Parole Hunt Club
Encyclopedia
The Parole Hunt Club was a half-mile race track in Parole, Maryland
, dedicated to horse racing, including pacers and trotters, on land now known as Riva Road. Until its redevelopment as a shopping center in the late 1950s the club had a rich heritage as the location of the first recorded formal horse race in Maryland.
In the 1740s racing was established in many towns in Maryland, with numerous gentlemen of means establishing large stud farm
s. The first jockey club was founded in Annapolis in around 1750, and racing soon grew to become an important part of the social and political life of the colony.
The first formal horse race in Maryland took place at Parole in May 1743.. Charles Carroll
(whose son, also called Charles Carroll
, would later sign the Declaration of Independence
in 1776) wagered that his horse would win in a 3-mile race. Carroll's horse ran against Dungannon
, (aka "Duncannon"), a thoroughbred racehorse owned by the tobacco planter and horse breeder George Hume Steuart
(1700-1784), who had imported the horse from England.
At stake was a silver trophy, the Annapolis Subscription Plate
. The silver plate itself - in reality more of a bowl than a plate - is now displayed in the Baltimore Museum of Art
, and was crafted by the Annapolis silversmith John Inch. It is the oldest surviving silver object made in Maryland and the second oldest horseracing trophy in America.
Dungannon won the race, establishing a tradition of thoroughbred racing that would last for 200 years. The Parole Hunt Club racetrack was sold in the late 1950s to property developers, and in 1962 it became a shopping center known as the Parole Plaza, which was torn town and redeveloped between 2004 and 2008 to become a mixed-use development called Annapolis Towne Center at Parole.
Parole, Maryland
Parole is a census-designated place in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States. The population was 14,031 at the 2000 census. It is where several major roads intersect at the edge of the state capital, Annapolis, and adjacent to the Annapolis Mall shopping center and Anne Arundel Medical Center...
, dedicated to horse racing, including pacers and trotters, on land now known as Riva Road. Until its redevelopment as a shopping center in the late 1950s the club had a rich heritage as the location of the first recorded formal horse race in Maryland.
History
Stud farm
A stud farm or stud in animal husbandry, is an establishment for selective breeding of livestock. The word "stud" comes from the Old English stod meaning "herd of horses, place where horses are kept for breeding" Historically, documentation of the breedings that occur on a stud farm leads to the...
s. The first jockey club was founded in Annapolis in around 1750, and racing soon grew to become an important part of the social and political life of the colony.
The first formal horse race in Maryland took place at Parole in May 1743.. Charles Carroll
Charles Carroll of Annapolis
Charles Carroll of Annapolis was a wealthy Maryland planter and lawyer. His father was Charles Carroll the Settler, an immigrant to Maryland who had arrived in the colony in 1689 with a commission as Attorney General, and had accumulated a vast fortune, emerging as Maryland's wealthiest citizen...
(whose son, also called Charles Carroll
Charles Carroll of Carrollton
Charles Carroll of Carrollton was a wealthy Maryland planter and an early advocate of independence from Great Britain. He served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and later as United States Senator for Maryland...
, would later sign the Declaration of Independence
Declaration of independence
A declaration of independence is an assertion of the independence of an aspiring state or states. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another nation or failed nation, or are breakaway territories from within the larger state...
in 1776) wagered that his horse would win in a 3-mile race. Carroll's horse ran against Dungannon
Dungannon (horse)
Dungannon, , was a thoroughbred racehorse owned by the tobacco planter and horse breeder George Hume Steuart , who imported the horse from England to race against his rival, Charles Carroll of Annapolis...
, (aka "Duncannon"), a thoroughbred racehorse owned by the tobacco planter and horse breeder George Hume Steuart
George Hume Steuart
George Hume Steuart, was a physician, tobacco planter, and Loyalist politician in colonial Maryland. Born in Perthshire, Scotland, Steuart emigrated to Maryland in around 1721, where he benefited from proprietarial patronage and was appointed to a number of colonial offices, eventually becoming a...
(1700-1784), who had imported the horse from England.
At stake was a silver trophy, the Annapolis Subscription Plate
Annapolis Subscription Plate
The Annapolis Subscription Plate is the name given both to the first recorded formal horse race in colonial Maryland and to the silver trophy awarded to the winner of the race...
. The silver plate itself - in reality more of a bowl than a plate - is now displayed in the Baltimore Museum of Art
Baltimore Museum of Art
The Baltimore Museum of Art in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, was founded in 1914. Built in the Roman Temple style, the Museum is home to an internationally renowned collection of 19th-century, modern, and contemporary art. Founded in 1914 with a single painting, the BMA today has 90,000 works...
, and was crafted by the Annapolis silversmith John Inch. It is the oldest surviving silver object made in Maryland and the second oldest horseracing trophy in America.
Dungannon won the race, establishing a tradition of thoroughbred racing that would last for 200 years. The Parole Hunt Club racetrack was sold in the late 1950s to property developers, and in 1962 it became a shopping center known as the Parole Plaza, which was torn town and redeveloped between 2004 and 2008 to become a mixed-use development called Annapolis Towne Center at Parole.
External links
- Article on the history of the Parole Hunt Club at www.hometownannapolis.com Retrieved August 3 2010
- Article on Annapolis Subscription Plate at www.hometownannapolis.com Retrieved August 3 2010
- Official website of the farm estate of Dodon, formerly George Hume Steuart's South River plantation Retrieved August 3 2010
- History of Maryland Jockey Club Retrieved August 3 2010