Throwback “Fursday” August 19, 2021
Today’s “Throwback Fursday” post is dedicated to “Sleepy Tom”, a famous pacing horse who, despite being blind since the age of seven, went on set a world record at a mile race in Chicago, running it at 2 minutes 12 ¼ seconds. The record stood for two years until it was surpassed by another pacing horse Little Brown Jug. Harness racing, or trotting, is a specific form of horse racing where a horse pulls a two-wheeled cart, known as a sulky and driver. Races are performed on a track specifically designed for harness racing and are run at a mile distance.
Tom had an illustrious career, but sadly died in a barn fire in Indiana in 1880. Tom’s legacy was later picked up by local author and historian Dwight Akers, who published Sleepy Tom in 1939, and in 1992, Sleepy Tom was inducted as an “Immortal”into the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame. Learn more about our Local History collection by going here,or calling (845) 496-5483 x 326!
