The race was run on dirt at a distance of one and one-quarter miles and was open to horses of either sex age three and older since 1887.
There were just two horses participating in the 1886 race won by Dewdrop who beat that year's Kentucky Derby winner Ben Ali.
Fair Play, one of the non-champions who is best known today as the sire of Man o' War, won the 1908 running in track record time.
[4] Further restrictive legislation was passed by the New York Legislature in 1910 which deepened the financial crisis for track operators and led to a complete shut down of racing across the state during 1911 and 1912.
Many ended their racing careers there, and a number remained to become an important part of the European horse breeding industry.