The sport of horse racing in America dates to the colonial era, when Richard Nicolls, governor of New York, set up the first formal racetrack on Long Island. Since the 17th Century, the sport has thrived in all corners of the country, thanks to the tireless work of generations of men and women, especially African Americans like jockey Oliver Lewis and trainer Ed Brown, and the former slave turned jockey, trainer, and pedigree expert William Walker.

From the beginnings of the sport in the United States, people of color have made significant contributions to horse racing. African-American jockeys dominated the winner’s circle in racing’s first three decades. They were the first Black superstar athletes in the United States, and won 16 of the first 28 runnings of the Kentucky Derby. In fact, 13 of 15 jockeys for the inaugural Kentucky Derby in 1875 were Black.