Every horse running in the 2023 Kentucky Derby descends from a mighty stallion named Lexington, the most renowned thoroughbred of the 19th century
on April 4, 1855. Two days earlier, at a racecourse in New Orleans, a champion thoroughbred named Lexington had run four miles in seven minutes, 19 and three-quarter seconds, smashing the previous record by more than six seconds.
Lexington’s greatness traces back to a partnership that was highly unusual in the antebellum South. His first owner, Elisha Warfield, was a prominent Kentucky obstetrician who delivered thousands of babies, including future First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln. In 1821 he opened a stud farm and became so devoted to breeding, training, and racing thoroughbreds that today he’s remembered as the “father of the Kentucky turf.
“If they were good, Black trainers and jockeys enjoyed a certain amount of liberty in the South,” Wickens says. “They moved about more freely because of their horsemanship skills. Still, they were treated about the same as the horses.” Racehorses speed toward the finish line in this vintage print by Currier and Ives. Horse racing was one of 19th-century America's most popular sports. Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.
For two men of opposite races to work together in the then slave state of Kentucky surely raised eyebrows. The unusual pairing occurred at a time when tensions were high as the nation edged closer to Civil War. What made their partnership possible?
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