The name Saratoga is synonymous with the best that racing can be. Each year, the Saratoga Race Course summer meet lures fans from across the country to experience the sport in an area that harkens back to a different time. Saratoga Springs, N.Y., is a timeless place that is both classic and modern, a place where history is celebrated and memories are made.

This classic setting for America’s original sport exists thanks to the men and women who invested their energy and fortune in creating and maintaining this haven, a destination that calls to all who love the sport of horse racing.

John Morrissey

John Morrisey (WikiMedia Commons/Mathew Brady)

The story of Saratoga Race Course starts with one Irish immigrant’s journey from poverty to politician. Born in Templemore, County Tipperary, Ireland, young John Morrissey and his family emigrated from Ireland in the throes of famine to New York in search of opportunity and stability. Morrissey had a propensity for violence, gaining a reputation as a street brawler who then became a bare-knuckled brawler; he parlayed those talents into an undefeated career in the boxing ring, winning five championships before retiring.

His career over, Morrissey then turned to gambling, investing in multiple casinos including the Saratoga Club House casino in Saratoga Springs. As the Civil War raged, the former pugilist convinced several wealthy sportsmen, including William R. Travers and Leonard Jerome, to invest in a new racetrack across the road from the area’s old trotting course. As Saratoga Race Course became successful, Morrissey took his influence into the political realm as both a state senator and a congressman.

More than 150 years later, Morrissey’s vision for a Thoroughbred racetrack has become a late-summer destination for many an owner, trainer, jockey, and fan, a place where champions are made.

William R. Travers

William R. Travers (WikiMedia Commons/The American Thoroughbred)

While Morrissey ran the Saratoga show from behind the scenes, his friend William Riggin Travers became the first to serve as president of the Saratoga Association, his wit and popularity among New York society making him an ideal leader for the new racetrack. Born in Baltimore, Md., he attended boarding school in New York and then attended both West Point Military Academy and Columbia College. He later found success as a financier and partnered with Leonard Jerome, from whom he would learn about horse racing, another of his sporting pursuits like card playing and yachting.

Travers joined Morrissey, Jerome, and John Hunter in founding the Saratoga Association and building Saratoga Race Course. After a brief 1863 meet, racing returned in 1864 with an opening day feature named for the popular owner. Travers entered his own racehorse named Kentucky, a son of Lexington, in the newly inaugurated stakes for 3-year-olds. Facing four others, Kentucky was an easy victor by four lengths, winning the first Travers Stakes for its namesake.

Today, the Travers Stakes is a marquee race for elite 3-year-olds, a fitting tribute to a man who enjoyed a good horse race as much as the next fellow.

John R. Hunter

John R. Hunter grew up in Westchester County, N.Y., a hub for high-level breeding and racing. He was part of a sporting family that owned an estate on the East River and raced horses in his colors while also partnering with a neighbor in a nearby breeding farm. Among the many good horses he owned in his more than 50 years in racing, he purchased Kentucky, winner of the first Travers, from breeder John M. Clay and co-owned the colt with Travers and George Osgood.

Hunter’s investment in New York racing continued with his support of John Morrissey’s effort to build Saratoga Race Course and he sat on the track’s executive committee. In 1894, he partnered with James R. Keene, August Belmont, Frank Sturgis, and others to form The Jockey Club in an effort to maintain the American Stud Book and regulate the sport.

Leonard Jerome

Leonard Jerome (WikiMedia Commons)

Leonard Jerome studied law, but made his money in the stock market, his wealth enabling him to indulge his sporting interests. He shared a passion for yachting with William K. Vanderbilt, hunted with Buffalo Bill Cody, and found a love for horse racing through his connections with other New York sportsmen.

He partnered with William R. Travers in a financial firm and then in the building of Saratoga Race Course. Travers, Hunter, and Jerome backed Morrissey’s efforts to establish the Saratoga Association and the racetrack, which then inspired Jerome to build a racetrack of his own in what is now the Bronx. Jerome Park Racetrack was not only a showplace for the sport, but also became home to races like the Belmont Stakes, named for Jerome’s partner August Belmont Sr. In addition to Jerome Park, the financier was also behind Sheepshead Bay Race Track and Morris Park.

Richard T. Wilson Jr.

When Saratoga fell into unsavory hands, Richard T. Wilson, Jr. led the charge to rescue the New York racetrack. An investment banker educated at Columbia University, Wilson joined his father’s cotton trading firm and then pursued his interest in racing, hiring future Hall of Famer Thomas J. Healey as his trainer.

In 1900, Wilson partnered with William Collins Whitney and Thomas Hitchcock to buy Saratoga Race Course from the notorious brothel and gambling house owner Gottfried "Dutch Fred" Waldbaum. Since Waldbaum purchased the track in 1892, Saratoga had taken a significant hit to its reputation, with both the quality of racing and the size of the purses plummeting over that decade. Wilson, Whitney, and Hitchcock formed the Saratoga Racing Association for the Improvement of the Breed of Horses with Wilson as president.

In addition to his involvement with Saratoga, Wilson also campaigned horses like Pillory, who won the 1922 Preakness and Belmont Stakes, and Hannibal, the 1919 Travers Stakes winner.

William Collins Whitney

William Collins Whitney (BloodHorse Library)

The Whitney family’s impact on this country dates back to the 18^th century with each generation finding success in business, politics, and sport. William Collins Whitney continued that trend, serving as Secretary of the Navy under President Grover Cleveland and then working as a financier and businessman in New York City.

Whitney’s activities expanded into the sport of horse racing as well. He had stables in both America and England and campaigned horses like Volodyovski, 1901 Epsom Derby winner. By 1900, Whitney’s success made him one of the sport’s most prominent names and prompted him to partner with Wilson and Thomas Hitchcock to purchase Saratoga Race Course. In his tenure as owner, the former politician spent upward of $500,000 to improve the racetrack. After Whitney’s death in 1904, his son Harry Payne would carry on the family’s name and place in the sport, his Regret becoming the first filly to win the Kentucky Derby.

As the late racing historian Allan Carter said, “W.C. Whitney is the second-most important person in the history of racing in Saratoga. The only one ahead of him is John Morrissey.”

Marylou Whitney

C.V. Whitney and Marylou Whitney (BloodHorse Library)

When Harry Payne Whitney died in 1930, Cornelius Vanderbilt “Sonny” Whitney inherited a sizable fortune that allowed the younger Whitney to carry on his father’s legacy in the sport of horse racing. In 1958, he married Marie Louise Schroeder, or Marylou, an actor and radio host whom he met on the set of the film “The Missouri Traveler.” During their years together, Marylou fell in love with racing, especially with Saratoga, where she invested much of her immense philanthropic energies.

When the New York Racing Association considered closing the racetrack and giving its dates to racetracks downstate, Marylou Whitney stepped in and helped revitalize the area through endeavors like the Saratoga Performing Arts Center and the National Museum of Dance and Hall of Fame as well as her work on behalf of backstretch workers with her Backstretch Appreciation program at Saratoga.

Giving of both her time and her fortune helped Marylou Whitney turn Saratoga back into a summer destination for everyone who loves both horses and racing and earned her the distinction of Pillar of the Turf in the Racing Hall of Fame.