The Spring Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run on dirt for twenty-five years between 1886 and 1910 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. Open to two-year-old horses, from inception through 1889 it was raced over a distance of and then from 1890 through 1909 it was run on the futurity course at a distance of . Its final running in 1910 was at a distance of .[1] [2] [3]
The inaugural running of the Spring Stakes took place on June 22, 1886. It was won by Tremont, a colt would who would finish the year having won all thirteen of his starts.[4]
Scottish Chieftain, the 1896 winner, went on to win the 1897 Belmont Stakes which race would become the third leg of the U.S. Triple Crown series.[5]
The 1900 edition of the Spring Stakes was won by Richard T. Wilson Jr.'s The Parader who would go on to win the 1901 Preakness Stakes, a race that would become the second leg of the U.S. Triple Crown series.
The Spring Stakes of 1909 was won by Uncas Chief who went wire-to-wire under one of the country's top jockeys Eddie Dugan. Running second and in close pursuit throughout was a colt owned by Sam Hildreth named Eddie Dugan to honor the jockey.[6]
Passage of the Hart–Agnew anti-betting legislation by the New York Legislature under Republican Governor Charles Evans Hughes led to a state-wide shutdown of racing in 1911 and 1912.[7] [8] A February 21, 1913 ruling by the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division saw horse racing return in 1913.[9] However, it was too late for the Sheepshead Bay horse racing facility and it never reopened.[10] [11]
Speed record:
Most wins by a jockey:
Most wins by a trainer:
Most wins by an owner:
| Year | Winner | Age | Jockey | Trainer | Owner | Dist. (Miles) | Time | Win$ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910 | Round The World | 2 | Frank Keogh | William G. Yanke | William G. Yanke | 5 F | 1:02.00 | $540 |
| 1909 | Uncas Chief | 2 | Eddie Dugan | Samuel T. Booker | Thomas L. Watt | 6 F | 1:14.00 | $420 |
| 1908 | Statesman | 2 | Dalton McCarthy | Frank E. Gardner | Frank E. Gardner | 6 F | 1:16.40 | $3,240 |
| 1907 | Chapultepec | 2 | Joe Notter | Fred Burlew | Fred Burlew | 6 F | 1:13.20 | $3,820 |
| 1906 | Ethon | 2 | Jack Martin | Charles A. Mulholland | George C. Bennett | 6 F | 1:14.80 | $3,910 |
| 1905 | Bill Phillips | 2 | Arthur Redfern | Thomas J. Healey | Richard T. Wilson Jr. | 6 F | 1:14.40 | $3,435 |
| 1904 | Red Friar | 2 | Jack Martin | Richard O. Miller | Philip J. Dwyer | 6 F | 1:13.60 | $3,420 |
| 1903 | Gallant | 2 | Andrew Minder | Thomas E. Mannix | Thomas E. Mannix & Co. | 6 F | 1:13.20 | $3,520 |
| 1902 | Hurst Park | 2 | Willie Shaw | James G. Rowe Sr. | James R. & Foxhall P. Keene | 6 F | 1:13.60 | $3,545 |
| 1901 | Chilton | 2 | Willie Shaw | William C. Smith | George E. Smith | 6 F | 1:14.00 | $675 |
| 1900 | The Parader | 2 | Patrick A. McCue | Thomas J. Healey | Richard T. Wilson Jr. | 5 F | 1:10.00 | $1,730 |
| 1899 | Mischievous | 2 | Willie Martin | Charles Fleischman's Sons | 5 F | 1:10.60 | $1,790 | |
| 1898 | 2 | Tod Sloan | Lewis Elmore | James Galway | 5 F | 1:11.00 | $1,780 | |
| 1897 | Firearm | 2 | Fred Taral | John J. Hyland | August Belmont Jr. | 5 F | 1:11.00 | $1,450 |
| 1896 | Scottish Chieftain | 2 | Fred Taral | Matthew Byrnes | Marcus Daly | 5 F | 1:13.40 | $1,425 |
| 1895 | Hazlet | 2 | Henry Griffin | John J. Hyland | David Gideon & John Daly | 5 F | 1:11.20 | $1,450 |
| 1894 | Waltzer | 2 | John J. Hyland | David Gideon & John Daly | 5 F | 1:12.40 | $1,950 | |
| 1893 | St. Maxim | 2 | Alonzo Clayton | Robert Tucker | Charles Fleischmann & sons | 5 F | 1:14.00 | $3,145 |
| 1892 | Comanche | 2 | Augustus Hannon | Empire Stable | 5 F | 1:12.80 | $2,760 | |
| 1891 | Victory | 2 | Fred Taral | William Lakeland | William Lakeland | 5 F | 1:15.00 | $3,300 |
| 1890 | Strathmeath | 2 | Marty Bergen | Green B. Morris | Green B. Morris | 5 F | 1:09.40 | $2,940 |
| 1889 | Blackburn | 2 | Frank McCabe | Dwyer Brothers Stable | 6 F | 1:15.50 | $3,125 | |
| 1888 | Aurania | 2 | Jim McLaughlin | Frank McCabe | Dwyer Brothers Stable | 6 F | 1:16.00 | $3,325 |
| 1887 | Satisfaction | 2 | William J. Fitzpatrick | R. Wyndham Walden | R. Wyndham Walden | 6 F | 1:18.00 | $3,700 |
| 1886 | Tremont | 2 | Jim McLaughlin | Frank McCabe | Dwyer Brothers Stable | 6 F | 1:16.50 | $2,185 |