The Fort Washington, Maryland harness racetrack of Rosecroft Raceway lies close to the Interstate 495 and is dubbed the ‘Raceway by the Beltway’. It held its inaugural meeting on 2th May 1949, was owned by the horse breeder William Miller, and soon was securing crowds in excess of 7000 every day. The 5 furlong oval racetrack, with its 123 metre home straight, has the facilities to seat 6000 in the Clubhouse and 9000 in the Grandstand and continued racing successfully throughout the 20th century, despite being sold in 1987 to Mark Vogel, and to others in subsequent sales. It has hosted many prestigious races in its time, including the Breeders Crown, the Messenger Stakes which is the middle leg of the Triple Crown of Harness Racing, the Potomac Stakes, the William E Miller Memorial and the Maryland Sire Stakes. The grandstand suffered significant fire damage in 1991, although it was reconstructed by 1993, but then suffered the financial effects of competitors being subsidised from casino profits. In 2010 the track closed, but was then purchased by Penn National Gaming and reopened on 25th August 2011. |
