Kentucky has been a major center of horse breeding and racing since the late 18th century.
From the time the region was settled, the fields of the Bluegrass region were noted for producing
superior race horses. In 1872, Col. Meriwether Lewis Clark, Jr., grandson of William Clark of the
Lewis and Clark expedition, traveled to England, visiting the Epsom Derby, a famous race that had
been running annually since 1780. From there, Clark went on to Paris, France, where in 1863,
a group of racing enthusiasts had formed the French Jockey Club and had organized the Grand Prix de Paris,
which eventually became the famous Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
