Surf Stakes

Last updated
Surf Stakes
Discontinued stakes race
Location Sheepshead Bay Race Track
Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York, United States
Inaugurated1880–1910
Race type Thoroughbred – Flat racing
Race information
Distance5 furlongs (5/8 mile)
SurfaceDirt
Trackleft-handed
QualificationTwo-year-olds

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 last run at a distance of 5+1⁄2 furlongs but from inception through 1895 it was contested at five furlongs. [1]

Contents

Historical notes

The 1880 inaugural edition of the Surf Stakes was won by George Lorillard's filly Spinaway that had the Grade 1 Spinaway Stakes at Saratoga Race Course named in her honor. [2] [3] Her performances in 1880 led to Spinaway being retrospectively selected by Thoroughbred Heritage as that year's American Champion Two-Year-Old Female. [4]

Tremont, owned by the Dwyer Brothers Stable who notoriously over-raced their horses, came into the June 12, 1886 running having won the Foam Stakes two days earlier. Tremont went on to an undefeated Championship two-year-old campaign in which he won all thirteen of his starts but never raced again. [5] [6]

Owner and trainer Byron McClelland won the 1890 race with Sallie McClelland which he had named for his wife. The filly too would be retrospectively selected by Thoroughbred Heritage as that year's American Champion Two-Year-Old Female. [7]

Hastings was a surprise winner of the 1895 edition, beating the heavily favored Handspring by three lengths. A month later, Hastings would be sold at auction to August Belmont Jr. for a then record price of $37,000. [8] [9]

En route to a career that would see his induction into the U.S. Racing Hall of Fame, Peter Pan won the 1906 Surf Stakes. [10]

The end of a race and of a racetrack

On June 11, 1908, the Republican controlled New York Legislature under Governor Charles Evans Hughes passed the Hart–Agnew anti-betting legislation. [11] The owners of Sheepshead Bay Race Track, and other racing facilities in New York State, struggled to stay in business without income from betting. [12] Racetrack operators had no choice but to drastically reduce the purse money being paid out which resulted in the Surf Stakes offering a purse in 1909 that was more than ninety percent less than what it had been the previous year. These small purses made horse racing unprofitable and impossible for even the most successful horse owners to continue in business. As such, for the 1910 racing season management of the Sheepshead Bay facility dropped some of its minor stakes races and used the purse money to bolster more most important events such as the Surf Stakes. [13]

In spite of strong opposition by prominent owners such as August Belmont, Jr. and Harry Payne Whitney, reform legislators were not happy when they learned that betting was still going on at racetracks between individuals and they had further restrictive legislation passed by the New York Legislature in 1910. [14] The Agnew–Perkins Law, a series of four bills and recorded as the Executive Liability Act, made it possible for racetrack owners and members of its board of directors to be fined and imprisoned if anyone was found betting, even privately, anywhere on their premises. [15] After a 1911 amendment to the law that would limit the liability of owners and directors was defeated, every racetrack in New York State shut down. [16] As a result, the Surf Stakes was not run in 1911 and 1912.

Owners, whose horses of racing age had nowhere to go, began sending them, their trainers and their jockeys to race in England and France. Many horses ended their racing careers there and a number remained to become an important part of the European horse breeding industry. Thoroughbred Times reported that more than 1,500 American horses were sent overseas between 1908 and 1913 and of them at least 24 were either past, present, or future Champions. [17] When a February 21, 1913 ruling by the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division Court saw horse racing return in 1913. [18] However, it was too late for the Sheepshead Bay horse racing facility and it never reopened. [19] [20]

Records

Speed record:

Most wins by a jockey:

Most wins by a trainer:

Most wins by an owner:

Winners

Year
Winner
Age
Jockey
Trainer
Owner
Dist.
(Miles)		Time
Win$
1910Lahore2 James Butwell James G. Rowe Sr. James R. Keene 5.5 F1:07.20$2,170
1909Dalmatian2 Vincent Powers Sam Hildreth Sam Hildreth5.5 F1:08.00$330
1908Suffragette2 Joe Notter James G. Rowe Sr. James G. Rowe Sr. 5.5 F1:07.00$3,970
1907Mombassa2 George Mountain John W. Rogers Harry Payne Whitney 5.5 F1:06.80$4,880
1906 Peter Pan 2 Herman Radtke James G. Rowe Sr.James R. Keene5.5 F1:07.00$5,010
1905Inquisitor2 Jack Martin Thomas Welsh Andrew Miller 5.5 F1:07.40$3,920
1904Sparkling Star2 Willie Shaw T. J. Healey Richard T. Wilson Jr. 5.5 F1:08.00$4,350
1903Inflexible2 Tommy Burns John W. Rogers William Collins Whitney 5.5 F1:07.00$5,385
1902Monte Carlo2 George M. Odom Walter N. HouseJ. Grant Lyman5.5 F1:10.00$4,015
1901Smart Set2Willie ShawThomas Welsh Julius Fleischmann 5.5 F1:07.40$3,080
1900 Watercolor 2 Fred Littlefield Charles Littlefield Jr. Charles Littlefield Jr.5.5 F1:07.20$3,320
1899Missionary2 Winfield O'Connor Julius J. BauerBromley & Co. (Joseph E. Bromley & Arthur Featherstone)5.5 F1:08.80$3,330
1898Autumn2 Tod Sloan A. Jack Joyner A. Jack Joyner5.5 F1:07.20$3,155
1897Varus2Fred Littlefield R. Wyndham Walden Alfred H. & Dave H. Morris 5.5 F1:09.40$2,950
1896Lithos2Mr. HartLew EllmoreTrowbridge & Co. (Samuel Trowbridge)5 F1:02.40$1,425
1895 Hastings 2 Henry Griffin John J. Hyland David Gideon & John Daly 5 F1:00.40$4,525
1894Keenan2Henry GriffinJohn J. Hyland August Belmont Jr. 5 F1:01.00$3,825
1893Declare2 Willie Simms Frank McCabe Philip J. Dwyer & Son5 F1:02.60$4,625
1892Hammie2 Fred Taral Hardy Campbell Jr. Michael F. Dwyer 5 F1:02.40$3,775
1891Merry Monarch2 Marty Bergen John J. Hyland David Gideon 5 F1:04.00$4,150
1890 Sallie McClelland 2 Spyder Anderson Byron McClelland Byron McClelland5 F1:02.60$3,950
1889Torso2Spyder AndersonCharles Leighton William Lawrence Scott 5 F1:01.80$4,975
1888Reporter2P. GodfreyJohn W. Rogers Samuel S. Brown 5 F1:02.75$3,600
1887Magnetizer2Mr. LinkJames G. Rowe Sr. August Belmont Sr. 5 F1:02.00$3,800
1886 Tremont 2 Jim McLaughlin Frank McCabe Dwyer Brothers Stable 5 F1:02.00$2,875
1885Portland2Jim McLaughlinFrank McCabeDwyer Brothers Stable5 F1:03.50$2,475
1884Wanda2Harris Olney Matthew Byrnes Pierre Lorillard IV 5 F1:03.00$3.075
1883Thackeray2James BrennanR. Wyndham Walden George L. Lorillard 5 F1:03.00$2,950
1882 Jacobus 2 Lloyd Hughes Richard Dwyer James E. Kelley5 F1:05.00$2,525
1881Marsh Redon2 William Donohue Barney Riley David D. Withers 5 F1:03.25$2,525
1880 Spinaway 2 Lloyd Hughes R. Wyndham WaldenGeorge L. Lorillard5 F1:04.25$2,025

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheepshead Bay Race Track</span> Former American horseracing track

The Sheepshead Bay Race Track was an American Thoroughbred horse racing facility built on the site of the Coney Island Jockey Club at Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn, New York.

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 miles from 1885 to 1892 and at 1⅛ miles from 1893 through 1909.

The Advance Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually from 1899 through 1910 at the Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Brooklyn, New York. An important race open to horses age three and older, it was raced on dirt. The final running took place on June 27, 1910 and was won by Ballot for the second time.

The Mermaid Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. An important event for three-year-old fillies, the race was run on dirt over a distance of one mile and one furlong until 1910 when it was set at one mile.

The Flight 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 horses of either sex and of all ages, it was run on dirt over a distance of seven furlongs.

The Zephyr Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race that was run from 1886 through 1910 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. A race for two-year-olds of either sex, it was a sprint race run on dirt. During its tenure, it was run at three different distances. From inception through 1900 it was run on the track's Futurity course at 5+3⁄4 furlongs with a setup that did not accommodate a standard six-furlong race. (A furlong is 1⁄8 mi or 0.20 km.)

The Double Event Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in two parts from 1889 through 1910 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. A race on dirt for two-year-old colts and fillies, the first part was run on the track's opening day in June and at a distance of 5½ furlongs throughout its term. The second part was run in mid July at a distance of 5 3/4 furlongs until 1901 when it was set at six furlongs. Each race originally carried a guaranteed purse of $10,000 and a bonus of $1,000 to the owners of any horse who won both parts.

The Omnium Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York from 1885 thru 1909. A race for horses of either sex age three and older, it was run on dirt over a distance of a mile and one-eighth. The Omnium was the third and last of the track's autumn serials, coming after the Fall Handicap at 6½ furlongs and the Ocean Handicap at one mile.

The Fall Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York from 1894 thru 1909 for horses of either sex age three and older. For easier identification purposes, the race is sometimes referred to as the Coney Island Fall Handicap. For its first two editions, the Fall Handicap was run on the track's short futurity course at 5¾ furlongs then for the next twelve runnings at 6 furlongs and the final two years at 6½ furlongs. The Fall Handicap was the first of the track's autumn serials, preceding the Ocean Handicap at 6½ furlongs and the Omnium Handicap at 1⅛ miles.

The Second Special Stakes was a Thoroughbred horse race run between 1886 and 1907 at Gravesend Race Track in Gravesend, on Coney Island, New York. The race was run on dirt at a distance of one and one half miles in its last nine runnings and was open to horses of either sex age three and older since inception.

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.

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 furlongs.

The Russet Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race on turf held annually from 1895 through 1909 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. Open to horses age three and older and run at a distance of 1½ miles, it was an event that attracted mainly stayers who were best at longer distances.

The Vernal Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old fillies held annually at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. A race on dirt, in its first two editions of 1892 and 1893 the race was run at a distance of six furlongs and was open to horses of either sex. In 1894 it was changed to an event exclusively for fillies and was set at a distance of five furlongs.

The Great Trial Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York from 1891 through 1910 and for 1913 at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Raced on dirt, it was run at a distance of 5¾ furlongs from 1891 through 1900 and then at 6 furlongs. Run in late June or early July, for most of its years at Sheepshead Bay the Great Trial Stakes was the most valuable race for two-year-olds during the track's summer meet.

The Foam Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually from 1880 through 1910 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. An event for two-year-old horses of either sex, the race was run on dirt over a distance of five furlongs with the exception of 1896 when it was for three-year-old fillies at one mile. The inaugural running took place on June 19, 1880 and was won by Spinaway for whom the prestigious Grade 1 Spinaway Stakes at Saratoga Race Course was named. The final running took place on June 21, 1910 and was won by Royal Meteor for the Newcastle Stable racing partnership headed by Life magazine publisher Andrew Miller. The Foam was the only stakes race on the card.

The Golden Rod Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually from 1891 through 1908 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. It was a race on turf for two-year-old horses of either sex.

The Belles Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually for two-year-old fillies from 1886 through 1908 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, New York. The race was run on dirt and for its final seven editions at a distance of 5+1⁄2 furlongs.

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 of six furlongs and, not very common at the time, on turf.

The Partridge Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Sheepshead Bay Race Track from 1890 through 1909. A race on turf over a distance of six furlongs, it was open to two-year-old horses of either sex.

References

  1. ↑ "Condensed History Of The Surf Stakes". Daily Racing Form. 1908-06-25. Retrieved 2019-07-01– via University of Kentucky Archives.
  2. ↑ Wallace, John Hankins (1880-01-01). "The American Turf – Performances For 1880". Wallace's Monthly . Retrieved 2019-07-19.
  3. ↑ "Spinaway Stakes". NYRA. 1942-06-27. Retrieved 2019-07-19.
  4. ↑ "Turf Hallmarks – Champions of the Turf". Thoroughbred Heritage . 2019-07-19. Retrieved 2019-07-19.
  5. ↑ "HARK'TIS THE TROUBADOUR; WHO TAKES THE GREAT PRIZE OF THE SUBURBAN HANDICAP. THE SURPRISES WHICH MARKED THE OPENING OF THE SEASON AT SHEEPSHEAD.BAY, TO THE LOSS OF THE BOOKMAKERS". The New York Times. 11 June 1886. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
  6. ↑ "TREMONT SHOWS HIS SUPERIOR QUALITIES". The New York Times. 13 June 1886. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
  7. ↑ "Turf Hallmarks – Champions of the Turf". Thoroughbred Heritage. 2019-07-19. Retrieved 2019-07-19.
  8. ↑ "Hastings A Surprise". New York Times. 1895-06-27. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
  9. ↑ "A RACING STABLE SOLD.; Good Prices Paid for the Gideon & Daly Thoroughbreds". New York Times. 1895-07-16. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
  10. ↑ "Coney Island Form Chart". Daily Racing Form. 1906-06-29. Retrieved 2019-07-02– via University of Kentucky Archives.
  11. ↑ "Penalties in the New York Bills". Daily Racing Form. 1908-01-18. Retrieved 2018-10-26– via University of Kentucky Archives.
  12. ↑ "Keep Up Betting Ban". New York Times. 1908-09-01. Retrieved 2018-11-06.
  13. ↑ "Coney Island Clubs Sturdy Stand". Daily Racing Form. 1908-08-11. Retrieved 2019-02-03– via University of Kentucky Archives.
  14. ↑ Liebman, Bennett (May 24, 2009). "The First American Triple Crown Series". The Rail. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  15. ↑ "Racing Men Attack Anti-Betting Bills – Place Every Man Who Makes Private Wager in Jeopardy". New York Times. 1910-04-07. Retrieved 2019-06-29.
  16. ↑ "Race Track Bill Defeated In Senate; Measure Modifying Directors' Liability for Gambling Fails of Passage". The New York Times. July 14, 1911. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  17. ↑ "Racing Through the Century". Thoroughbred Times. February 14, 2000. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  18. ↑ "Oral Betting Held Legal: Appellate Division of New York Supreme Court Renders Important Decision". Daily Racing Form. 1913-02-22. Retrieved 2019-06-29– via University of Kentucky Archives.
  19. ↑ "Destruction Wrought by Hughes". Daily Racing Form. 1908-12-15. Retrieved 2018-11-30– via University of Kentucky Archives.
  20. ↑ "Famous Old Track is Sold". Daily Racing Form. 1914-11-17. Retrieved 2018-11-30– via University of Kentucky Archives.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.