[1][2] It was the original home of the Messenger Stakes, part of the Triple Crown of Harness Racing for Pacers.

It is located near where the first English colonial Governor of New York, Richard Nicolls, established the "Newmarket Course", the first horse-racing track in North America (and the first organized sport of any kind) in the territory that would become the United States, in 1664.

[9] The property was leased in 1939 by a group of investors (Old Country Trotting Association) led by George Morton Levy with the intention of opening a harness racing track.

[10] The track opened September 2, 1940 with a crowd of 5,000 which bet a total of $40,742 and saw the first race won by the horse "Martha Lee".

On June 30, 1956 the track would host the inaugural Messenger Stakes, part of the new "Triple Crown of Harness Racing for Pacers".

[11] In 1957 a new, much larger grandstand was opened, which included such features as dining and air conditioned areas, as well as a new toteboard.

On opening night (September 2, 1940) the horse, Miss June, collapsed and died on the track after winning the fifth race.

In 1944 the Raceway was in dire straits (again) and about to be evicted from the premises for $70,000 back rent, Mr. Levy bargained to purchase the land for the meager sum of $950,000 (satisfied on May 17, 1956).

First throwing bottles and other debris, the fans then began jumping over the railing, smashing the tote board, and then attacking first the judges booth and then the police who attempted to interfere.

[13][14] The 2-day festival featured performances by Ike & Tina Turner, Sly & The Family Stone, Jefferson Airplane, Chuck Berry, James Brown, The Shirelles, Sha-na-na, Billy Preston, Dr. Hook, Looking Glass, Bo Diddly, Stephen Stills, McKendree Spring, Elephant's Memory, The James Gang, and Commander Cody.

[20][21][22][23][24][14] The introduction of off-track betting in New York in 1971 coincided with a decline in attendance at all the state's racetracks,[25][26] which was then exacerbated by the opening of the Meadowlands Racetrack in 1976, which was located much closer to Manhattan, and had regular buses to and from the Port Authority, compared to a single "track bus" that ran once or twice an evening each way.

In 1984 the site was sold by Madison Square Garden, at the time a subsidiary of Gulf+Western, to a group of investors (Roosevelt Raceway Associates) led by incumbent raceway president Bill Hopkins and investor Charles L. Evans, via $54 million in tax-free bonds issued by the Town of Hempstead Industrial Development Agency.

to successfully operate the Roosevelt Raceway in its existing location and to preserve a traditional source of enjoyment and revenue for the citizens of Hempstead and surrounding communities.

"[29] But Raceway Associates closed the track in 1988,[30][31] and became embroiled in a controversy over the bonds, that would lead to an investigation that would include New York Senator Alfonse D'Amato.

Little remains of Roosevelt Raceway, other than the name, which still graces a shopping center, known as Westbury Plaza, and an AMC Theatres movie theater located on the former parking lot.