The American Derby is a

Thoroughbred horse race Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...

in the United States run annually at

Arlington Park Arlington International Racecourse (formerly Arlington Park, the name was Arlington Park Jockey Club from as soon as 1948 up to 1955) was a horse race track in the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, Illinois. Horse racing in the Chicago regi ...

Arlington Heights, Illinois Arlington Heights is a municipality in Cook County with a small portion in Lake County in the U.S. state of Illinois. A suburb of Chicago, it lies about northwest of the city's downtown. Per the 2020 Census, the population was 77,676. Per the ...

. The inaugural American Derby was held at Chicago's old Washington Park Race Track on the city's South Side and raced there until 1905, when the facility was closed following the state's ban on gambling and horse racing and the track was demolished. 1893's American Derby was the 2nd richest race in the U.S. during the 19th century.Reiss, Steven A., ''Horse Racing'', Eds. Grossman, James R., Keating, Ann Durkin, and Reiff, Janice L., 2004 ''The Encyclopedia of Chicago'', pp. 390-1. The University of Chicago Press, There was no racing in Chicago in 1895, 1896, 1897, 1899, and again in 1905 and 1906. The effect would be that the American Derby was not run from 1905 through 1925, except for 1916 when it was hosted by the

Hawthorne Race Course Hawthorne Race Course is a racetrack for horse racing in Stickney/Cicero, Illinois, near Chicago. The oldest continually run family-owned racetrack in North America, in 2009 the Horseplayers Association of North America introduced a rating syst ...

Stickney, Illinois Stickney is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The village is named for Alpheus Beede Stickney, a railroad executive who played a central role in establishing the Clearing Industrial District. Per the 2020 census, the population w ...

. Revived in 1926, it evolved to become one of the important events of the American racing season that drew some of the very best horses from all over the country. It was run at the new

Washington Park Race Track Washington Park Race Track was a popular horse racing venue in the Chicago metropolitan area from 1884 until 1977. It had two locations during its existence. It was first situated in what is the current location of the Washington Park Subdiv ...

Homewood, Illinois Homewood is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 19,463 at the 2020 census. The village sits just a few miles south of Chicago proper. It is bordered by Chicago Heights and Flossmoor to the south, Hazel Crest to ...

in 1926 and 1927 and then was held at the Arlington Park course in 1928 before returning to the new Washington Park in 1929 where it remained through 1957. From 1958-2021 the race has been run at Arlington Park until its closure. In 2022, the race took place at

Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, famed for hosting the annual Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was ...

. Since 1992 the American Derby has been run on

turf Sod, also known as turf, is the upper layer of soil with the grass growing on it that is often harvested into rolls. In Australian and British English, sod is more commonly known as ''turf'', and the word "sod" is limited mainly to agricult ...

. Previously, it had been raced on the turf course from 1955 through 1957 and from 1970 through 1976. Over the years, the distance has varied: * miles: 1884–1904, 1926, 1927, 1958–1961, 1966–1974, 1976 * miles: 1928–1951, 1962–1965, 1977–1991 * miles: 1916, 1955–1957, 1992–2014 * miles: 1952–1954, 1958–1961, 1966–1974, 1976, 2015–2018 * miles: 1975, 2019–2021 *1 mile: 1952–1954, 1958–1961 Most wins by a

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

: * 5 –

Bill Shoemaker William Lee Shoemaker (August 19, 1931 – October 12, 2003) was an American jockey. For 29 years he held the world record for total professional jockey victories. Early life Referred to as "Bill", "Willie," and "The Shoe", William Lee Sho ...

* 5 –

Eddie Arcaro George Edward Arcaro (February 19, 1916 – November 14, 1997), was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey who won more American classic races than any other jockey in history and is the only rider to have won the U.S. Tripl ...

* 4 –

Isaac Burns Murphy Isaac Burns Murphy (January 6, 1861 – February 16, 1896) was an American Hall of Fame jockey, who is considered to be one of the greatest riders in American Thoroughbred horse racing history. Murphy won three runnings of the Kentucky Derby and ...

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

George Woolf George Monroe Woolf (May 31, 1910 – January 4, 1946), nicknamed "The Iceman", was a Canadian thoroughbred race horse jockey. An annual jockey's award given by the United States Jockeys' Guild is named in his honor. He became known for riding ...

won the race three years in a row from 1942 to 1944. Most wins by a trainer: * 3 – Horace A. Jones, Ben A. Jones,

Dermot K. Weld Dermot K. Weld (born 29 July 1948), a former jockey is one of Ireland's most successful racehorse trainers. He holds the record for the most winners trained in Ireland (2,578 set in August 2000). Weld maintains his stable, Rosewell House, in ...

William I. Mott William I. "Bill" Mott (born July 29, 1953, in Mobridge, South Dakota) is an American horse trainer, most notable for his work with Cigar. Mott earned the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer in 1995 and 1996. He was inducted into the Nationa ...

(2005, 2006, 2007) Most wins by an owner: * 8 – Calumet Farm * 4 –

Lucky Baldwin Elias Jackson "Lucky" Baldwin (April 3, 1828 – March 1, 1909) was "one of the greatest pioneers" of California business, an investor, and real estate speculator during the second half of the 19th century. He earned the nickname "Lucky" Baldwin d ...

Winners

† Dead Head in 1984 †† Dead Heat in 1994 ‡ In 1996, the first-place finisher Trail City was disqualified and placed second

Notes

{{Reflist

External links

Photo of 1916 American Derby at Hawthorne Race Course
Graded stakes races in the United States Flat horse races for three-year-olds 1884 establishments in Illinois Turf races in the United States Recurring sporting events established in 1884 Arlington Park Hawthorne Race Course Horse races in Illinois