| The Sport of Kings and the Kings of Crime: Horse Racing, Politics, and Organized Crime in New York 1865–1913 Subjects: Horse racing -- New York (State) -- New York -- History; Horse racing -- Political aspects -- New York (State) -- New York -- History; Organized crime -- New York (State) -- New York -- History; Political corruption -- New York (State) -- New York -- Hist; Thoroughbred racing was one of the first major sports in early America. Horse racing thrived because it was a high-status sport that attracted the interest of both old and new money. It grew because spectators enjoyed the pageantry, the exciting races, and, most of all, the gambling. As the sport became a national industry, the New York metropolitan area, along with the resort towns of Saratoga Springs (New York) and Long Branch (New Jersey), remained at the center of horse racing with the most outstanding race courses, the largest purses, and the finest thoroughbreds. Steven A. Riess is a Bernard Brommel Distinguished Research Professor in the Department of History at Northeastern Illinois University, where he has taught for thirty-five years. He is the author of several books on the history of sport including Touching Base: Professional Baseball and American Culture in the Progressive Era and City Games: The Evolution of American Society and the Rise of Sports. |