Freehold Raceway Racetrack Horse Racing

About Freehold Raceway Racetrack

Freehold, New Jersey, is home to two American icons - Bruce Springsteen and Freehold Raceway, the oldest and fastest 1/2 mile racetrack in the nation. Freehold Raceway was founded by the Monmouth County Agriculture Society in December 1853. In 1888, because of financial problems, the society dissolved. The track lay idle until 1896, when the Freehold Driving Club was formed.

The track was considered lopsided, a fault blamed for keeping many horsemen away. In 1909, the track was rebuilt and owners, trainers and jockeys started to come. By 1941, Freehold had become the first and only pari-mutuel track in New Jersey. In 1965, Gibraltar Pari-Mutuel of Canada bought the raceway for a reported $8 million. The track was then updated to allow eight horses to start behind the gate, rather than six, and Freehold finally entered the age of modern racing. The grandstand was brought into a full enclosure in 1970, allowing the races to be run year-round.

On May 4, 1984, Freehold's grandstand and dining room were destroyed by an early evening fire that was caused by an electrical short in the odds board. The fire brought one positive, however. On Dec. 31, 1984, the Wilmot Family of Rochester, New York, purchased the track and ordered the grandstand and dining room to be rebuilt at an estimated cost of more than $12 million.

Freehold changed hands again in September of 1990 when Kenneth Fischer, a local farm owner, purchased it. In 1994, Fischer sold to International Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. for $23 million. In January 1999, Freehold finally fell into the hands of its current owners, Pennwood Racing, which purchased the track for $46 million.