The Double Event Stakes 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 annually in two parts from 1889 through 1910 at
Sheepshead Bay Race Track in
Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn
Sheepshead Bay is a neighborhood in southern Brooklyn, New York City. It is bounded by Ocean Parkway to the west; Avenue T and Kings Highway to the north; Nostrand Avenue and Gerritsen Avenue to the east; and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. ...
,
New York. A race on dirt for two-year-old
colts and
fillies
A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use:
*In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old.
*In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...
, 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.
Dual winners
The Double Event was run for twenty-two years. In its first eight editions from 1889 through 1896, five horses won both parts but in the last fourteen from 1897 through 1910 there were none. Jockey
Tod Sloan won both parts in 1898 on two different horses.
* Ŧ Denotes those who would be named an
American Champion Two-Year-Old of the year.
Demise of the Double Event Stakes
After years of uncertainty, on June 11, 1908 the
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 ...
controlled
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 te ...
under
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 ...
passed the
Hart–Agnew anti-betting legislation with penalties allowing for fines and up to a year in prison. The owners of Sheepshead Bay Race Track, and other racing facilities in New York State, struggled to stay in business without income from betting. Racetrack operators had no choice but to drastically reduce the
purse money
A purse is a small bag that may refer to:
* Coin purse, small pouch made for carrying coins
* Handbag, in American English
* Money bag
* Wallet
Purse may also refer to:
* Purse (horse racing), the total amount of money paid out to the owners o ...
being paid out which resulted in the Double Event offering a purse in 1909 that was one-sixth of what it had been in earlier years. These small purses made horse racing highly 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 its most important events. The effect was to restore the purse offered for the Double Event to about half of what it had been. Further restrictive legislation was passed by the New York Legislature in 1910 which deepened the financial crisis for track operators and led to a complete shut down of racing across the state during 1911 and 1912. After a 1911 amendment to the law to limit the liability of owners and directors was defeated, every racetrack in New York State shut down. 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. When 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 it was too late for the Sheepshead Bay horse racing facility and it never reopened.
Records
John Madden was the dominant figure in both parts of the Double Event, winning the most races as both a trainer and as an owner.
Part 1
Speed record:
* 5.5 furlongs: 1:04.20 –
Nasturtium (1901)
Most wins by a
jockey:
* 2 –
Marty Bergen (1891, 1892)
Most wins by a
trainer:
* 4 –
John E. Madden
John Edward Madden (December 28, 1856 – November 3, 1929) was a prominent American Thoroughbred and Standardbred owner, breeder and trainer in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. He owned Hamburg Place Stud in Lexington, Kentucky ...
(1899, 1902, 1903, 1908)
Most wins by an owner:
* 3 –
John E. Madden
John Edward Madden (December 28, 1856 – November 3, 1929) was a prominent American Thoroughbred and Standardbred owner, breeder and trainer in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. He owned Hamburg Place Stud in Lexington, Kentucky ...
(1899, 1903, 1908)
Part 2
Speed record:
* 5.75 furlongs: 1:09.60 – Victory (1891)
* 6 furlongs: 1:11.00 – Conjurer (1903) & Footprint (1910)
Most wins by a
jockey:
* 3 –
Fred Taral (1891, 1892, 1899)
Most wins by a
trainer:
* 3 –
John E. Madden
John Edward Madden (December 28, 1856 – November 3, 1929) was a prominent American Thoroughbred and Standardbred owner, breeder and trainer in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. He owned Hamburg Place Stud in Lexington, Kentucky ...
(1897, 1901, 1908)
Most wins by an owner:
* 3 –
James R. Keene (1893, 1902, 1904)
* 3 –
John E. Madden
John Edward Madden (December 28, 1856 – November 3, 1929) was a prominent American Thoroughbred and Standardbred owner, breeder and trainer in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. He owned Hamburg Place Stud in Lexington, Kentucky ...
(1897, 1901, 1908)
Part 1 winners
Part 2 winners
References
{{reflist
Flat horse races for two-year-olds
Discontinued horse races in New York City
Sheepshead Bay Race Track
Recurring sporting events established in 1889
Recurring sporting events disestablished in 1910
1889 establishments in New York (state)
1910 disestablishments in New York (state)