Explore Bowie's Horse Racing History Saturday

Horse racing and horse culture have a long history in the City of Bowie, as evidenced by the city seal. This weekend, residents have a chance to celebrate that history at the Bowie Branch Library.

The library is hosting a program commemorating the 40th anniversary of Secretariat’s Triple Crown and track-record-setting wins. Guests will have a chance to view footage of all three of Secretariat's wins along with discussion by racing expert "Jello" Hull.

An open house at the Selima Room, which contains a collection of over 100 years of Bowie- and Maryland-specific horse history, will follow.

The Selima Room is the only horse-specific collection in the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System. It contains clippings and periodicals of Bowie’s horseracing history and is mostly used by breeders, jockeys and equine students, according to the room’s curator, Suzan Stephenson.

“The collection is one of the very few horseracing and breeding libraries housed in a public libraries in the country,” Stephenson said.

Bowie has a long history of horsemanship and horse racing. The Bel Air mansion and stables were once home to the Woodward family, who owned Triple Crown father and son winners Gallant Fox (1930) and Omaha (1935), said Stephenson.

Though the racetrack in Bowie now acts as a training facility—one that the city hopes to turn into a public green space—horses used to compete on the track at one point.

“There is still racing in Maryland, though not as much as there used to be, but the industry is making a comeback,” Stephenson said.  “I just hope it’s not too late.”

The program is free and takes place at the Bowie Branch Library from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday. It is being held in cooperation with the National Capital Radio and Television Museum. Reservations are not required.

See the full event listing on Bowie Patch for more details.