The Historic Track is a half-mile (900 m)

harness racing Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait (a trot or a pace). They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, or spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australi ...

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

in Goshen,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. It was opened in 1838 and has been in operation ever since, the oldest continuously operated horse racing track in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. , retrieved from ustrotting.com July 23, 2007. Informal horse races had been held along neighboring Main Street (now part of NY 207) since the 1750s. The current track site was first used in 1838 when a ⅓-mile (530 m) circle around a

circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclist ...

ground near the south end of the track was cleared and prepared for regular racing. Later it would be succeeded by an oval track perpendicular to the current one, then a long square track around the whole site, until the current track was built in 1873.Interpretive panel near track entrance, visited July 25, 2007. Historic Track mural in Goshen post office

Historic Track mural in Goshen post office

Regular events were held at the track until the late 1970s, when the parimutuel machines were taken out. Today the track operates a limited but intense season every summer on Sundays in June, followed by a series of races between June 30 and July 4. The track was designated as a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1966 and was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

later in the same year, when the National Register was created. The grandstands seat 2200 fans. In 1980 it was identified as a

contributing property In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distri ...

to the Church Park Historic District. The

Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame The Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame is a museum in Goshen, New York. The museum collects and preserves the history of harness racing and serves as a hall of fame for the American Standardbred horse. Orange County is the birthplace of Hamb ...

(run by a separate organization) is located nearby. Goshen Central High School holds its annual graduation ceremony at the track, enabling a large audience of townspeople. In 2017 a fire, possibly started in the

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

's shop, destroyed some of the barns and stables on the property. The horses housed in them were saved; the blaze did not affect the grandstand or any of the other buildings on the property.

References

External links

Official website
{{National Register of Historic Places in New York National Historic Landmarks in New York (state) Horse racing venues in New York (state) Harness racing venues in the United States National Register of Historic Places in Orange County, New York Tourist attractions in Orange County, New York Sports venues completed in 1838 Goshen, New York 1838 establishments in New York (state) Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in New York (state) Sports venues on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) Sports venues in Orange County, New York

See also

References

External links