On this day in 1904, Elwood won The Kentucky Derby. He was the first (and so far only) horse to win the Derby who was foaled in Missouri. Elwood was also the first Derby winner bred and owned by a woman.
On Derby Day, he was last in the five-horse field until the final eighth-mile, closing under jockey Frank “Shorty” Prior for a half-length triumph over Ed Tierney.
At 15-1, Elwood was the longest shot in the field. He had run in some $300 claiming races in California, and was referred to as the “Missouri mule” leading into the Derby.
Based on information from the Louisville, Ky., Courier Journal, and the Kentucky Derby Museum.
Photo courtesy of the Kentucky Derby Museum.
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