The Kentucky Derby: How the Run for the Roses Became America’s Premier Sporting Event

Chapter 3. Conflict at the Derby in the Great Depression: 1930-1940

3 Conflict at the Derby in the Great Depression 1930–1940 During the 1930s, the Derby continued to draw patrons to Louisville from across the country. While it retained its place among the most popular festivals on the American sports calendar , the Derby was not immune to the changing cultural conditions brought about by the Great Depression. Once celebrated as a cheerful place where the masses and society swells interacted amicably, Churchill Downs became a tense environment increasingly marred by conflicts between guards and patrons. But even in the worst economic environment in the nation’s history, both the rich and the regular folk continued to flock to the famous racetrack on Derby Day as the Derby continued its growth in national prestige and stature, securing its place as the greatest American horse race at a time when sports provided distraction and diversion for a society under unprecedented economic strain. As portrayed in national print media, the conflicts and violence at the Derby in the 1930s would reinforce Kentucky’s dualistic identity in the American collective imagination that dated back to the first published portrayal of Daniel Boone 150 years earlier. During the Depression, newspapers described fashionable Derby-goers in language that evoked images of Kentucky colonels and belles reminiscent of the Old South while reports of  83 The Kentucky Derby 84 lawlessness in the Derby infield brought to mind the gone-butnot -forgotten tales of feuds and violence in rural Kentucky that had captivated American readers in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The contradictory images that emerged from the Kentucky Derby in the 1930s reinforced the long-held yet paradoxical notion that Kentucky was home to both lawlessness and refinement. Kentucky’s reputation as an unusual and alluring place continued to grow during the Great Depression, which in turn further secured the Derby’s prominent place in American popular culture. From the beginning the Derby’s infield, with its wide range of people, helped to contribute to a carnival atmosphere that was interesting and appealing even to those who were not necessarily followers of horse racing. At the same time the presence of high society gave the event an aura of significance and helped to attract “regular folks” to the event in large numbers. Early Derby journalists praised the crowds as representative of an idealized American society in which people could comfortably mix regardless of social station. This amicable mélange of humanity continued to be celebrated in newspapers and to attract Derby visitors well into the twentieth century. In the 1920s the Chicago Tribune had described the Derby crowd as “the great human family in happy holiday mood, all class distinctions lost in the camaraderie which causes millionaires to talk with stable boys, to exchange opinions on the chances of the horses, and to feel, for the day at least, a brotherhood not known in any other sport.” The Derby was a place where “millionaire horsemen and society leaders mingled with the great, jostling, good natured crowd.”1 The New York Times claimed that the Derby “thrilled millionaires in the clubhouse boxes no less than the ragamuffins clinging to stable roofs and trees.”2 The Derby had attracted America’s rich and powerful for years, including leaders of business, politics, stage, screen, and athletics. But no one drew more attention in the early years of ce- Conflict at the Derby in the Great Depression 85 lebrity worship at the Derby than Edward Stanley, the seventeenth Earl of Derby, who attended the event in 1930. As the birthplace of Thoroughbred racing, Great Britain was the guardian of the sport’s history. Lord Derby’s attendance thus reinforced Americans ’ belief that the Kentucky Derby was a major event worthy of worldwide attention, lending the Derby and American racing increased stature. Lord Derby’s postrace comments were broadcast by NBC radio to a national audience. He engaged in goodnatured debate over the correct pronunciation of the race (durby or dahrby), and praised Kentucky’s version as “fine stuff.”3 While Lord Derby’s presence at the 1930 Derby made headlines , the performance on that rainy afternoon by Gallant Fox was impressive in its own right as he seized the lead at the top of the backstretch and never relinquished it, winning easily by two lengths. Winning jockey Earl Sande had won the Kentucky Derby twice previously, in 1923...