The Delaware Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race held between 1901 and 1937 at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. An event for horses of either sex age three and older, it was contested on dirt over a distance of one mile. While fillies accounted for just under a third of the winners, their victories were marked by a number of dominating performances.
Historical notes First run on August 17, 1901, the race was won by Frank Farrell's three-year-old colt, Blues. The distance for this inaugural event was set at a mile and one-sixteenth after which it would be permanently shortened to one mile.
The sole two-time winner of the Delaware Handicap was John Sanford's very good filly Molly Brant who won in 1904 and 1905. Owner John Sanford, in partnership with father Stephen Sanford, had won the 1902 edition and John would win it for a record fourth time in 1907.
The 1908 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. A February 21, 1913 ruling by the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division saw horse racing return in 1913.
Gifford Cochran's fleet filly Fairy Wand, ridden by future U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee Clarence Kummer, won the 1919 Delaware Handicap in a time of 1:36 1/5 which equaled the American record for the one-mile distance.
On August 13, 1937, William Ziegler Jr.'s Esposa easily captured the thirty-fifth and final running of the Delaware Handicap. Esposa would go on to earn recognition as that year's American Champion Older Female Horse featured by her win in November's Bowie Handicap, a mile and five-eighths endurance test in which she broke the Pimlico track record while beating the mighty Seabiscuit. Esposa would prove herself again in 1938 when she would repeat as the U.S. Champion.The Bloodhorse.com Champion's history charts
Records Speed record: 1:36.20 @ 1 mile: Sun Briar (1918) 1:36.20 @ 1 mile: Fairy Wand (1919)
Most wins: 2 - Molly Brant (1904,1905)
Most wins by a jockey: 2 - Willie Knapp (1905,1918) 2 - Joe McCahey (1908, 1909) 2 - Clarence Kummer (1919, 1922) 2 - Willie Kelsay (1924, 1930)
Most wins by a trainer: 3 - Henry McDaniel (1918, 1930, 1931) 3 - Thomas J. Healey (1908, 1914, 1923)
Most wins by an owner: 4 - John Sanford (1902*, 1904, 1905, 1907)
Winners Year Winner Age Jockey Trainer Owner (Miles) Time Win $1937Esposa5Nick WallMathew P. BradyWilliam Ziegler Jr.1 m1:37.80$3,0251936Vicaress4Tommy MalleyJames E. FitzsimmonsBelair Stud Stable1 m1:38.20$3,1251935Only One6Robert MerrittPhilip M. WalkerPolly Brooks Howe1 m1:38.00$3,1501934Kievex3Wayne D. WrightGeorge E. PhillipsWilliam Graham1 m1:39.60$3,0501933Tambour5John GilbertPreston M. BurchPreston M. Burch1 m1:38.40$3,2701932Flagstone4Robert LeischmanWilliam H. BrooksLinton Farms Stable (George M. Seglin)1 m1:37.80$3,6001931Mr. Sponge4Mack GarnerHenry McDanielJoseph E. Widener1 m1:36.60$4,1501930Flying Heels3Willie KelsayHenry McDanielGifford A. Cochran1 m1:38.60$4,1501929Buddy Bauer5Eddie LegereHerbert J. ThompsonEdward R. Bradley1 m1:37.00$4,4501928Byrd4Anthony PascumaAlex GordonFair Stable1 m1:42.00$4,4751927Light Carbine4Fred StevensMichael J. DunlevyIra B. Humphreys1 m1:40.60$4,4751926Single Foot4Clarence TurnerHarry RitesJ. Edwin Griffith1 m1:40.00$4,8751925Blind Play4John MaibenLouis FeustelLog Cabin Stable1 m1:38.80$4,6001924Sunsini4Willie KelsayFrank M. BrayLilane Stable (Mrs. William L. Walker)1 m1:40.40$5,0251923Wilderness3Benny MarinelliThomas J. HealeyRichard T.Wilson Jr.1 m1:41.00$4,6501922Blazes5Clarence KummerWilliam M. GarthJoshua S. Cosden1 m1:43.40$4,3751921Idle Dell3George W. PenmanScott P. HarlanGreentree Stable1 m1:38.20$4,9751920Boniface5Earl SandeH. Guy BedwellJ. K. L. Ross1 m1:40.80$3,8001919Fairy Wand5Clarence KummerJames N. EvansGifford A. Cochran1 m1:36.20$2,6751918Sun Briar3Willie KnappHenry McDanielWillis Sharpe Kilmer1 m1:36.20$2,6751917Old Rosebud6George MolesworthFrank D. WeirHamilton C. Applegate1 m1:38.40$2,9501916Pennant5Joe NotterJames G. Rowe Sr.Harry Payne Whitney1 m1:37.60$1,9501915Star Jasmine6Jack MartinThomas Clay McDowellThomas Clay McDowell1 m1:43.40$1,0501914Tartar4Walter TaylorThomas J. HealeyMontpelier Stable1 m1:37.60$1,6551913Lahore5Charles BorelWalter S. HouseJohn O. Talbott1 m1:39.80$2,2851912 No races held due to the Hart–Agnew Law.19111910Sir John Johnson5Vincent Powers Dave WoodfordBeverwyck Stable (Frank J. Nolan)1 m1:40.00$2,8451909Field Mouse3Joe McCaheyA. Jack JoynerAugust Belmont Jr.1 m1:42.40$1,3851908Beaucoup3Joe McCaheyThomas J. HealeyMontpelier Stable1 m1:40.20$5301907Vails3Louis BeckmanWilliam Hayward Jr.John Sanford1 m1:38.00$2,2001906Dandelion4LaVerne SewellJohn E. MaddenFrancis R. Hitchcock1 m1:38.60$1,8351905Molly Brant5Willie KnappHubert H. HynerJohn Sanford1 m1:39.40$2,2001904Molly Brant4Lucien LyneHubert H. HynerJohn Sanford1 m1:39.60$2,5351903Gimcrack3Willie GannonJames G. Rowe Sr.James R. Keene1 m1:46.40$2,4001902Chuctanunda4George M. OdomWilliam Hayward Sr.S. Sanford & Son *1 m1:38.00$2,3051901Blues3Willie ShawThomas WelshFrank J. Farrell1-1/16 m1:47.60$1,910
* "Son of Stephen is John Sanford
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