- The first Triple Crown winner was Sir Barton. He accomplished that honor in 1919, the year following the end of World War I.
- Adjusted for inflation, the biggest money-winning horse of all times was John Henry while Cigar, grandson of Seattle Slew, currently holds the North American prize-winning record.
- Seattle Slew was the first undefeated horse to win the Triple Crown. He accomplished that feat in 1977. The next year, he beat Affirmed, the last Triple Crown winner, in the Marlboro Cup.
- The greatest money-winning filly, Lady’s Secret, was the daughter of Triple Crown champion Secretariat (also known as "Big Red," the horse owned by Penny Chenery who not only won the Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont - in 1973 - but also had the largest equine heart ever reported by any veterinarian).
- One of the saddest horse stories - ever - involves Shergar, the champion thoroughbred who was born in Ireland. In 1981, he won the Epsom Derby by ten lengths - still a record. Two years later, he was kidnapped ... and never seen again. At the 25th anniversary of his disappearance, an investigative journalist learned the brutal truth about Shergar's fate. The story is not for the faint-of-heart.
- Bulle Rock was the first Thoroughbred in America’s Thirteen Colonies. He was shipped from Britain in 1730.
- The first Belmont Stakes (named for August Belmont, the first president of the American jockey club) was run in 1867 at Jerome Park. It was later moved to Belmont Park.
- In 1873, the first Preakness Stakes was run at Pimlico Course in Baltimore, Maryland.
- The first Kentucky Derby was run at the Louisville Jockey Club Course in 1875. The course is now known as Churchill Downs.
NOTE: We are exceedingly grateful to Leonard D. Smith, DVM (of Hendrix, Oklahoma) and his son, Wayne Smith, for providing us with facts for this story and for previously unpublished photographs of Seabiscuit and Ridgewood Ranch. Thanks, especially, to Gregory Kuehn (of Albuquerque, New Mexico), one of the most knowledgable Seabiscuit authorities available, for his expert help with this story.
