Having split North America into two distinct countries – United States and Canada – the review of Canadian racetracks will be undertaken first on a province by province basis. This is the initial article dealing with the province of Ontario, Canada’s busiest with regard to harness racing.
ONTARIO’S EARLY DAYS AND EARLIEST RACETRACKS –
Mention will be made not only of tracks utilised by standardbreds but of the early thoroughbred courses where often harness races were increased as part of the thoroughbred programme.
Toronto Island (prior to and early 1800’s) –
This sandy neck of land connected the central portion of the Peninsula (the western tip of the Peninsula at Gibraltar Point) with the mainland to the east. On the 16th September 1793, Mrs Elizabeth Simcoe, wife of Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe and Lieutenant Thomas Talbot, informally inaugurated horse racing on the Peninsula. Races were held periodically among military officers (Fort York) and local citizens. The course was a long straight level track. Although Toronto Island was the favoured place for horse races around York the bridge to the island was often washed out.
Garrison Common (1820s to 1837) –
The Upper Canada Turf Club (formed in 1837 grew out of a series of military races under the patronage of officers stationed at Fort York (Toronto) who owned many of the best horses. The course was laid out in 1835 on Garrison Common between the new and old forts, a few years later the land was subdivided and sold. Earlier in the 1800’s an informal course existed on Front Street between Small’s Corners (east of the Don River) to Market Place. Match races were advertised by way of placards posted throughout the town.
Scarlett’s Simcoe Chase Course (1837 – 1842) –
John Scarlett’s property in the Humber Valley above “The Old Mill” stretched north and east a considerable distance. Named “Runnymede” estate also accounts for the name of the western section of the city. Following the sub division of the Garrison Common course land, Scarlett established the Simcoe Chase Course on a flat section of his property. Managed by the City of Toronto and Home District Turf Club, it was situated north of Dundas Street between Weston Road and the woods on the bank of the Humber River, near the present boundary of Lambton Golf Course north of St. Clair Avenue. The inaugural meeting held on the Simcoe Chase Course took place from Wednesday 6 to Saturday 9 September 1837.
John Scarlett (1777–1865) a merchant miller who played a significant role in the development of the part of the historic York Township that later became the Junction neighbourhood of Toronto. A lover of horses and a rider himself up to an advanced age he never owned a racehorse or probably placed a bet. The Simcoe course on his property was in operation until 1842 at which point Toronto had more accessible race courses.
1840s – Maitland’s Course (1840’s)
This track managed by Jack Maitland was situated south of Queen Street East and east of Broadview Avenue near the Don River and Kingston Road. The locale is now the Cherry Street district.
Union Race Course (1841 – 1845)
Known by a variety of names : Toronto racecourse; Union and Boulton course; St Leger course, for simplicity we will refer to it generally as the Union course. Situated on track manager William Boulton’s property The Grange, south of the Cricket Grounds and College Street and bordered by Spadina Avenue on the west as well as streets later named Baldwin and McCaul.
Site location details show that it was near the head of Beverley Street, just east of that street and south of College St. The boundary history provides that the track grounds occupied most of the width of Park Lot 13 bounded on the west by Spadina Avenue and Russell Creek, on the east by Taddle Creek and bush adjoining Queen’s Park.
The Boulton family were enormously important in Toronto’s history because of their roles with the Family Compact – small closed group of men who exercised most of the political, economic and judicial power in Upper Canada/today’s Ontario from the 1810s to the 1840s – and the powerful public offices held by family members. William Henry Boulton, from a third generation of the family in Toronto and heir to The Grange, twice served as Toronto’s Mayor: 1845-47 and 1858. Treasurer of the association that held the first organised races over a two-day period.
William Boulton was a successful lawyer and “gentleman” who held sway over a large amount of land upon which he developed the Toronto Race Course, also known as the Union Course and the Boulton Course. Developed on lands that were part of the Grange estate within Park Lot 13 north of the house. Historic maps indicate it to have been an irregularly shaped half-mile track that filled the width of the Park Lot. Races were held on this track for approximately ten years specifically noted as 1841 and 1843.
At one time all of the racetracks in the region were privately owned with the Union course owned by Boulton who was instrumental in bringing about the organisation that eventually put out of business all of the independently owned tracks. The Union track played a role in the history of horseracing in Toronto.
William Boulton ran into conflicts with the Baldwin’s who owned the adjoining Park Lot as well as many other creditors requiring him to place his affairs in the hands of trusts after one creditor had him arrested. Boulton kept the old estate house but the lands were sold off. In 1872, the Cecil Street housing subdivision and a cricket pitch occupied the site with other building lots laid out.
The property is currently used for housing, commercial buildings, parking garage and parking lots and at 255 College Street the Toronto Board of Education whose future is currently in doubt. Should 255 College Street be sold, either for reuse or for redevelopment, it would be the logical place for a plaque commemorating both the Union racecourse and the administrative building of the largest public school board of the former City of Toronto and the Sesquicentennial Museum it now houses.
Toronto Driving Park (1850’s to 1875) –
The former half mile Toronto Driving Park (harness) was located north of Queen Street West between Lisgar Street and Gladstone Avenue. Known today as the Dundas Driving Park the former village green and walking track for the affluent to exercise their horses, has been a gathering place for locals and visitors from nearby Hamilton for more than 150 years. Boasting several baseball fields, tennis courts, lawn bowling club, outdoor skating rink and a massive children’s playground. Dundas was famous as a Canadian industrial town for its large manufacturing centre.
Newmarket Race Course (1854 – 1870’s) –
This east Toronto track was owned and operated by Charlie N. Gates, owner and trainer of the 1870 Queens Plate (held at Whitby) winner John Bell (jockey John Bennett). Also owning Gates’ Hotel near Main Street, a popular hangout for horsemen. The Newmarket track was located north of The Danforth and east of the Don River (between Coxwell and Woodbine Avenues). In 1868 Nettie (filly) won the ninth running of the Queen’s Plate at Newmarket.
Carleton Racecourse (1857 – 1876) –
The Carleton racecourse was positioned on William Conroy Keele’s farm in an area known as the West Toronto Junction. This tract of land was adjacent to Lambton Mills, Brockton, Seaton and the village of Carleton, south of Dundas St and west of a road later named Keele St. To further pinpoint the track its northern and southern boundaries are Annette and Glenlake streets that were built after the track had been subdivided into building lots in 1883.
In 1857 the Carleton course became the headquarters of the Toronto Turf Club. In 1859, while Upper Canada was still a colony of Great Britain, the President of the Toronto Turf Club, Sir Casimir Gzowski, petitioned Queen Victoria to grant a plate for a new race in Ontario. After the royal assent was granted, the inaugural Queen’s Plate was run on 27 June 1860 at Carleton with the prize “a plate to the value of 50 guineas“. Despite the name of the race, the winning owner is presented with a gold cup rather than a plate.
The first four renewals of the Queens Plate were run at Carleton racetrack, after which it became a “movable feast”, with politicians from all over Ontario vying to host the race in their constituency. Fifteen different tracks hosted the race over the next two decades. In 1883 the race moved to Old Woodbine (Greenwood Raceway) located in eastern Toronto alongside Lake Ontario. The race continued to be held at there until that track was replaced by “New” Woodbine in 1956 in northern Toronto where the race has been run ever since.
Exhibition Park (1879 – 1938) –
The land was purchased by the City of Guelph in 1871 for its annual exhibition, including a horse racing track, exhibition building and livestock sheds with later additions including a bandstand and baseball diamonds. The original stadium was built in 1925 and the arena in 1965. Exhibition Park, Toronto located at the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) grounds in the early 1900’s was the first track to host harness racing only.
Immortal world champion pacer Dan Patch performed on the Exhibition’s half-mile track in the autumn of 1905. On 21 October as a nine year old on a wet muddy track, he broke the Canadian pacing mile record a mile by 1 1/4 seconds recording 2:06.0. In 1927 Archie Peden of Strathroy, Ontario set a new track record with his sensational pacer Grattan Bars, the winner of thirty seven of his thirty nine starts.
Dufferin Park (1907 – 1955) –
Dufferin Park racetrack was located on Dufferin Ave, south of Bloor St and north of Muir St on the west side of Dufferin St and east of Brock St. Harness racing as well as thoroughbred meetings were staged initially by the Toronto Driving Club.
A provincial racing charter was granted in 1894 to the York Riding and Driving Association to operate horse racing and sell liquor. The half mile track (also called Little Saratoga) was laid out on twenty five acres (10 ha) of land on the west side of Dufferin Street owned by Charles Leslie Denison. The Denison family having received grants of land from the Crown for their outstanding service to King and Country, allowing Denison to build a training track at this location.
After Charles Denison died, Abraham “Abe” Orpen leased the land from the Denison’s for CA$400 per year opening Dufferin Racetrack with an inaugural trotting meeting on 15 August and thoroughbreds on 11/12 September 1907. Gambling on horse racing was controversial at the time and the original charter was revoked in 1909 due to a legal technicality as the charter had not been used for several years prior to 1907.
Orpen appealed directly to Canadian Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier and was granted a federal charter. Orpen who leased the track with his son Fred, together with several businessmen incorporated the Metropolitan Racing Association of Canada under the federal racing charter, allowing them to conduct on track betting beyond provincial controls. The Association’s original capitalisation was CA$4,060 consisting of forty $100 shares and six of $10. Toronto mayor Sam McBride served as club president for many years.
The track had stables to the south of the track together with a winter barn used for offices. The public entrance was through the stable yard at the southeast corner of the track. Bookmakers operating in front of the grandstand and in the infield handled betting both on track and for races at other tracks. Patrons were charged admission although it was free after the first few races. Racing was held into November often in the dim light of the evening where judges would hold lanterns to determine the finishing order. The Dufferin Park track was one of several financially successful tracks in the Toronto area.
Abe Orpen opened the Kenilworth Park Racetrack in Windsor in 1916 (see next article), was an investor in the Thorncliffe Park Raceway in 1917 (see below) and in 1924 opened Long Branch Racetrack (see below). Abe Orpen renewed the lease on Dufferin Park in 1925 purchasing the track a few years later. On his death in 1937, his son Fred and family members took over the operation of the track. Fred played the national anthem on a piano over the public address system at the commencement of each days racing at Dufferin.
Thorncliffe closed in 1952 for thoroughbreds and 1953 for standardbreds with the Orpen tracks (Dufferin Park/Long Branch) sold to E. P. Taylor closing down in 1955 with Toronto thoroughbred racing consolidating to the new Woodbine Racetrack opening in 1956 with Dufferin’s stakes races moving to Woodbine. Taylor paid a reported CA$4 million for the Orpen’s tracks and racing charters transferring them to the Ontario Jockey Club on 1 December 1955. The final race at Dufferin Park was run on 8 November 1955.
The Dufferin Park track was demolished in late 1955. After the sales Fred Orpen got out of the horse racing completely and built an estate on 400 acres (160 ha) of land near Alton, which he sold in 1972 to develop a housing subdivision. He died on 28 October 1978 at the age of 82.
The site had also been used as the location for an annual travelling circus and by local high school Central Commerce Collegiate for athletics meets. From 1951 the site was used for a musical theatre production in a tent, called Melody Fair. Today the Dufferin Mall shopping centre is located on the site.
Hillcrest Park (1912 – 1917) –
Owned and operated by the Toronto Driving Club, Hillcrest Park was located on the southwest corner of Bathurst Street and Davenport Road. Despite its name, the track was not located on the crest or top of the Davenport hill but rather on the plain below the hill. It was among many vanished racetracks in Toronto history which had attracted numerous horse racing enthusiasts over a century ago.
Opened on 20 August 1912 and after a few years the racetrack closed after its final meeting on 16 July 1917 when the land was taken over by the Toronto Transit Commission.
Thorncliffe Park/Raceway (1917 – 1953) –
Located In the village of Leaside east of Millwood Rd., south of Eglinton Ave and north of Canadian Pacific Railway line with an entrance off McRae Drive, the site of Thorncliffe Park was a farm owned by Robert T. Davies, wealthy founder of the Dominion Brewing Co. An avid participant racing both thoroughbreds and standardbreds under the banner of Thorncliffe Stable.
After his death in 1916, Davies’s estate sold the property to a group of investors from Baltimore, Maryland (including Abe Orpen) who built the Thorncliffe Park Raceway racetrack. Home to thoroughbred horse racing and harness racing from 1917 until 1953 when it was sold for real estate development.
The one mile dual code facility held its inaugural thoroughbred meeting 21 – 28 July 1917 with the Prince of Wales Stakes and the Clarendon Cup the feature thoroughbred races each season until the final thoroughbred race day was held on 23 June 1952. Harness racing commenced at Thorncliffe Park raceway on 31 May 1920 with annual feature races including the Canadian Cup Pace and Maple Leaf Cup Trot until the final harness meet held from 4 July to 12 August 1953.
Aerial view of East York in 1942, with Thorncliffe Park Raceway visible to the south (bottom).
In the 1950s developers demolished the racetrack and created one of Toronto’s first high-rise neighbourhoods on the site. The old racetrack is commemorated by two streets named Grandstand Place and Milepost Place and a number of buildings that took on racetrack stable names like Churchill, Maple Glen and Wellow Glen.
Long Branch Race Track (1924 – 1955) –
The Long Branch racetrack located in Etobicoke Township, just north of the village of Long Branch was owned and operated by the Orpens – Abe and son Fred. Home to the Long Branch Championship Stakes (later named Canadian International Stakes) and Mrs. Orpen’s Cup and Saucer Stakes Handicap.
The track was bordered by Evans, Kipling and Horner Avenues and the Canadian Pacific Railway line. Its inaugural meeting was held on 6 September 1924 and its final meeting on 21 October 1955. During World War II, Long Branch was closed. Some of its stakes races, the Canadian International Stakes and the Cup and Saucer Stakes were held at Dufferin Park between 1942 and 1945.
Next Article : More recently closed Ontario tracks .
Peter Craig
25 May 2022
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
Driving The Future Of Harness Racing
