Hawthorne Race Course

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Notable Events at Hawthorne Race Track

• G2 Hawthorne Gold Cup Handicap - 3-year-olds & up going 1-1/4 mi.
• Jim Edgar Illinois Futurity - 2-year-old IL-breds going 1-1/16 mi.
• Pat Whitworth Illinois Debutante - 2-year-old IL-bred fillies & mares going 1-1/16 mi.
• Illini Princess Handicap - 3-year-olds & up IL-bred fillies & mares going 1-1/16 mi.

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Recent Hawthorne Race Course News

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History of Hawthorne Horse Racing

America's fifth-oldest track, the Hawthorne Race Course has a long and storied history in horse racing. The Chicago-area track has seen racing since 1891 when Edward Corrigan first put a grandstand up just outside the city limits. Having survived an Illinois legislative ban on races in 1904, the track was reopened in 1909 by the Carey family who still run Hawthorne. A suspicious fire in 1978 burned the grandstand to the ground and is believed to have been the work of a ring of gamblers looking to end their horse racing endeavors.

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Hawthorne Race Course: Track Attributes

• Main race track: 1 mile dirt oval with a 1,320 ft. homestretch (one of the longest in the nation)
• Turf race course: seven-furlong oval

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Things to Do at Hawthorne Race Course

The race track makes it facilities available for both indoor and outdoor events such as weddings, birthday parties, reunions, and corporate events.