page_title: Suffolk Downs
section_title: Reopening
hierarchical_section_title: Suffolk Downs / History / Reopening
caption_attribution_description: English: Starting Gate at Suffolk Downs. East Boston, Massachusetts, 2004 photo by alcinoe
context_page_description: Suffolk Downs is a former Thoroughbred race track in East Boston, Massachusetts, United States. The track opened in 1935 after being built by Joseph A. Tomasello for a cost of $2 million. It was sold in May 2017 to a developer who plans to create housing and a shopping district. The final day of live racing at the track was June 30, 2019, with the facility hosting simulcast race wagering thereafter. The only remaining live horse racing in Massachusetts is at Plainridge Park Casino, which has harness racing.
  A number of famous horses raced at Suffolk Downs, including Seabiscuit, Whirlaway, Funny Cide, and Cigar. The Massachusetts Handicap was the track's most significant annual event, last held in 2008. The track is a 1-mile dirt oval with a seven-furlong inner turf track. Non-race functions at the venue included the Hot Dog Safari. The track provides the name of the nearby MBTA Suffolk Downs subway station.
context_section_description: In May 1991, Sterling Suffolk Racecourse LLC., headed by James B. Moseley and John L. Hall II, leased the track from Belle Isle for $8.5 million. The group spent seven months upgrading and remodeling the track. On January 1, 1992 racing resumed at Suffolk Downs in front of a crowd of 15,212. The track underwent further renovations in 1993, including a new AmTote Spectrum 2000 mutuel system, a newly constructed Clubhouse video lounge, a tribute to MassCap winners in the Grandstand, and a new racing strip. In 1995, the track saw the opening of a redesigned Legends Bar & Grill, improvements to the lighting, upgrades to the backstretch and racetrack, and a remodeled paddock and winner's circle. Also that year, the MassCap returned from a six-year hiatus. Cigar won the race. It was his eighth consecutive victory in his Horse of the Year season. Cigar won the race the following year to earn his 15th consecutive win. The race was attended by 22,000 spectators.
  On May 31, 1997 Suffolk Downs hosted New England's first million racing day, with six stakes races including the MassCap.
  On July 7, 1997, Sterling Suffolk Racecourse LLC purchased the track from Bell Isle.
  On April 9, 1998, James B. Moseley, Suffolk Downs' Chairman of the Board and the man credited with reopening the track, died at the age of 66. He was succeeded on the board by his wife Patricia.
  On June 8, 1998, Suffolk Downs hosted Eddie Andelman's Hot Dog Safari to benefit the Joey Fund/Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The event was attended by 35,000 people.
  On June 19, 1999, Suffolk Downs held its first concert in decades when it hosted the Guinness Fleadh music festival. Thirty acts performed during twelve-hour festival, including Elvis Costello, Hootie and the Blowfish, and John Lee Hooker. Van Morrison was scheduled to appear but cancelled citing "exhaustion".
caption: Starting gate at a race in 2004
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