Part Two

Fort Erie Race Track Earl Plato
Part Two: When did Fort Erie Race Track open? What was the length of the track initially? Were the races running or trotting? Who owned the track back then? A reporter unnamed asked one Harry Hawkins of Queen Street, Fort Erie the above questions. He said, : I found this man who could answer my questions relative to the sport of kings at Fort Erie Race Track in those early days. The track was opened July 1st of 1897 according to Harry. He displayed a faded golden ribbon that said , FORT ERIE JOCKEY CLUB, At its base it read FALL MEETING - Sept.6th to 23rd, 1897. The race track was a mile in length initially. Many running races with one meet for trotting. The track was built by Mr. Hood and Mr. German informed Garry. Hood owned the Tennessee Hotel and Mr. German was the long time Member of Parliament for Welland. Eventually the two sold the track to F. Hendrie who in turn sold it to John. H. Madigan.
Writer’s Note: It is the Madigan name I recognized in my time. The well kept Madigan horse farm was located on Bertie Road adjacent to the track. We would ride our bicycles by the white washed fences and stop to admire the thoroughbreds. Who was president of the Ontario Jockey Club when Madigan was owner? Many of you know the name - E.P. Taylor. He purchased the track from Madigan. Harry Hawkins must have been a collector of track memorabilia for he had many newspaper clippings. One was from the Buffalo Courier dated that first meet July 1st, 1897, “ Canadians were in Fort Erie today and they left considerable money with the bookmakers as only one favourite got to the ftont. The track was heavy and holding … Adam Beck and his friends lost heavily on the fifth race which was won by Prima …” Harry showed another clipping dated Saturday, July 16, 1897 - Toronto Mail and Empire: “ There will hardly be any denial of the proposition that having invested in a racing enterprise more money than all the other jockey clubs in Canada put together that the Fort Erie Jockey Club is entitled to such return for its enterprise.”
That’s one sentence! That’s quite a start, eh!
Harry Hawkins was also asked, How much were those early purses? His replay was they were small - three or four hundred dollars. “Even less.” He then emphasized, “ … until Madigan;s time and the inaugural of the Derby with a purse of $10,000. Then came the new Woodbine in Toronto paying $50,000!
Any memories of our track you would like to share? Call me at 905-894-2417 or e-mail me at plato1@cogeco.ca