The name “Churchill Downs” was not officially adopted for the racetrack until 1883 and the length of the race was shortened to a mile and a quarter in 1896.Ĭolonel Meriwether Lewis Clark committed suicide on April 22, 1899, less than two weeks before the 25th Kentucky Derby. The Derby became rapidly successful and by the late 1800s it was one of the premiere American sporting events.
Fifteen three-year-old Thoroughbred horses galloped a mile and a half through the dirt in mid-May while roughly 10,000 fans looked on for the first official Kentucky Derby.
