Colonial Trot

Edward J. Dougherty, then president of Liberty Bell Park Racetrack, organized The Colonial, the track's first $100,000 race. The event was created after the track in Philadelphia failed to secure the Hambletonian Stakes in the mid-1960s.^[1]

The Colonial Trot, a one-mile race for three-year-olds, was staged for the first time on September 14, 1968. The Colonials' debut marked a significant addition to Philadelphia's sports schedule.^[2] Co-sponsored by the Liberty Bell and William Penn Associations,^[3] it was the newest among the nine $100,000 harness races in the United States. The inaugural Colonial Trot featured Dart Hanover, Eric B., Nevele Pride, Master Yankee, Jostle, Keystone Spartan, and Snow Speed. The seven three-year-old trotters raced for a purse distribution of $50,000, $25,000, $12,000, $8,000, and $5,000 for the top five finishers.^[2] Stanley Dancer piloted Nevele Pride to victory in the 1968 event. The Colonial's first record was set at 1:59 by Nevele Pride.^[3]

When Philadelphia's Liberty Bell Park Racetrack went out of business in 1985, the 1986 Colonial Trot was carried over to Rosecroft Raceway in Fort Washington, Maryland.^[4] The Colonial became a stakes event under the Hambletonian Society and was considered the first step toward the Hambletonian Stakes.^[5]

Following Rosecraft Raceway's withdrawal due to financial difficulties, Foxboro Park paid $50,000 to host the 28th running of the event. The five-eighths-of-a-mile oval was selected by the Hambletonian Society over Hoosier Park, The Meadows, Pocono, and Meadowlands.^[6] Foxboro Park presented The Colonial on April 22, 1995.^[7] From 1996 onward, it was relocated to Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario.

The Colonial was resumed in 2007 at Harrah's Philadelphia after a three-year hiatus.^[8]

At its inception in 1968, the Colonial Trot was raced over a distance of one mile.

• 1968–1985: Liberty Bell Park Racetrack, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
• 1985–1994: Rosecroft Raceway, Fort Washington, Maryland, U.S.
• 1995: Foxboro Park, Foxborough, Massachusetts, U.S.
• 1996–2004: Woodbine Racetrack, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
• 2007-: Harrah's Chester, Chester, Pennsylvania, U.S.

Most wins by a driver

• 3 – Stanley Dancer (1968, 1972, 1985)^[9]