The Delaware Handicap was an American

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 ...

held between 1901 and 1937 at

Saratoga Race Course Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track located on Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs, New York, United States. Opened in 1863, it is often considered to be the oldest major sporting venue of any kind in the country, but is actua ...

Saratoga Springs, New York Saratoga Springs is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area, which has made Saratoga a popular resort destination for over 2 ...

. An event for horses of either sex age three and older, it was contested on dirt over a distance of one mile. While fillies accounted for just under a third of the winners, their victories were marked by a number of dominating performances.

Historical notes

First run on August 17, 1901, the race was won by Frank Farrell's three-year-old colt,

Blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

. The distance for this inaugural event was set at a mile and one-sixteenth after which it would be permanently shortened to one mile. The sole two-time winner of the Delaware Handicap was John Sanford's very good filly

Molly Brant Molly Brant ( – April 16, 1796), also known as Mary Brant, Konwatsi'tsiaienni, and Degonwadonti, was a Mohawk leader in British New York and Upper Canada in the era of the American Revolution. Living in the Province of New York, she was the co ...

who won in 1904 and 1905. Owner John Sanford, in partnership with father Stephen Sanford, had won the 1902 edition and John would win it for a record fourth time in 1907. The 1908 passage of the Hart–Agnew anti-betting legislation by the

New York Legislature The New York State Legislature consists of the two houses that act as the state legislature of the U.S. state of New York: The New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly. The Constitution of New York does not designate an official t ...

under

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Charles Evans Hughes Charles Evans Hughes Sr. (April 11, 1862 – August 27, 1948) was an American statesman, politician and jurist who served as the 11th Chief Justice of the United States from 1930 to 1941. A member of the Republican Party, he previously was the ...

led to a state-wide shutdown of racing in 1911 and 1912. A February 21, 1913 ruling by the

New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division The Appellate Divisions of the Supreme Court of the State of New York are the intermediate appellate courts in New York State. There are four Appellate Divisions, one in each of the state's four Judicial Departments (e.g., the full title of the ...

saw horse racing return in 1913. Gifford Cochran's fleet filly Fairy Wand, ridden by future U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee

Clarence Kummer Clarence Joseph Kummer (August 8, 1899 – December 18, 1930) was a U.S. Racing Hall of Fame jockey who won four American Classic Races. In early 1920, Kummer rode the 1919 Triple Crown Champion Sir Barton to a new Saratoga track record in wi ...

, won the 1919 Delaware Handicap in a time of 1:36 1/5 which equaled the American record for the one-mile distance. On August 13, 1937, William Ziegler Jr.'s Esposa easily captured the thirty-fifth and final running of the Delaware Handicap. Esposa would go on to earn recognition as that year's

American Champion Older Female Horse The Eclipse Award for Champion Older Dirt Female Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a filly or mare, four years old and up, for performances on dirt and main track racing surfaces. In 1971, it became part of the ...

featured by her win in November's Bowie Handicap, a mile and five-eighths endurance test in which she broke the

Pimlico Pimlico () is an area of Central London in the City of Westminster, built as a southern extension to neighbouring Belgravia. It is known for its garden squares and distinctive Regency architecture. Pimlico is demarcated to the north by London V ...

track record while beating the mighty

Seabiscuit Seabiscuit (May 23, 1933 – May 17, 1947) was a champion thoroughbred racehorse in the United States who became the top money-winning racehorse up to the 1940s. He beat the 1937 Triple Crown winner, War Admiral, by four lengths in a two-horse ...

. Esposa would prove herself again in 1938 when she would repeat as the U.S. Champion. ''The Bloodhorse.com'' Champion's history charts

Records

Speed record: * 1:36.20 @ 1 mile:

Sun Briar Sun Briar (foaled 1915 in France) was a Thoroughbred racehorse retrospectively named the American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt of 1917 and the American Champion Older Male Horse of 1919 by writers from The Blood-Horse magazine. He was a son of Su ...

(1918) * 1:36.20 @ 1 mile: Fairy Wand (1919) Most wins: * 2 -

(1904,1905) 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 ...

: * 2 -

Willie Knapp William J. Knapp (August 21, 1888 – October 26, 1972) was an American thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey. He was known for racing horses such as Exterminator and Sun Briar. He became the jockey for Exterminator in the 1918 Kentuck ...

(1905,1918) * 2 -

Joe McCahey Joseph M. McCahey (May 11, 1888 – March 13, 1917) was an American champion jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing who won a national riding title in 1914. Joe McCahey began his career as a stableboy and jockey in training for an up-and-coming y ...

(1908, 1909) * 2 -

(1919, 1922) * 2 -

Willie Kelsay William Lloyd Kelsay (October 20, 1892 – April 26, 1952) was one of the top jockeys in American Thoroughbred racing during the 1920s who was widely respected for his ability to handle two-year-old horses during their first year of racing. Racin ...

(1924, 1930) Most wins by a trainer: * 3 - Henry McDaniel (1918, 1930, 1931) * 3 - Thomas J. Healey (1908, 1914, 1923) Most wins by an owner: * 4 - John Sanford (1902*, 1904, 1905, 1907)

Winners

* * "Son of Stephen is John Sanford

References

{{reflist Open mile category horse races Discontinued horse races in New York (state) Recurring sporting events established in 1901 Recurring sporting events disestablished in 1938 Saratoga Race Course