 Narragansett Park "Post Card" photo circa 1950s. | |
| Location | Pawtucket, Rhode Island |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 41°51′40″N71°20′45″W / 41.86111°N 71.34583°W |
| Date opened | August 1, 1934 |
| Date closed | September 4, 1978 |
| Race type | Thoroughbred racing |
| Course type | Flat |
| Notable races | Narragansett Special Roger Williams Handicap Providence Stakes Rhode Island Handicap New England Futurity New England Oaks |
Narragansett Park was an American race track for Thoroughbred horse racing in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
On May 18, 1934, Rhode Island voters approved a measure legalizing parimutuel betting by an almost 3 to 1 margin. [1] The following day, the Narragansett Racing Association announced plans for a $1 million race track and steeplechase course on the site of the former What Cheer Airport and filed articles of incorporation with the Secretary of State of Rhode Island. [2] The Association chose to name their track after Narragansett Park, a former trotting park in Cranston, Rhode Island. [3] On June 6, 1934, the Narragansett Racing Association was awarded the state's first horse racing permit. [4] Construction was completed in less than two months at a cost of $1.2 million. [5] The track consisted of a one-mile racing oval, a 14,000 seat grandstand, 270 betting and paying booths, a clubhouse, and 22 barns with stalls that could hold more than 1,000 horses. [3] [6] [7] The City of Pawtucket constructed a new four-lane highway leading to the entrance of the track and a double track railway was built near the stands. [8]
Narragansett Park opened on August 1, 1934, with 37,281 people in attendance, including Jack Dempsey, Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney, Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt Jr., and Jesse H. Metcalf. [9] The track's first card consisted of eight races. The feature race was a $5,000 added six furlongs sprint for three-year-olds and up won by Chinese Empress, a three-year-old chestnut filly. The mutuel handle for the day was $351,482. [10] On Labor Day 1934 the track drew an estimated 53,922 patrons, the most for any sporting event in the history of Rhode Island. [5]
During its early years, Narragansett Park was one of the most financially successful tracks in the country. From the time it opened to September 30, 1936 it posted a net profit of $2,017,381.54. In 1934 Rhode Island received over $800,000 in revenue from the track, which was more than 10% of the state's entire budget. Narragansett also became known as somewhat of a “High Society” due to its proximity to Newport, Rhode Island – the summer resort of many wealthy owners from New York City. [5] The track was frequented by celebrities, including Cab Calloway, Jimmy Durante, Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Mickey Rooney, and Milton Berle. [11] For decades, the track received patrons from Boston via the New Haven Railroad. During the racing season, daily trains, known as "'Gansett Specials" ran from Boston's South Station to the station tracks at Naragansett Park. The trains left Boston around noon to arrive in time for the first race and returned following the last race. [12]
Narragansett Park was part of many horse racing innovations. The track was one of the first in the country to install a photo finish camera and a starting gate. It was also one of the first to institute a $1,000 minimum purse. [5]
On June 22, 1935, Seabiscuit broke his maiden at Narragansett and equaled the five-furlong track record. Four days later in the Watch Hill Claiming Stakes he once again broke the track record, this time by a full second. [13] In 1937, Seabiscuit finished third in the Narragansett Special. The loss ended a streak of seven consecutive stakes wins for Seabiscuit, one shy of Discovery's record. [14]
In the summer of 1937, track president Walter E. O'Hara got into an altercation with the state racing steward. The state Horse Racing Division ordered that O'Hara be removed as a track official of the race track for intimidating and interfering with the steward. The Horse Racing Division also ordered an audit of the Narragansett Racing Association's books, which resulted in six new charges against the track to revoke its license for the fall racing season. O'Hara responded to the charges in his newspaper, the Providence Star-Tribune, in an article which he implied that Governor Robert E. Quinn was or would end up in Butler Hospital, a psychiatric hospital that specialized in the treatment of substance abuse. [5] [15] On September 15, 1937, the Rhode Island Supreme Court unanimously decided to quash the division's order to remove O'Hara. However, Quinn filed two charges with the division seeking O'Hara's removal as a track official and the revocation of the Narragansett Racing Association's license for O'Hara's attacks in the newspaper. The division sided with the Governor and ordered O'Hara's removal and indefinitely suspended the track's license at the end of the summer races. The summer racing season ended on September 30, 1937, however, the track did not remove O'Hara. The Supreme Court quashed the division's order to remove O'Hara and suspend the track's license. However, Quinn refused to permit racing at the track. On October 17, Quinn declared that Narragansett Park was "in a state of insurrection," and ordered the National Guard to enforce martial law. O'Hara, who was in Maryland on business, flew back to the track and was escorted by guardsmen to his penthouse on the track's roof, where he entertained journalists and politicians and played March of the Wooden Soldiers over the public address system for the guardsmen. [5] [15]
On February 9, 1938, sheriff's deputies battered down the Narragansett Racing Association' doors and seized records on order of the Superior Court. O'Hara then resigned as the association's president and managing director. [16] He was succeeded by track secretary James Dooley. [5]
The track reopened in 1938 and attracted the same huge crowds it drew before the "war". [5]
On September 19, 1942, the track hosted a match race between Triple Crown winner Whirlaway and 1942 Preakness Stakes winner Alsab. The race was organized after members of the media accused track president James Dooley of concealing the fact that Alsab would not run against Whirlaway in the September 12 Narragansett Special until after a large crowd had come to the track. [5] The race was attended by 35,000 people and all three major radio networks provided live coverage. [17] [18] Whirlaway entered the $25,000 match race a 3 to 10 favorite, while Alsab went off at 8 to 5. [18]
Alsab jumped out to an early lead, holding as much as a two and a half length lead at one point. Whirlaway twice tried to move ahead of Alsab (once as they neared the far turn and once as the two horses entered the backstretch). However, both times jockey Carroll Bierman let Alsab stay ahead. Halfway through the stretch turn, jockey George Woolf turned Whirlway loose. Whirlway's late charge resulted in a photo finish, however Alsab won the race by a nose. [18] [19] The race is considered to be one of the greatest in New England racing history. [5]
The track began a slow decline in the 1950s. [3] On October 9, 1960, two of the track's barns burned down. Many horses fled the barns and ran into neighboring yards and streets. [5] [20] By the 1970s the track had fallen upon hard times. Due to reduced public interest in thoroughbred racing, competition for racing dates with other New England tracks, and competition from greyhound racing and state lotteries for gambling dollars, attendance dropped and handles decreased rapidly. This led to an inability to attract high-quality horses. [5] [6] The physical condition of the track deteriorated as well. [6] On Labor Day 1978, only 2,882 patrons paid to gain admittance. [5] Two days later it was announced the track would close.
On September 2, 1977, The Beach Boys performed at Narragansett Park before an audience of 40,000, which remains the largest concert audience in Rhode Island history. In 2017, music historians Al Gomes and Connie Watrous of Big Noise were successful in getting the stretch of street where the concert stage stood (at 510 Narragansett Park Drive) renamed as 'Beach Boys Way.' [21] [22]
On June 29, 1979, the stockholders of Narragansett Park voted to sell the track to the City of Pawtucket for $5.6 million. [23] The city used a grant from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development to buy and improve the land, which they sold to developers below market value to stimulate employment and business investment. [24]
On May 30, 1981, the clubhouse was destroyed by a suspicious fire. [25] The only remaining part of the track is part of the grandstand wall, which was the location of the Narragansett Flea Market and later a Building 19 store. [5] [26]
| Distance | Winner | Age | Weight | Date | Record | |
| 4F | Wicked Time | 2 | 106 | 5/6/37 | :47 2/5 | |
| 4.5F | Jackie D. | 2 | 109 | 5/7/36 | :52 2/5 | |
| 5F* | Martha Belle | 4 | 113 | 6/9/73 | :58 2/5 | |
| 5F* | Always Sure | 5 | 117 | 2/5/68 | :58 2/5 | |
| 5.5F | Measurator | 3 | 117 | 8/4/75 | 1:04 1/5 | |
| 6F | Blue Wayne | 3 | 114 | 12/4/54 | 1:09 1/5 | |
| 1 Mile* | Lady Reigh | 3 | 103 | 10/9/34 | 1:37 | |
| 1 Mile* | Advising Anna | 5 | 105 | 8/12/35 | 1:37 | |
| 1 M 70 yds | Tim B. Quiet | 4 | 113 | 12/2/71 | 1:40 1/5 | |
| 1 1/16 M | Isle of Bond | 4 | 119 | 12/4/54 | 1:42 1/5 | |
| 1 1/8 M | Valdina Orphan | 3 | 115 | 9/26/42 | 1:49 1/5 | |
| 1 3/16 M | Lucky Draw | 5 | 123 | 9/14/46 | 1:54 3/5 {WR} | |
| 1 1/4 M | Chief Mourner | 3 | 102 1/2 | 11/1/35 | 2:06 3/5 | |
| 1 1/2 M | Uncle Dan | 7 | 115 | 12/4/54 | 2:31 1/5 | |
| 1 5/8 M | Satin Cap | 5 | 116 | 9/22/42 | 2:46 1/5 | |
| 1 M 5.5 F | Avenue O. | 3 | 113 | 11/18/61 | 2:58 3/5 | |
| 1 3/4 M | Yukon | 6 | 108 | 9/26/45 | 2:58 2/5 | |
| 2 Mile | Joe Sam | 6 | 103 | 9/10/37 | 3:27 2/5 | |
| 2 M 70 yds | Momo Flag | 4 | 118 | 9/20/44 | 3:31 2/5 | |
| 2 1/16 M | Momo Flag | 4 | 120 | 9/27/44 | 3:33 4/5 {WR} | |
| 2 1/8 M | Panalong | 7 | 111 | 11/18/39 | 3:46 1/5 | |
| 2 3/16 M | Santiago | 5 | 112 | 9/27/41 | 3:51 1/5 | |
| 2 1/2 M | Enimrac | 7 | 108 | 10/5/40 | 4:27 2/5 |
Pawtucket is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island. The population was 75,604 at the 2020 census, making the city the fourth-largest in the state. Pawtucket borders Providence and East Providence to the south, Central Falls and Lincoln to the north, and North Providence to the west. The city also borders the Massachusetts municipalities of Seekonk and Attleboro.
John M. "Red" Pollard was a Canadian horse racing jockey. A founding member of the Jockeys' Guild in 1940, Pollard rode at racetracks in the United States and is best known for riding Seabiscuit.
Suffolk Downs is a former Thoroughbred race track in East Boston, Massachusetts, United States. The track opened in 1935 after being built by Joseph A. Tomasello for a cost of $2 million. It was sold in May 2017 to a developer who plans to create housing and a shopping district. The final day of live racing at the track was June 30, 2019, with the facility hosting simulcast race wagering thereafter. The only remaining live horse racing in Massachusetts is at Plainridge Park Casino, which has harness racing.
Whirlaway was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the fifth winner of the American Triple Crown. He also won the Travers Stakes after his Triple Crown sweep to become the first and only horse to win all four races.
The Narragansett Brewing Company is an American brewery founded in Cranston, Rhode Island in 1890. Founders included John H. Fehlberg, Augustus F. Borchandt, Herman G. Possner, George M. Gerhard, Constand A. Moeller, and Jacob Wirth.
Alsab (1939–1963) was an American Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse.
Ace Marine was a Canadian Thoroughbred Champion racehorse who in 1955 won the three races that four years later were officially designated the Canadian Triple Crown.
Robert Emmet Quinn was an American attorney and politician from Rhode Island. He served as the 58th Governor of Rhode Island and Judge for the Rhode Island Superior Court.
John J. "Butch" Lenzini Jr. was an American horse trainer in Thoroughbred flat racing best known for winning the 1982 Preakness Stakes, the second leg of the U.S. Triple Crown series.
The Narragansett Special was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Narragansett Park in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. At the time of its inaugural running in 1934, the Narragansett Special offered a purse of $32,500 added money making it the biggest race run at the track. Only Suffolk Downs' Massachusetts Handicap, which ran the next summer, had a bigger purse in New England. Both rich contests drew the best talent that the nation had to offer.
James E. Dooley (1886–1960) was a leading sports figure in Rhode Island. He became part owner of the Providence Steam Roller of the National Football League from 1916 until 1933 when the team folded. The 1928 team won the NFL Championship with an 8-1-2 record. He has a decades-long association with the Narragansett Park race track in Pawtucket. Dooley was also a founder of the Providence Reds of the Canadian-American Hockey League (CAHL) and was also the one-time President of the CAHL.
Walter Edmund O'Hara was an American horse racing executive who was the first President and Managing Director of the Narragansett Racing Association, which owned and operated Narragansett Park, a Thoroughbred horse track in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
Bally's Twin River Lincoln Casino Resort, previously Twin River Casino Hotel, is a casino, hotel, and former race track in Lincoln, Rhode Island, owned and operated by Bally's Corporation. The facility has 202,000 square feet (18,800 m2) of gaming space, with 3,900 slot machines, 110 table games, and 23 poker tables. The hotel has 136 rooms. Other amenities include a 29,000-square-foot (2,700 m2) event center, 16 eateries, 8 bars, and a racebook.
The Roger Williams Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Narragansett Park in Pawtucket, Rhode Island and named for the founder of the State of Rhode Island. The track sat on land just west of the Ten Mile River which Roger Williams traveled down after being banished from Massachusetts in 1636. The track management had purchased the land from the former What Cheer Airport in 1934. Curiously, “What cheer, Netop” were the words called out by the Narragansett Indians when Roger Williams first set foot in the place he was to call "Providence". Only the word Netop − meaning "friend" − is Indian and the phrase was meant as a greeting.
The Rhode Island Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Narragansett Park in Pawtucket, Rhode Island from 1934 to 1948. The race was designed to be the closing day feature of the tracks very first meet. The handicap event was given a $10,000 purse, the largest of the meet. Older handicap horses were the racing stars of the day and the Rhode Island Handicap was to be the track's signature race.
The Providence Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Narragansett Park in Pawtucket, Rhode Island and restricted to three-year-olds. The race was first run in 1946 and continued until 1960.
James H. Connors was an American horse racing executive and businessman who served as president of Suffolk Downs.
The New England Futurity was a short-lived Thoroughbred stakes race at Narragansett Park in Pawtucket, Rhode Island which the Daily Racing Form reported it to be "New England's richest and most important stake" For two-year-old entire colts and fillies, it was first run on October 28, 1936.
The New England Oaks was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually from 1936 thru 1944 at Narragansett Park in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Run on dirt over a distance of a mile and one-sixteenth, like all "Oaks" races for Thoroughbreds, it was open to three-year-old fillies only.
Narragansett Park was an American horse and motor racing venue in Cranston, Rhode Island.