Ellis Park

HistoryEllis Park was built by the Green River Jockey Club in 1922. It initially held a harness meeting on the Grand Circuit for the total of $32,000 in purses for a five-day race meeting. On November 10, 1922, a 10-day thoroughbred meet with purses of $62,000 was held. The meet was a stop on the train route south to New Orleans for winter racing at Fair Grounds Race Course. These short meets didn't meet the needs of the track and in 1925, after three years of operation, the Green River Jockey Club went bankrupt. In 1925, James C. Ellis, a Rockport businessman, purchased the track, then called Dade Park. He brought about many changes at the track including adding a totalisator wagering system and a terrace grandstand. The facility was renamed Ellis Park in 1954. James Ellis died in 1956.SpecialtiesOpen 365 days a year, Ellis Park Racing accommodates all horse racing enthusiasts. The newly remodeled first floor of the Clubhouse features 187 Instant Racing Machines, 30+ Flat Screen TVs, a state of the art simulcasting center and a brand new bar area. The restaurant Lucky Joe's Bar & Grill provides tasty meals and drinks, from burgers to hotdogs.

The Ellis Park Race Course, originally Dade Park, was built in 1922 by the Green River Jockey Club. The race track was first named after the famous race starter A. B. Barrett Dade, a director and one of the organizers of the Green River Jockey Club. At the time of purchase, the 204 acres of pre-race track land was the wildest of river bottom land. The original plans were to build a track one-mile long (as the Green River Jockey Club wanted one of the longest in the nation). Ernest F. Bohme, a Lexington, KY architect, was assigned to develop the plans for Ellis Park and became confused during development. He brought in sketches with a track 3/8 of a mile shorter than the original one-mile plan.