Jamaica Race Course, also called the Jamaica Racetrack, was an American thoroughbred horse racing facility operated by the Metropolitan Jockey Club in Jamaica, Queens,

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

History

The track opened on April 27, 1903, a day which featured the inaugural running of the

Excelsior Handicap The Excelsior Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually during the first week of April at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, Queens, New York. A Listed event for three-year-olds and up, it is contested over a distance of one-and-on ...

. Eugene D. Wood, one of the founders and largest stockholder, served as its first president. Upon Wood's death in April 1924, Dr. Edward P. Kilroe was appointed president to replace him. The Wood Memorial Stakes is named in Eugene Wood's honor. Legendary Hall of Fame

horse trainer A horse trainer is a person who tends to horses and teaches them different disciplines. Some of the responsibilities trainers have are caring for the animals' physical needs, as well as teaching them submissive behaviors and/or coaching them for e ...

Sunny Jim Fitzsimmons was the first to train at Jamaica Race Course and Native Dancer made a winning debut here on April 19, 1952. The facility's attendance record of 64,679 was set on Memorial Day, 1945. It was home to ongoing races such as the

Prioress Stakes The Prioress Stakes is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race held annually during the eight-week meet at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. Inaugurated in 1948 at Jamaica Racetrack, it was raced there through 1959 after wh ...

Frizette Stakes The Frizette Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old fillies raced annually at Belmont Park in October. It is currently a Grade I stakes race at a distance of one mile. The Frizette is the female counterpart of the Champagn ...

Paumonok Handicap The Paumonok Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York. A six furlong sprint race, it was open to horses aged three years and older. The race was inaugurated in 1906 at the now defunc ...

, Wood Memorial Stakes, Remsen Handicap,

Bed O' Roses Handicap The Bed O' Roses Stakes is a Grade III American Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and Mares four-year-olds and older, over a distance of seven furlongs on the dirt track held annually in early June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. The event ...

, and the

Jamaica Handicap The Caesars Belmont Derby is an American Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred race horse run over a distance of miles on the turf at Belmont Park in July. The purse for the event is US$1,000,000. The event is the first of three of ...

. In 1955, the Greater New York Association took over management of Jamaica Race Course along with

Aqueduct Racetrack Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park and Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack located within New York City limits. Its racing m ...

, Belmont Park, and Saratoga Race Course and decided to undertake renovations to Aqueduct in South Ozone Park, the other track in the Greater Jamaica area. Jamaica took on the Big A dates during Aqueduct's four year renovation, after which it would be sold for redevelopment as a housing project. With Aqueduct slated to reopen in the fall of 1959, Jamaica ceased operations on August 1 and was torn down the following year. Today the Rochdale Village housing development occupies the former site of Jamaica Race Course. The racetrack was served by the adjacent Locust Manor station on the

Long Island Rail Road The Long Island Rail Road , often abbreviated as the LIRR, is a commuter rail system in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County on Long Island. With an average week ...

Gallery

File:Jamaica Racecourse 095011 02.jpg File:Jamaica Racecourse 095011 01.jpg File:Jamaica Racecourse 095011 03.jpg File:Jamaica Racecourse 095011 04.jpg

References

{{coord, 40, 40, 40, N, 73, 46, 31, W, display=title 1903 establishments in New York City 1959 disestablishments in New York (state) Defunct horse racing venues in New York City History of Queens, New York Jamaica, Queens Sports venues completed in 1903 Sports venues demolished in 1960 Sports venues in Queens, New York