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Explore the Legendary Racehorses that Shaped the Early History of Saratoga Race Course
LEXINGTON, KY — July 11, 2007 — Long before there was a Las Vegas, there was a Saratoga. In a time before radio and television, Americans in the Gilded Age viewed Saratoga as the culmination of their hopes and dreams. Then as now, captains of industry and the very wealthy mingled with middle-class visitors for a summer sojourn punctuated by social events, business, and the races, where major stakes days drew sell-out crowds.
Despite the glamour, Saratoga’s early racing history was peppered with drugged horses, questionable outcomes, and some wayward and fascinating characters. During a visit to the “Spa” in the 1890s, the world-traveling reporter Nellie Bly called Saratoga “the wickedest spot in the United States.”
In Saratoga Stories: Gangsters, Gamblers & Racing Legends Jon Bartels explores the personalities and events that shaped the early history of Saratoga Race Course. The story of the nascent racetrack is largely the story of John Morrissey, a young tough whose fists earned him his earliest notoriety. The social-climbing upstart befriended the likes of multimillionaire Cornelius Vanderbilt and the well-heeled William Travers. The friendships grew into business dealings that led to Morrissey starting a Thoroughbred meet at Saratoga.
In addition to its fascinating characters, Saratoga is famous for legendary racehorses. Saratoga Stories also chronicles the feats of stars such as James R. Keene’s Sysonby and Man o’ War, later crowned the Horse of the Century.
Throughout its long history, Saratoga Race Course has played host to the best – and sometimes the worst – that horse racing has to offer. Jon Bartels perfectly captures this fascinating stew.
Jon Bartels lives in Verona, Wisconsin, where he is a freelance writer and editor and a member of the Wisconsin Screenwriters Forum.
Publication date: August 2007
ISBN: 978-1-58150-158-2
Pages: 208; Bound Size: 6” x 9”
Retail price: $24.95 Hardcover
Available at your local bookstore or from Exclusively Equine
1-800-582-5604 (http://www.ExclusivelyEquine.com)
Distributed to bookstores by Ingram Publisher Services Inc.
1-866-400-5351
Eclipse Press is the award-winning book publishing division of Blood-Horse Publications, publishers of The Blood-Horse; The Horse; TBH MarketWatch; Keeneland magazine; the official Kentucky Derby and Breeders’ Cup souvenir magazines; and equine-related books, videos, CD-ROMs, and annual references. Blood-Horse Publications also operates a family of popular websites including bloodhorse.com, The Horse.com, EclipsePress.com, and Keenelandmagazine.com. In addition, Blood-Horse Publications operates Exclusively Equine (http://www.ExclusivelyEquine.com), the Official Store of Blood-Horse Publications. The Blood-Horse, The Horse, Eclipse Press, Exclusively Equine, and TBH MarketWatch are registered trademarks of Blood-Horse Publications.
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