The Partridge Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Sheepshead Bay Race Track from 1890 through 1909. A race on turf over a distance of six furlongs (3/4 of a mile), it was open to two-year-old horses of either sex.
Historical notes In the 1891 Partridge Stakes Azra ran third to winner Rex but went on to win the 1892 Kentucky Derby.
The three-year-old gelding Dolly Spanker won the 1903 edition of the Partridge Stakes and went on to a long and successful career winning on both turf and dirt. A popular runner, the New York Times called Dolly Spanker "one of the best-know flat racers in the country" and had been "one of the best handicap horses on the Metropolitan tracks."
The End of a Race and of a Racetrack The 1908 passage of the Hart–Agnew anti-betting legislation by the New York Legislature under Republican Governor Charles Evans Hughes created havoc in the state's racing industry and would lead to a compete shutdown of racing in 1911 and 1912. The owners of Sheepshead Bay Race Track, and other racing facilities in New York State, struggled to stay in business without income from betting. Racetrack operators had no choice but to drastically reduce the purse money being paid out which resulted in the Partridge Stakes offering a substantially reduced purse in 1908 with further reduction in 1909 to where it less than one-sixth of what it had been in earlier years. These small purses made horse racing unprofitable and impossible for even the most successful horse owners to continue in business. A February 21, 1913 ruling by the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division saw horse racing return in 1913. However, it was too late for the Sheepshead Bay horse racing facility and it never reopened.
Records Speed record: Ethereal @ 6 furlongs: 1:13 2/5 (1908)
Most wins by a jockey: 3 – Fred Taral (1890, 1895, 1897)
Most wins by a trainer: 3 – Green B. Morris (1890, 1891, 1899)
Most wins by an owner: 3 – Green B. Morris (1890, 1891, 1899)
Winners Year Winner Age Jockey Trainer Owner Dist. (Miles) Time Win$1909Glennadeane2Albert WalshAndrew G. BlakelyT. W. O'Brien6 F1:14.40$3501908Ethereal2James Butler Jr.John J. HylandElkwood Park Stable6 F1:13.40$1,0501907Johnnie Blake2David NicolWilliam E. PhillipsFred Cook6 F1:13.80$2,5451906Fountainblue2Jack Martin Matthew M. Allen Diamond Jim Brady6 F1:14.00$2,3251905Yankee Consul2Jack MartinJohn W. MayTippah Farms Stable6 F1:16.20$3,0501904St. Bellane2George M. OdomWilliam ShieldsEdward R. Thomas6 F1:14.20$2,6501903Dolly Spanker2Willie GannonJames G. Rowe Sr.Foxhall P. Keene6 F1:15.60$2,3701902Wild Thyme2Lucien LyneThomas J. HealeyAndrew Miller6 F1:14.60$2,5001901Gay Boy2Patrick A. McCueCharles F. HillClarence H. Mackay6 F1:15.00$2,1801900Demurrer2Milton HenryJames J. McLaughlinAnthony L. Aste6 F1:14.00$1,8001899Water King2John BullmanGreen B. MorrisGreen B. Morris6 F1:15.00$1,9101898King Barleycorn2Nash TurnerH. Eugene LeighElla O. Pepper6 F1:15.00$8601897Central Trust2Fred TaralHenry HarrisJohn E. McDonald6 F1:17.00$1,1501896George Rose2J. HillJim M. Murphy6 F1:16.00$1,1501895One I Love2Fred TaralJohn J. HylandWilliam P. Thompson6 F1:15.20$1,1501894Harry Reed2Willie SimmsHardy Campbell Jr.Michael F. Dwyer6 F1:14.40$1,1051893Armitage2Samuel DoggettHarry M. MasonJohn G. Follansbee6 F1:16.60$1,1551892Marshall2Samuel DoggettWalter B. JenningsWalter B. Jennings6 F1:16.80$1,5201891Rex2Alexander CovingtonGreen B. MorrisGreen B. Morris6 F1:16.20$1,4251890Strathmeath2Fred TaralGreen B. MorrisGreen B. Morris6 F1:15.60$1,235
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