Maskette (1906–1930) was an American

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 c ...

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

who never lost a race against other fillies.

Background

Bred by

James R. Keene James Robert Keene (February 8, 1838 - January 3, 1913) was a Wall Street stockbroker and a major thoroughbred race horse owner and breeder. Biography He was born in London, England in 1838. He was fourteen years of age when his family immigr ...

at his Castleton Farm near

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

, Maskette was trained by future Hall of Fame inductee

James G. Rowe Sr. James Gordon Rowe Sr. (1857 – August 2, 1929) was an American jockey and horse trainer elected to the Hall of Fame for Thoroughbred Horse racing. He won the Belmont Stakes twice as a jockey and 8 times as a trainer. He had 34 champion hors ...

Racing career

Although she did not begin racing until late in the summer of 1908, the New York based two-year-old was nonetheless the top filly in the U.S. that year. Of her six starts, she finished second once and won the other five races, including setting a track record for the Saratoga Race Course in winning the Spinaway Stakes, a premier event of the racing season for juvenile fillies. The most important win of Maskette's racing career came in the 1908 Futurity Stakes at

Sheepshead Bay Race Track Sheepshead Bay Race Track was an American Thoroughbred horse racing facility built on the site of the Coney Island Jockey Club at Sheepshead Bay, New York. Early history The racetrack was built by a group of prominent businessmen from the New Yo ...

. She defeated both male and female competition in the Futurity which for decades was the richest and most prestigious race in the United States. The leading filly again at age three, Maskette repeated with five wins and a second in six starts. Of her several major stakes race wins, she captured the Pierrepont Handicap against

colt Colt(s) or COLT may refer to: *Colt (horse), an intact (uncastrated) male horse under four years of age People * Colt (given name) *Colt (surname) Places *Colt, Arkansas, United States *Colt, Louisiana, an unincorporated community, United States ...

s. At age four, she won two of five starts that included another track record, this time at

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

Stud record

Retired to broodmare duty at her owner's Castleton Farm near Lexington, Kentucky, after producing a filly in 1912 Maskette was sold to prominent American owner/breeder William Kissam Vanderbilt, who shipped her to his

Haras du Quesnay Haras du Quesnay, known as "Le Quesnay", is a thoroughbred horse breeding farm in France about four miles (6 km) outside the city of Deauville on 3 km². Early years The stud was established in 1907 by wealthy American sportsman William Kissam V ...

breeding farm near Deauville in Lower Normandy,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. Maskette produced four stakes winners before her death at age twenty-four in 1930.

Honors

In 1954,

Belmont Park Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse racing facility in the northeastern United States, located in Elmont, New York, just east of the New York City limits. It was opened on May 4, 1905. It is operated by the non-profit New York Racin ...

in Elmont, New York honored her memory with the

Maskette Stakes The Go For Wand Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race established in 1954 for fillies and mares age three and up. Raced in the fall, it is a Grade III race (Grade I before 2010) on dirt at a distance of one mile. Inaugurated in 1954 at ...

, a race for fillies & mares 3-years-old & up. In 1992, the race was renamed for its ill-fated 1990 winner, Go For Wand. In 2001, Maskette was inducted into the United States'

National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American Thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers. In 1955, the museum moved to its current location on Union Av ...

.http://www.racingmuseum.org/hall/horse.asp?ID=360 Maskette at the United States' National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame

Pedigree

References

{{reflist 1906 racehorse births 1930 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States Thoroughbred family 8-h United States Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame inductees