Kentucky Association
Encyclopedia
The Kentucky Association was formed on July 23, 1826 to promote the breeding
and racing
of Thoroughbred
horses in the Bluegrass region
of Kentucky
. It was founded by a group of prominent locals which included Henry Clay
, Jesse Bledsoe
, Dr. Elisha Warfield
, and Thomas F. Marshall
. Between 1828 and 1834, the Association accumulated sixty-five acres of land in an area of the city of Lexington, Kentucky
that today is the east end of 5th Street at Race Street. On the property, the Association built a one-mile dirt racetrack with grandstand and stables to host Thoroughbred
flat racing
events.
After more than six decades of success, financial problems led to the track being sold in 1890 to a group of investors. However, the economic depression following the Panic of 1893
was a serious blow and financial difficulties plagued the new owners. They had difficulty attracting horses for important events such as the 1896 Ashland Oaks
that the New York Times described as a farce
after it drew only two entries. http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9805E4D7123EE333A25756C0A9639C94679ED7CF Facing imminent foreclosure, on March 18, 1897 the track was again put up for sale. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=940CEFD71339E433A2575AC1A9659C94669ED7CF The status of the track remained in limbo for four years until Charles Green of St. Louis, Missouri
, who had been a Trustee for the stockholders, purchased the track in 1901 for $1 plus other considerations. http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9F07E2D91330E132A25755C0A9659C946097D6CF
In April 1906 a fire broke out at the track that quickly spread to the surrounding private residences. Eighteen area homes were destroyed.
The Phoenix Stakes
, now the oldest stakes race in the United States, was first run as the Phoenix Hotel Handicap at the Kentucky Association track in 1831. Other important races inaugurated there and still run today, include the Ashland Stakes
, named for Henry Clay's Ashland estate, the Breeders' Futurity Stakes (1910), the Blue Grass Stakes
(1911), and the Ben Ali Stakes
(1917).
Some of the notable events which took place at the Kentucky Association Racetrack include:
Past presidents of the racetrack include John C. Breckenridge and General Leslie Combs.
During 1918-1919, the Kentucky Jockey Club was created to take over the four racetracks in the state consisting of the Kentucky Association, Churchill Downs
, Latonia Race Track
, and the Douglas Park Racetrack.http://www.kentuckyderby.com/2007/derby_history/derby_timeline/1900_1924.html
The Kentucky Association racetrack closed in the spring of 1933 and its facilities were torn down in 1935. On April 17, 1933, articles of incorporation were filed for the Keeneland Association
and their new racecourse opened in 1935 located about six miles outside of Lexington which today is the city intersection of Versailles Road and Man O' War Boulevard. The Kentucky Association racetrack's historic gates were eventually replicated at the Keeneland Race Course.
The historical records for the Kentucky Association from 1828 to c.1935 are maintained at the University of Kentucky
library's Special Collections & Digital Programs Division.
Horse breeding
Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired characteristics in domesticated horses...
and racing
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
of Thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
horses in the Bluegrass region
Bluegrass region
The Bluegrass Region is a geographic region in the state of Kentucky, United States. It occupies the northern part of the state and since European settlement has contained a majority of the state's population and its largest cities....
of Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
. It was founded by a group of prominent locals which included Henry Clay
Henry Clay
Henry Clay, Sr. , was a lawyer, politician and skilled orator who represented Kentucky separately in both the Senate and in the House of Representatives...
, Jesse Bledsoe
Jesse Bledsoe
Jesse Bledsoe was a Senator from Kentucky.He was born in Culpeper County, Virginia in 1776. When he was very young, his family migrated with a Baptist congregation through Cumberland Gap into Kentucky. Many of the adults in this traveling congregation were property: Negro slaves...
, Dr. Elisha Warfield
Elisha Warfield
Elisha Warfield, Jr. was an American physician and a Thoroughbred racehorse owner and breeder whom Thoroughbred Heritage calls "one of the most important early figures in Kentucky racing and breeding."...
, and Thomas F. Marshall
Thomas F. Marshall
Thomas Francis Marshall was a nineteenth century politician and lawyer from Kentucky. He was the nephew of John Marshall.-Early life and family:...
. Between 1828 and 1834, the Association accumulated sixty-five acres of land in an area of the city of Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
that today is the east end of 5th Street at Race Street. On the property, the Association built a one-mile dirt racetrack with grandstand and stables to host Thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
flat racing
Flat racing
Flat racing is a form of Thoroughbred horse racing which is run over a level track at a predetermined distance. It differs from steeplechase racing which is run over hurdles...
events.
After more than six decades of success, financial problems led to the track being sold in 1890 to a group of investors. However, the economic depression following the Panic of 1893
Panic of 1893
The Panic of 1893 was a serious economic depression in the United States that began in 1893. Similar to the Panic of 1873, this panic was marked by the collapse of railroad overbuilding and shaky railroad financing which set off a series of bank failures...
was a serious blow and financial difficulties plagued the new owners. They had difficulty attracting horses for important events such as the 1896 Ashland Oaks
Ashland Stakes
The Ashland Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early April at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. It and the Ashland Oaks, the Kentucky Association racetrack's predecessor race, were named for Ashland, the homestead and breeding farm of statesman...
that the New York Times described as a farce
Farce
In theatre, a farce is a comedy which aims at entertaining the audience by means of unlikely, extravagant, and improbable situations, disguise and mistaken identity, verbal humour of varying degrees of sophistication, which may include word play, and a fast-paced plot whose speed usually increases,...
after it drew only two entries. http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9805E4D7123EE333A25756C0A9639C94679ED7CF Facing imminent foreclosure, on March 18, 1897 the track was again put up for sale. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=940CEFD71339E433A2575AC1A9659C94669ED7CF The status of the track remained in limbo for four years until Charles Green of St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, who had been a Trustee for the stockholders, purchased the track in 1901 for $1 plus other considerations. http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9F07E2D91330E132A25755C0A9659C946097D6CF
In April 1906 a fire broke out at the track that quickly spread to the surrounding private residences. Eighteen area homes were destroyed.
The Phoenix Stakes
Phoenix Stakes (United States)
The Phoenix Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky. Open to horses age three and older, it is contested on dirt over a distance of six furlongs and currently offers a purse of $250,000...
, now the oldest stakes race in the United States, was first run as the Phoenix Hotel Handicap at the Kentucky Association track in 1831. Other important races inaugurated there and still run today, include the Ashland Stakes
Ashland Stakes
The Ashland Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early April at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. It and the Ashland Oaks, the Kentucky Association racetrack's predecessor race, were named for Ashland, the homestead and breeding farm of statesman...
, named for Henry Clay's Ashland estate, the Breeders' Futurity Stakes (1910), the Blue Grass Stakes
Blue Grass Stakes
The Toyota Blue Grass Stakes, currently sponsored by the Toyota Motor Corporation, is an American Grade 1 horse race for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds held annually in mid April at Keeneland Racecourse in Lexington, Kentucky....
(1911), and the Ben Ali Stakes
Ben Ali Stakes
The Ben Ali Stakes is an American race for thoroughbred horses run in the Spring of each year at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky. For 4-year-olds and up, it is a Grade III event set at a distance of one mile and one eighth mile on the dirt...
(1917).
Some of the notable events which took place at the Kentucky Association Racetrack include:
- On September 16, 1876, future Hall of FameNational Museum of Racing and Hall of FameThe National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers...
jockey Isaac Burns MurphyIsaac Burns MurphyIsaac Burns Murphy was an African-American Hall of Fame jockey, who is considered one of the greatest riders in American Thoroughbred horse racing history. Murphy won three Kentucky Derbies.-Early life:...
earned his first win. - In 1898 Hall of Fame jockey Jimmy Winkfield got his start.
- On January 27, 1921, the great Man o' WarMan O' WarMan O' War, man o' war or manowar may refer to:* Man-of-war, a warship* Man of war for uses with this spelling - Places :...
arrived in Kentucky. Prior to beginning studStud (animal)A stud animal is a registered animal retained for breeding. The terms for the male of a given animal species usually imply that the animal is entire—that is, not castrated—and therefore capable of siring offspring...
duty at Hinata Farm near Lexington, he was installed at Edward R. Bradley'sEdward R. BradleyColonel Edward Riley Bradley was an American steel mill laborer, gold miner, businessman and philanthropist. As well as a race track proprietor, he was the preeminent owner and breeder of Thoroughbred racehorses in the Southern United States during the first three decades of the 20th Century...
stable at the Kentucky Association racetrack where a crowd gathered to watch him exercise gallop.
Past presidents of the racetrack include John C. Breckenridge and General Leslie Combs.
During 1918-1919, the Kentucky Jockey Club was created to take over the four racetracks in the state consisting of the Kentucky Association, Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs, located in Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, is a Thoroughbred racetrack most famous for hosting the Kentucky Derby annually. It officially opened in 1875, and held the first Kentucky Derby and the first Kentucky Oaks in the same year. Churchill Downs...
, Latonia Race Track
Latonia Race Track
Latonia Race Track on Winston Avenue in Latonia Kentucky, six miles south of Cincinnati, Ohio, was a Thoroughbred horse racing facility opened in 1883. The track hosted a spring-summer racing series and a second in late fall. It was once regarded as among the United States' top sites for racing,...
, and the Douglas Park Racetrack.http://www.kentuckyderby.com/2007/derby_history/derby_timeline/1900_1924.html
The Kentucky Association racetrack closed in the spring of 1933 and its facilities were torn down in 1935. On April 17, 1933, articles of incorporation were filed for the Keeneland Association
Keeneland
Keeneland is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and sales complex in Lexington, Kentucky, USA. Operated by the Keeneland Association, Inc., it is also known for its reference library on the sport, which contains more than 10,000 volumes, an extensive videocassette collection, and a substantial...
and their new racecourse opened in 1935 located about six miles outside of Lexington which today is the city intersection of Versailles Road and Man O' War Boulevard. The Kentucky Association racetrack's historic gates were eventually replicated at the Keeneland Race Course.
The historical records for the Kentucky Association from 1828 to c.1935 are maintained at the University of Kentucky
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
library's Special Collections & Digital Programs Division.