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32-537: Morris Park Racecourse was conceived and built by majority shareholder John Albert Morris as a result of the planned closure of the nearby Jerome Park Racetrack , where racing ended in 1894 to make way for the Jerome Park Reservoir . Principal owner John Morris had extensive business interests in Louisiana and the prominent New York businessman and horseracing enthusiast Leonard W. Jerome served as

64-407: A chute of its own, extending diagonally from the stretch, to permit turf races to be run at the distance of 1 + 1 ⁄ 8 miles (1,800 m). This diagonal chute can either consist of a more-or-less straight line, or may curve significantly, in a counterclockwise direction. In 2006 two tracks — Monmouth Park and Hollywood Park Racetrack — added a chute extending diagonally from

96-546: A lack of patronage by high society members meant the clubhouse was usually empty. By 1902, the decline in attendance resulted in the decision to close Morris Park Racecourse. The final day of races was held on October 15, 1904, and racing shifted to the new Belmont Park the following year. After its closure, the Morris Park Racecourse was used for automobile racing but a few years later the Morris heirs sold

128-608: A large inheritance and added substantially to his fortune through a majority interest in the Louisiana State Lottery Company . Morris was born in Jersey City, New Jersey on July 29, 1836. He was the son of Francis Morris and Mary Elizabeth Valentine. As a boy, he traveled to England, under the charge of Richard Ten Broeck , when he put Prior and other horses on the English turf. His father

160-432: A long, sweeping left turn, before finally crossing over the dirt course and joining the turf oval. The chute was modeled to give the appearance of a European-type course. Grass sprints at about 6 1 ⁄ 2 furlongs (actual distance 64 1 ⁄ 2 feet less than same), as well as the marathon distance of about 1 3 ⁄ 4 miles (actual distance 262 1 ⁄ 2 feet less than same, and generally used only once

192-461: A similar chute, but it is used for 7-furlong races as the latter is a one-mile (1.6 km) track. The one-mile dirt oval at Tampa Bay Downs in Oldsmar, Florida also once had a similar chute which permitted races at 7 furlongs; however, this chute extended diagonally from the backstretch and not on a 90-degree angle. In 2004 Tampa Bay Downs' backstretch chute was lengthened to 7 furlongs, whereupon

224-471: A specified distance to start at a location other than on one of the turns. For example, many racetracks in the United States are exactly one mile (1,600 m) in circumference; often such racetracks are symmetrical ovals, with both straightaways and both turns being precisely 1 ⁄ 4 of a mile (400 m). Frequently, the finish line will be positioned exactly three-quarters of the way down

256-424: A stretch that was 2,250 feet (690 m) long and widened from 80 feet (24 m) at the top of the homestretch to 240 feet (73 m) at the finish line. The north end of the track was located on a hill so horses had to run uphill on the backstretch and downhill on the homestretch. A chute on the main track permitted races of 1 + 1 ⁄ 8  mi (1.8 km) to be run with one turn. Another track called

288-459: A total of 1,000 stalls, more than any two of the other American racetracks combined. 40°51′00″N 73°51′20″W  /  40.85000°N 73.85556°W  / 40.85000; -73.85556 John Albert Morris John Albert Morris (July 29, 1836 – May 25, 1895) was an American businessman widely known as the "Lottery King" and a prominent figure in the sport of thoroughbred horse racing . A native of New Jersey , he benefited from

320-623: A year for the San Juan Capistrano Invitational race), utilize the full length of the El Camino Real Chute. Turf races at 1 1 ⁄ 4 miles and 1 1 ⁄ 2 miles also start from various points within the chute, and races at 1 1 ⁄ 8 miles (a very common turf distance at American tracks) start directly on the dirt crossover. At 1 1 ⁄ 4 miles and longer, the horses are then required to go once around Santa Anita's turf oval, which

352-712: Is a 1 1 ⁄ 8 mile [1,811 m] track). Formerly, Saratoga also had such a chute; it was known as the "Wilson Mile" chute, and like the one found at Ellis Park, it was used to start one mile (1,600 m) races. Use of the Wilson Mile chute was suspended in 1972; after being reinstated briefly in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the chute itself was dismantled, and as a result, it is now no longer possible to run main-track (dirt) races at Saratoga at any distance longer than 7 furlongs (1,400 m) but shorter than 1 + 1 ⁄ 8 miles (1,800 m). The " all-weather " (dirt) track at England 's Wolverhampton Racecourse has

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384-636: Is the most common situation where a chute is pressed into service. At some tracks, this chute is longer, so that races can be run at 7 furlongs (1,400 m) as well. Often a second chute will be placed at the top of the stretch, extending the length of the straightaway from the top of the stretch to the finish line from 3 ⁄ 16 of a mile (300 m) to 1 ⁄ 4 mile (400 m), thus allowing 1 + 1 ⁄ 4 -mile (2,000 m) races to be run, and also make it possible for quarter horses to run races at distances of up to 440 yards (400 m). At two tracks, Hialeah Park and Turf Paradise ,

416-634: Is today the Amtrak Northeast Corridor railroad right-of-way, on the east by Williamsbridge Road, on the west by what is now Bronxdale Road, and on the north by Pelham Parkway . The grandstand stood at the intersection of Bogart and Fowler Avenues and the clubhouse was near the intersection of Fowler and Van Nest Avenues. The racetrack covered 360 acres (1.5 km) and had a grandstand 650 feet (200 m) long that could accommodate up to 15,000 attendees. The main track had circumference of 1 + 1 ⁄ 2  mi (2.4 km), with

448-749: The Champagne Stakes and the Ladies Handicap were also raced here. The Metropolitan Handicap was inaugurated here in 1891 as was the Matron Stakes the following year. A few days before he died in May 1895, John Morris leased the racecourse, with an option to purchase, to the Westchester Racing Association. Although the 1½ mile racecourse was modified to a one-mile circuit to allow for better spectator viewing,

480-544: The Eclipse course ran diagonally across the main track on a straightaway of 3 ⁄ 4  mi (1.2 km), joining the main track at its finish line. It was named after Eclipse, a horse owned by Francis Morris. A six furlongs race on the Eclipse course was nicknamed the "Toboggan Slide" and continues to be run today at Aqueduct Racetrack as the Toboggan Handicap . The stables at Morris Park Racecourse held

512-526: The backstretch, to permit races at 5 + 1 ⁄ 2 furlongs and 6 furlongs, respectively (the corresponding circumferences of these two tracks' turf courses being 7 furlongs and 1 mile plus 145 feet). Some American racetracks have circumferences of more (or, generally in the case of minor-circuit tracks, less) than one mile (1,600 m); examples include Aqueduct , Arlington Park , Hollywood Park Racetrack and Saratoga , all of which are 1 + 1 ⁄ 8 miles (1,800 m) tracks, and Belmont Park ,

544-466: The chute that begins at the top of the stretch is even longer, so that there is a distance of 3 furlongs (600 m) from the beginning of the chute to the wire; so-called "baby races," or races for 2-year-olds run very early in the year, are started from this position. Many one-mile (1,600 m) tracks have a turf (grass) course inside of the main (dirt) track, most commonly measuring 7 furlongs (1,400 m). This turf course will often be equipped with

576-537: The chute will branch off from a turn, usually the clubhouse turn, at the midway point of the turn, and extend to a position level with that of the homestretch, the chute thus joining to the turn at a 90-degree angle. Currently only one racetrack of note in the United States — Ellis Park Racecourse in Kentucky — makes use of such a chute, starting races from it at the distance of one mile (Ellis Park

608-403: The clubhouse turn, the only situation where races do this at any major American track). Belmont's outer (Widener) turf course also contains two chutes which separate from the beginning of the backstretch at an angle; races at distances of one mile (1,600 m) and 1 + 1 ⁄ 16 miles (1,700 m) are started from these chutes. Rarely, a "half-chute" will be employed; in this instance,

640-408: The country's largest track, with a 1 + 1 ⁄ 2 -mile (2,400 m) circumference. The backstretch chutes at Aqueduct and Arlington Park are long enough to permit races to be run at one mile (1,600 m), while Saratoga's chute is shorter, extending only to 7 furlongs (1,400 m). Hollywood's chute formerly allowed one mile (1,600 m) races, but when its finish line was moved forward in

672-534: The diagonal chute was decommissioned; however, remnants of it are still intact. Laurel Park in Maryland also formerly had a diagonal chute, which allowed for races at up to 1 1 ⁄ 16 miles. Perhaps America's most distinctive horse racing chute is the El Camino Real Chute, located at Santa Anita . Added in 1953, this is a downhill turf chute consisting of a straight section, a right turn (unique in modern American horse racing), another straight section, and

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704-451: The late 1980s one mile (1,600 m) races could no longer be accommodated, and 7 + 1 ⁄ 2 furlongs (1,500 m) became the longest distance that could be run out of its chute (an unintended consequence of this was that by the mid-2000s 7 + 1 ⁄ 2 -furlong (1,500 m) dirt races had gained considerable popularity in the United States when such races had rarely if ever been run before at most tracks, even those where

736-783: The new race track from the greater New York City area. The track held the USA Cross Country Championships from 1890 to 1892 and 1897 to 1898. On June 10, 1890, Morris Park Racecourse hosted both the Preakness and Belmont Stakes. While the Preakness Stakes was canceled for three years then restarted in 1894 at Gravesend Race Track on Coney Island , the Belmont Stakes was held at Morris Park until it moved to Belmont Park on Long Island in 1905. During this same period of 1890 through 1904,

768-529: The property to real estate developers in 1905. In 1857, he married Cora Hennen (1838–1922), the daughter of Alfred Hennen, a wealthy and prominent judge in New Orleans . The couple had four children: John Albert Morris suffered a stroke and died, at age 59, in 1895 while at his Texas Ranch. His remains were sent by train to New Orleans where he was interred in the Metairie Cemetery . At

800-530: The property to real estate developers. The new owners ran into financial problems which resulted in the track being taken over by the City of New York in 1907. The city then leased it for two years to the Aeronautic Society of New York who hosted the first public air show on the grounds. In June 1909, Glenn H. Curtiss put on a flying exhibition at Morris Park. On April 10, 1910 a fire ravaged much of

832-509: The racecourse's president. African-American Racing Hall of Fame jockey Isaac Murphy rode on opening day at the new facility—August 20, 1889—and Morris Park was described as "the finest race track in the world." Accessible by horse and buggy, the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad added a short spur from its main line near the Van Nest station that brought racing fans directly to

864-424: The stables and nearby facilities. Three years later the property was auctioned off to developers who would subdivide the land into building lots. As late as 1921 the clubhouse was still intact when it was sold as part of a 14-lot package to a company who converted it for use as a factory to manufacture ornamental iron . Morris Park Racecourse was situated in the area bounded on the south by Sackett Avenue and by what

896-419: The stretch; in that case, the point at which the first or "clubhouse" turn joins to the backstretch would be 5 + 1 ⁄ 2 furlongs (1,100 m) from the finish. In order to hold races at the distance of 6 furlongs (1,200 m) – the most common distance of American thoroughbred horse races – the backstretch is extended by an extra 1 ⁄ 16 of a mile (100 m). This

928-481: The time of his death, his wealth was estimated at between $ 25,000,000 and $ 30,000,000. The neighborhood of Morris Park in the Bronx, New York , a large part of which covers the site of Morris Park Racecourse, is named in his memory. Chute (racecourse) In horse racing , a chute is an extended path increasing the length of a straight portion of a racecourse, particularly an oval-shaped one, allowing races of

960-458: The track's configuration made it possible to do so). At Belmont, the chute permits races at distances up to 1 + 1 ⁄ 8 miles (1,800 m) to be run (formerly up to 1 + 1 ⁄ 4 miles [2,000 m], but this chute, which at one point crossed over the training track, was truncated in the late 1970s to eliminate the aforementioned cross-over, and today 1 + 1 ⁄ 4 miles [2,000 m] dirt races at Belmont actually start on

992-632: Was also involved in horse racing, and notably owned Ruthless , the winner of the 1867 Belmont and Travers Stakes . Morris inherited his father's 25,000-acre (100 km ) ranch in Gillespie County , Texas , fourteen miles (23 km) from the town of Kerrville , where he established a horse breeding operation. John Morris owned a large racing stable in the United States and another in Europe. With Leonard W. Jerome as his minority partner, in 1889 he opened Morris Park Racecourse in what

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1024-895: Was then Westchester County, New York . The racetrack hosted the Belmont Stakes from 1890 through 1904 as well as the Preakness Stakes in 1890. A few days before he died in May 1895, he leased the racecourse, with an option to purchase, to the Westchester Racing Association. At one point in time, Morris owned nine "superbly equipped establishments in America and Europe," including in New Orleans , Louisiana , Throggs Neck , New York , three properties in Boston, Massachusetts , Bar Harbor, Maine , Gillespie County , Texas , and in Hanover , Germany . The Morris heirs later sold

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