'' reported that "Sheepshead Bay, which for years led the country in daily average distribution, yielded first place in 1909 to Belmont Park, which

August Belmont August Belmont Sr. (born August Schönberg; December 8, 1813November 24, 1890) was a German-American financier, diplomat, politician and party chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and also a horse-breeder and racehorse owner. He was ...

and his associates are ambitious to make the "turf headquarters of America"." A 1910 amendment to the Hart–Agnew legislation added further restrictions that made the owners and directors of a racetrack personally liable for any betting done on their premises, with or without their consent. Such an onerous liability was intolerable and meant that by 1911 all racetracks in the state ceased operations. Although a February 21, 1913 ruling by the

New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division The Appellate Divisions of the Supreme Court of the State of New York are the intermediate appellate courts in New York State. There are four Appellate Divisions, one in each of the state's four Judicial Departments (e.g., the full title of the ...

paved the way for racing to resume that year, by then it was too late for horse racing at the Sheepshead Bay Race Track and it was ultimately sold to the Sheepshead Bay Speedway Corporation who used it for automobile racing. In December 1919, what the ''Daily Racing Form'' called one of the most famous racetracks in the history of the American turf, was purchased for

real estate development Real estate development, or property development, is a business process, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re-lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw land and the sale of developed land or parcels to others. R ...

. The facility was torn down and the land subdivided into building lots.

Thoroughbred stakes races at Sheepshead Bay

Stakes race titles

Flat races

* Advance Stakes * Annual Champion Stakes * Autumn Cup Handicap * Autumn Stakes * Autumn Maiden Stakes * Bay Ridge Handicap * Belles Stakes *

Century Handicap The Century Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually from 1901 through 1909 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Brooklyn, New York. A Weight for Age race open to horses age three and older, it was contested on dirt over a dista ...

* Commonwealth Handicap * Coney Island Derby *

Coney Island Handicap Coney may refer to: Places * Côney, a river in eastern France * Coney, Georgia, an unincorporated community in the United States * Coney Island (disambiguation) People * Dean Coney (born 1963), English footballer * Hykiem Coney (1982–2006), A ...

* Daisy Stakes *

Dash Stakes The Dash Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race first run in 1887 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. A race for two-year-old horses of either sex, it was run on dirt over a distance of 5¾ furlongs. An ann ...

* Dolphin Stakes * Double Event Stakes (part 1) * Double Event Stakes (part 2) *

Equality Stakes The Equality Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually from 1902 thru 1909 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track at Sheepshead Bay, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it was raced over a distance of one mile on dirt. Historica ...

* Fall Handicap Ŧ *

Flatbush Stakes The Flatbush Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. Held in September, it was an important event for two-year-olds of either sex. The race was run on dirt ov ...

* Flight Stakes * Flying Handicap * Foam Stakes * Futurity Stakes * Grass Selling Stakes * Golden Rod Stakes *

Great Eastern Handicap The Great Eastern Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race first run in 1883 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. A race for two-year-old horses of either sex, it was run on dirt over a distance of 6 furlo ...

* Great Filly Stakes * Great Trial Stakes * June Stakes * Lawrence Realization Stakes * Long Island Handicap * Mermaid Stakes * Ocean Handicap Ŧ * Omnium Handicap Ŧ *

Pansy Stakes The Pansy Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually for twenty-one years from 1890 through 1910 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track at Sheepshead Bay, New York. Open to two-year-olds under selling conditions it was raced over a distance ...

* Partridge Stakes *

Reapers Stakes The Reapers Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. Held in September, the race was open to three-year-olds of either sex. It was run on dirt over a distance of 1 3/16 ...

Rosebuds Stakes Rosebuds may refer to: * Adamstown Rosebuds, a football (soccer) club * Portland Rosebuds (ice hockey), two professional ice hockey teams based in Portland, Oregon during the 20th century * Portland Rosebuds (baseball), a professional baseball te ...

* Russet Stakes * Sapphire Stakes * September Stakes * Sheepshead Bay Handicap * Sheepshead Bay Maiden Stakes * Spring Stakes *

Spindrift Stakes The Spindrift Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually between 1885 and 1909 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track at Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York City. A race for three-year-olds, it was contested on dirt over a distance of 1¼ mil ...

Surf Stakes The Surf Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually for thirty-one years from 1880 through 1910 on the dirt course at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. A race for two-year-olds of either sex, it was ...

Swift Stakes Swift or SWIFT most commonly refers to: * SWIFT, an international organization facilitating transactions between banks ** SWIFT code * Swift (programming language) * Swift (bird), a family of birds It may also refer to: Organizations * SWIFT, a ...

* Thistle Stakes * Tidal Stakes *

Turf Handicap Sod, also known as turf, is the upper layer of soil with the grass growing on it that is often harvested into rolls. In Australian English, Australian and British English, sod is more commonly known as ''turf'', and the word "sod" is limited ...

Twin City Handicap The Twin City Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race first run in 1884 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, New York where it continued annually through 1909. Following passage by the New York State Legislature of the Hart� ...

* Vernal Stakes * Waldorf Stakes * Zephyr Stakes Ŧ One of the three Sheepshead Bay Autumn Serials. In 1959, the Sheepshead Bay Handicap was named in honor of the old racetrack, and first run at the now-defunct

Jamaica Race Course Jamaica Race Course, also called the Jamaica Racetrack, was an American thoroughbred horse racing facility operated by the Metropolitan Jockey Club in Jamaica, Queens, New York City. History The track opened on April 27, 1903, a day which featu ...

Jamaica, New York Jamaica is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It is mainly composed of a large commercial and retail area, though part of the neighborhood is also residential. Jamaica is bordered by Hollis to the east; St. Albans, Spring ...

. It, too, is currently held at Belmont Park.

Steeplechase

* Beacon Steeplechase * Independence Steeplechase * Westbury Steeplechase

Sheepshead Bay Speedway Corporation

The new owner converted the horse track to a board automobile race track. Several auto races were held from October 1915, through September 1919, including the

Astor Cup Race Astor may refer to: People * Astor (surname) * Astor family, a wealthy 18th-century American family who became prominent in 20th-century British politics * Astor Bennett, a character in the Showtime television series ''Dexter'' * Ástor Piazzoll ...

and the

Harkness Trophy Race The Harkness Trophy Race was an American auto racing event, first run in 1915 at the Sheepshead Bay Speedway at Sheepshead Bay, New York. The winner's trophy was named for Harry Harkness, one of the principal investors who purchased the Sheepshea ...

. The Sheepshead Bay Speedway Corporation ran into financial difficulties following the death of its majority shareholder

Harry Harkness Harry Stephen Harkness (July 17, 1880 – January 23, 1919) was an American aviator and racing driver. Biography He was born in Cleveland, Ohio on July 17, 1880 to Standard Oil heir Lamon V. Harkness. In 1918 his personal yacht was taken by ...

in January 1919. The property was sold in 1923 for residential real estate development. No trace of the racetrack can be found today.

Other defunct New York race tracks

* Brighton Beach Race Course * Gravesend Race Track *

* Jerome Park Racetrack * Morris Park Racecourse

References

External links

Information and photos of Sheepshead Bay Race Track
{{Coord, 40, 35, 32, N, 73, 56, 50, W , display=title 1880 establishments in New York (state) Coney Island Defunct horse racing venues in New York City Sports venues in Brooklyn Harkness family Motorsport venues in New York (state) Defunct motorsport venues in the United States 1919 disestablishments in New York (state) Sports venues completed in 1880