The Kentucky Derby Museum is an American
Thoroughbred horse racing
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 ...
museum located on the grounds of
Churchill Downs in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
. Dedicated to preserving the history of the
Kentucky Derby, it first opened its doors to the public in the spring of 1985. Much of its early funding came from a donation from the estate of
James Graham Brown.
The museum consists of two floors of exhibit space, including a 360-degree theater that shows the HD film ''The Greatest Race''. Through the film and exhibits, visitors can learn what goes into the breeding and training of a young foal and the path it takes to the Kentucky Derby's winner circle. Every
Kentucky Derby win is honored in the Warner L. Jones Time Machine, where visitors can watch any Kentucky Derby from 1918 to the present day. Exhibits highlight the stories of owners,
trainers
Sneakers (also called trainers, athletic shoes, tennis shoes, gym shoes, kicks, sport shoes, flats, running shoes, or runners) are shoes primarily designed for sports or other forms of physical exercise, but which are now also widely used fo ...
and
jockeys as well as the importance of
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
jockeys and trainers to the race and the
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...
industry. Guided tours of Churchill Downs' barn and infield areas, jockeys' quarters, "millionaires row" and press box are also offered. Exhibits were designed by
Bruce Burdick's San Francisco design firm The Burdick Group.
2010 renovation
The museum was devastated by flash flooding on August 4, 2009, and remained closed for recovery and cleanup. Every exhibit on the main floor of the museum was affected in some way by water damage. Since the exhibits needed to be dismantled and many were destroyed, the museum's Board of Directors decided to embrace the opportunity for a renovation. The museum underwent major renovations and reopened on April 18, 2010 in time for the 2010 Kentucky Derby. Though a significant renovation had been planned, the flood damages accelerated the time schedule and increased the expected size of the renovation project.
Champions' trophies
The museum has documented the whereabouts of most of the trophies given to Derby winners. As of 2007, it is still working to locate ten missing trophies, eight of which are from the 1924 design currently in use, and two are of a different design given out in 1922 and 1923. The missing trophies for the year and its winner are as follows:
*1922 :
Morvich
*1923 :
Zev
*1924 :
Black Gold
*1929 :
Clyde Van Dusen
*1936 :
Bold Venture
*1947 :
Jet Pilot
*1951 :
Count Turf
Count Turf (April 27, 1948 – October 18, 1966) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1951 Kentucky Derby. His grandsire Reigh Count won the 1928 Kentucky Derby and his sire Count Fleet won the 1943 Kentucky Derby and wen ...
*1962 :
Decidedly
*1986 :
Ferdinand
Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "protection", "peace" (PIE "to love, to make peace") or alternatively "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "co ...
*2002 :
War Emblem
Champions' cemetery
The museum has arranged for the reburial on its grounds of five past Derby winners whose original graves were threatened by
land development. The past champions now interred here are:
*
Brokers Tip (1930-1953)
*
Carry Back
Carry Back (April 16, 1958 – March 24, 1983) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1961 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes and was named the 1961 Champion Three-Year-Old. He won 21 of his 61 races, including the Metro ...
(1958-1983)
*
Sunny's Halo
Sunny's Halo (February 11, 1980 – June 3, 2003) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1983 Kentucky Derby. In 1986, Sunny's Halo was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
Background
Foaled at Oshawa, Ontario, Sunny's Halo wa ...
(1980-2003)
*
Swaps (1952-1972)
*
Dust Commander (1967-1991)
The 2006 Derby winner
Barbaro (2003-2007) is interred just outside an entrance to Churchill Downs, and also outside the museum. Owners Roy and Gretchen Jackson chose to bury his remains in a location where his admirers would not have to pay an admission fee.
See also
*
List of attractions and events in the Louisville metropolitan area
References
External links
*
April 23, 1990 ''Sports Illustrated'' article on the Kentucky Derby MuseumThe story of the museum's renovation in ''Stride Magazine''(pp. 28–34)
{{Coord, 38.2053, -85.7712, type:landmark_region:US-KY, display=title
Cemeteries in Kentucky
Horse racing in the United States
Kentucky Derby
Museums established in 1985
Sports museums in Kentucky
Museums in Louisville, Kentucky
Equestrian museums in the United States
1985 establishments in Kentucky