The Big A in New York has shuttered.
The horse racing industry has left New York City for good. The Big A, Aqueduct Raceway, ran its final race on June 28th after a 132-year-run. The track opened on September 27th, 1894 and will close officially on September 7th when the last simulcast bet will be placed. In 1894, New York City had seven racetracks, three in Brooklyn, two in Queens and two in the Bronx. As the other New York City racetracks faded away, the Big A remained and a renovation project began in 1956 with a price tag of $34.5 million or about $422 million today. The track reopened on September 14th, 1959 with 42,473 spectators in the grandstand. It was the golden days of horse racing but those days were numbered.
Horse racing has lost its way. Tracks have been closing around the country for a long time. There is no novelty to horse racing anymore. There are some races that still attract attention, the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont along with the Breeders’ Cup. Much of horse racing’s allure was gambling and the track was the place to go to make legal bets. But Horse Racing’s huge following quickly faded after the 1950s as states began lotteries and betting was made easy. In the 1960s, there was a limited but growing form of legalized betting around, with state lotteries, off track betting and the availability of all forms of gambling in stores along with casinos sprouting up around the country. Gamblers’ have choices. A portion of the horse racing industry has been saved by casino gambling at tracks. Meanwhile there will still be gambling at the Big A site as a massive casino is opening on the property. For the horse racing diehards, eight miles east is Belmont Park in Nassau County which survives.
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