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Hawthorne Race Track is a 119-acre horse racing facility in Cicero, Illinois, close to Chicago. One of the most well-known horse racing facilities in the state of Illinois is Hawthorne Race Track. It is the oldest family-owned racetrack in North America that has been in continuous operation. The track features a seven-furlong turf oval and a one-mile (1.6 km) dirt oval. With a length of 1,320 feet, the main track homestretch is among the longest in the nation. The Horseplayers Association of North America placed Hawthorne eighth out of sixty-five Thoroughbred racetracks in North America in 2009.
Hawthorne History
Chicago industrialist Edward Corrigan, who owned Riley (by Longfellow), the 1890 Kentucky Derby winner, purchased 119 acres (0.48 km2) of land in Cicero and began building a grandstand for a new racetrack in 1890. In 1891, his track debuted with a five-race schedule that included the Chicago Derby. The grandstand burned down in 1902, forcing the racetrack to relocate to Chicago’s Harlem racecourse. Later that year, the track reopened and hosted a 12-day summer meet at its own location.
Hawthorne closed in 1905 as a result of Chicago’s prohibition on horse racing. In 1910, pioneer aviators Victor and Allan Haines Loughead utilized the field for a short time to fly a Curtiss pusher and a powered Montgomery glider.
Track owner Thomas Carey purchased the track in 1909; however, the local police and sheriff’s office prevented Carey from reopening the facility twice. However, the track hosted a 13-day event in 1916 that featured the American Derby. Up until 1922, that would be the last race.
During a 13-day race meeting, the track was reopened in 1922. The meet grew to a 25-day span in 1923. After assuming control of the racing business in 1924, the Chicago Business Men’s Racing Association held a 52-day fall meet. In addition to introducing a type of parimutuel betting, Hawthorne built a new clubhouse in the same year.
The racetrack was beginning to become well-known across the country by 1927. There was a fresh start as well as the introduction of the high stakes Hawthorne Gold Cup Handicap. Sun Beau won his first Gold Cup in 1929. Later on, he would catch two more. In 1931, an infield tote board and an electronic timepiece were also introduced.
During the early 1930s, the track employed a revolutionary infra-red timer and brought Daily Double wagering to Chicago. The track hosted a spring meet in 1936 to kick off the Chicago racing season.
In the 1930s and 1940s, the Hawthorne kept moving forward, assuming control of Lincoln Fields Racetrack’s race schedules and starting races earlier in the spring. The track also started holding races exclusive to horses born in Illinois.
1948 saw the restoration of the racing strip and the addition of a six-furlong turf course, bringing turf racing back to Hawthorne. In order to meet the racing needs of the Chicago market, a new clubhouse featuring significantly more seating opened its doors in 1959. The track flourished throughout the 1960s and 1970s, although attendance peaked at that time and started to decline gradually.
Hawthorne began hosting harness racing in 1970 in an attempt to cater to fans of standardbred racing. The track received spring dates and held thoroughbred meets in the spring, summer, and fall in addition to a standardbred meet in the winter. For the Arlington Park competition in September, the track was closed. Additionally, the track started hosting sporadic Quarter Horse races.
The Hawthorne grandstand burned down in 1978. In 1978, there was an unsuccessful attempt to shift the meet to Sportsman’s Park Racetrack. Sportsman’s Park became the new racing venue in 1979. The track first opened for business in 1980 with a 72-day thoroughbred meet that started at the end of September.
Hawthorne Race Course acquired all summer dates, with the exception of Arlington Million Day, when Arlington Park burned down in 1985. The track also hosted these midsummer meetings in 1986, 1987, and 1988.
Currently, Arlington Park, Chicago’s best thoroughbred track, is superior to Hawthorne. It holds the state-bred only Illinois Festival of Racing early November. In addition to the grade II Hawthorne Gold Cup Handicap, Hawthorne also runs the grade III stakes Illinois Derby, Hawthorne Derby, Robert F. Carey Memorial Handicap, and Sixty Sails Handicap.
Off Track Betting Guides
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