It was called the Aqueduct Handicap, but beginning in 2009, the name was changed to the Evening Attire Stakes in honor of the great grey gelding Evening Attire.
The race is an ungraded stakes event run on dirt at a distance of 1+1⁄16 miles, it is open to horses three years old and up.
Originally named for the racetrack where the inaugural race took place in 1902, until recently, it was mostly run on Labor Day but now is held in January.
In 1961, the Aqueduct Handicap was run at Belmont Park.
In 1973 it was restricted to 2-year-old horses and was won by Cannonade who went on to win the 1974 Kentucky Derby.