Iroquois Stakes (Brighton Beach)

Iroquois Stakes

Class	Defunct horse race
Location	Brighton Beach Race Course, Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, New York, United States
Inaugurated	1901-1907
Race type	Thoroughbred - Flat racing
Race information
Distance	1+1⁄4 mi (10 furlongs; 2,012 m)
Surface	Dirt
Track	left-handed
Qualification	Three-year-olds

The Iroquois Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses that was run six times from 1901 through 1907 at Brighton Beach Race Course in the Brighton Beach section of Brooklyn,
New York. ^[1]

The race and the racetrack’s demise came in 1908 as a result of the passage that year of the Hart–Agnew anti-betting legislation by the New York Legislature under Republican Governor Charles Evans Hughes. ^[2]

The loss of income from wagering, left racetrack operators no choice but to drastically reduce the purse money being paid out which resulted in the Iroquois Stakes cutting the purse in 1908 down to one-quarter of what it had been in recent years. These small purses made horse racing unprofitable and impossible for even the most successful horse owners to continue in business. ^[3]

At the time the Brighton Beach Race Course ceased Thoroughbred racing operations, it was the oldest horse track in steady use in the New York City area. ^[4]

Records

Speed record:

• 2:05.00 @ 1/1/4 miles – Ballot
• 1:54.00 @ 1 1/8 miles – Old England

Most wins by a jockey:

• 2 – Willie Shaw (1902, 1906)

Most wins by a trainer:

• no trainer won this race more than once

Most wins by an owner:

• no owner won this race more than once

Winners

Year	Winner	Jockey	Trainer	Owner	Dist. (Miles)	Time	Win $
1907	Ballot	Joe Notter	James G. Rowe Sr.	James R. Keene	11⁄4 M	2:05.00	$5,850
1906	Samson	Willie Shaw	Fred Burlew	Fred Burlew	11⁄4 M	2:07.00	$5,850
1905 *	Race not held
1904	St. Valentine	Arthur Redfern	William Shields	Edward R. Thomas	11⁄8 M	1:56.50	$4,005
1903	Fire Eater	John Bullman	A. Jack Joyner	August Belmont Jr.	11⁄8 M	1:58.60	$3,900
1902	Old England	Willie Shaw	Green B. Morris	Green B. Morris	11⁄8 M	1:54.00	$3,900
1901	Watercolor	Henry Spencer	Charles N. Littlefield	Charles N. Littlefield	11⁄4 M	2:07.00	$3,850

• The table of winners as per the reference, shows "no race" in 1905. The same source contradicts this in an article on the horse Sysonby, not on the actual race, stating in a summary of his career wins that he won the 1905 Iroquois Stakes at Brighton Beach.

References

1. "Condensed History of the Iroquois Stakes, Daily Racing Form, 1910-07-15". Daily Racing Form, University of Kentucky Archives. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
2. "Penalties in the New York Bills". Daily Racing Form at University of Kentucky Archives. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
3. "Coney Island Clubs Sturdy Stand". Daily Racing Form at University of Kentucky Archives. Retrieved 22 March 2025.
4. "Crowd at Harness Races; Brighton Trotting Meeting Opened with Fine Sport". The New York Times . August 14, 1891. p. 5. Retrieved 2010-01-16.