News Releases

Friday, May 11, 2001Contact: Bob Curran Jr. (212) 521-5326
Artwork on Loan from The Jockey Club Featured in Colonial Racing Exhibit

Six original oil portraits of prominent Thoroughbreds on loan from The Jockey Club will be featured in an Annapolis, Maryland exhibit tracing the history of Thoroughbred racing in colonial Maryland.

The exhibit, “And It All Began Here in Annapolis: Thoroughbred Racing in Maryland Colonial Days,” will be on display at the Mitchell Gallery of St. John’s College in Annapolis May 16 through May 27.

The six portraits from The Jockey Club and their respective artists are: Rock Sand (Richard Newton Jr.); Man o’ War (R. Percy Earl); Fair Play (Henry Stull); Boston (Edward Troye); Lexington (Edward Troye); and Hastings (Henry Stull).

Early records show that the city of Annapolis sanctioned the first publicly funded horse race in the colonies on August 1, 1720.

Annapolis City Alderman Ellen Moyer organized the exhibit, which will also feature trophies, letters, advertisements and other memorabilia from Maryland’s “golden age of racing.”

Moyer serves on the Maryland Racing Commission and she assembled the history and materials as a means of showcasing the significance of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County to the horse racing industry in the United States.

The Mitchell Gallery is located at St. John’s College, 60 College Avenue in Annapolis and admission is free. The Gallery is open from noon to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday and 7-8 p.m. Friday.

Additional information can be obtained by calling (410) 626-2556 or visiting the St. John’s College web site at www.sjca.edu.