The Free Press
MANKATO — Horse-related businesses and sports have long histories in area communities.
Blue Earth County Historical Society archives include newspaper clippings from the 1890s about the Dutton Livery stables and Akers and Rooney Delivery Wagons. Mankato establishments at the turn of the 20th century included several places with horses available for hire.
During the second half of the 19th century, harness racing drew crowds to the county. Historical society volunteer Hilda Parks wrote a column about the popular pasttime. Below are excerpts from her 2019 Glimpse of the Past printed in The Free Press:
“In the late 1850s these races between drivers of horses pulling carts — known as sulkies — took place Sundays on Broad and Front streets.
“Harness racing later moved to a piece of prairie north of town called the Mankato Driving Park. The mile-long track in Germania Park near Third Avenue was laid out in the 1870s.
“The races often were scheduled in conjunction with the Mankato Fair.
“The 1890s was the heyday of racing at Sibley Park. A race track had been constructed there during 1887-88. Its grounds included a canopied grandstand and a tower where starting officials and race judges were seated.
“The track was lined with rail and measured about a quarter of a mile. The path of the races was very similar to Sibley Park’s present-day circle drive.
“Races were scheduled in Mankato throughout the year, every two weeks in the summer months and occasional races across ice in winter.
“Mankato’s Daily Review reported June 21, 1901, attendance had been about 10,000 for a race on the previous day.
“Racing circuits were an extra draw for spectators. The 1886 circuit included St. Paul, Minneapolis and Stillwater besides mid June races in Mankato. Winning purses ranged from $300-400 per race and a free-for-all race offered a $500 purse.
“A report in The Review listed 70 horses entered in the 1886 Mankato race. That number was the largest up to that time for any race in Minnesota.
“Four of the fastest horses in America were entered.
“Five cars were required to haul the 15 race horses that were brought by train to Mankato.
“The 1891 Southern Minnesota Circuit offered purses totaling $2,500. Races took place in Tracy, Winona, Rochester, Owatonna, Albert Lea, Austin and on July 3-4 in Mankato.
“Racing during county fairs also was popular. The Blue Earth County Fair in Garden City held its first races in 1899.
“A horse owned by Cliff Thro of Mankato was sired by the famous harness racer Dan Patch. Theda Patch was among the entrants at the 1928 Mankato Fair, a time when Blue Earth County was known for its horse-breeding farms.
“Thro Brothers’ Stable had regional and national reputations and horses that raced at state fairs and in Lexington, Kentucky.
“Henry Himmelman Jr., owner of Mankato Breeding Stables, at one time kept 80 horses. Its most famous resident was Senator Wilkinson, a horse that set a record in 1897 at the Indiana State Fair.
“Dr. J.C. Curryer’s horse farm near Lake Crystal was considered a progressive in its breeding practices. He also published a journal called Minnesota Horseman, lectured and wrote articles about the best practices for raising horses.
“Not everyone was a fan of breeders and the local racing association using a large share of a public park as a training site for horses. Those who considered Sibley Park’s horse sheds unsightly suggested replacements with new stables to house ‘blooded horses.’ The advocates said sales of these stables would profit the city.
“Eventually, horse racing couldn’t compete with the rising popularity of baseball, the attraction of automobiles and a demand for fuller use of public park land.
“The last race at the Blue Earth County Fair was in 1929 after a youngster ran out on the track and was injured.”