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The Queen’s Plate
The
Toronto Turf club petitioned Queen Victoria in April of 1859
for sponsorship of a championship stakes race for Canadian thoroughbred
breeders and in July of that same year received word that the
Queen “had been graciously pleased” to support the
cause. She granted a “a plate to the value of 50 Guineas”
that would be awarded every year for a race “to be run
in Toronto or such other place as Her Majesty might appoint.”
Thus began North America’s oldest continuously running
stakes race.
The
first winner, Don Juan at Carleton Track in Toronto in June
of 1860, actually had to win two out of three one-mile heats,
with a twenty minute rest break between each heat. The race’s
early history took it to many different tracks, taking advantage
of the “or such other place as her Majesty might appoint”
clause in the original grant. In 1864 Guelth racetrack was the
host and Hamilton racetrack presented the event many times before
the turn of the century. Other venues in early days were Prescott
in 1877 and Ottawa in 1880, finally retuning to Woodbine in
Toronto in 1881.
Throughout
its early years the Queen’s Plate regularly drew large
crowds and quality thoroughbreds, but not without a few bumps
in the road. The winner of the 1872 race, Bay Jack, later died
of a laudanum overdose that sent a jockey many thought was innocent
to jail. The 1875 running was marred by a trainer’s error
at the start when Emily, one of the favorites, was let loose
late and ended up losing miserably (these were the days before
the modern starting gate). The horse’s owner, Thomas C.
Patterson an influential politician and editor of The Toronto
Mail newspaper, is said to have whined about the outcome bitterly
for the rest of his life. His complaints became the impetus
for the Ontario Jockey Club, which he helped to form in 1881.
The
Queen’s Plate survived World War I, The Great Depression,
and World War II despite ups and downs in the racing industry
that saw crowds sometimes dwindle to less than 15,000 spectators.
The Canadian Triple Crown series was introduced in 1959 with
the Queen’s Plate as the first of the three races followed
by The Prince of Wales Stakes and The Breeder’s Stakes,
respectively. This has greatly increased the Plate’s importance,
now sometimes referred to as “The Gallop for The Guineas”,
and since inception 6 horses have completed the triumvirate.
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