Visitors come to the Bluegrass region to savor its natural beauty and to revel in the majesty of the horse; to drive along the narrow roads that wind past storied farms where generations of champion racehorses have been born and raised; to see the ancient stone walls and miles upon miles of fences separating farm from farm, pasture from pasture; to walk in places that have given birth to legends of the turf. And they come to learn about the fine amber elixir known as Kentucky bourbon.


The Kentucky Horse Park is a natural place to begin a tour of horse country. Located just north of Lexington, the park is spread out over more than 1,000 acres of rolling hills and fields surrounded by 32 miles of white plank fencing.


The park's International Museum of the Horse houses a vast permanent collection of exhibits depicting the history of the horse, as well as changing exhibits featuring the work of renowned equine artists. Also on display is the Calumet Farm trophy collection, a dazzling array of gold, silver, and crystal won by horses racing in the farm’s famed devil's red and b blue colors.


In the park’s Hall of Champions reside several retired racing greats, among them John Henry, a small, brown gelding of modest pedigree, disagreeable temperament, and tremendous heart who raced at the highest levels of racing greats, among them John Henry, a small, brown gelding of modest pedigree, disagreeable temperament, and tremendous heart who raced at the highest levels of competition until the ripe old age of nine, and Cigar, winner of 16 consecutive races and an American earnings record of nearly $10 million.

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So deeply ingrained is the Thoroughbred in the culture of Lexington that it permeates almost every aspect of the city's life, including its public art and its churches. Thoroughbred Park, located at the corner of East Main Street and Midland Avenue, features a near-lifesize sculpture of the finish of the inaugural Arlington Million, with John Henry defeating The Bart by a nose. Broodmares and foals graze on a grassy hill nearby. Artist Gwen Reardon has cast these horses in such exquisite detail that when touching them, one expects to feel flesh, hair, and bone rather than cold, hard bronze.

On East Main Street, not far from Thoroughbred Park, stands an imposing church built of Bourbon County limestone. Its official name is the Church of the Good Shepherd, but locals know it as "the Thoroughbred church."

In 1923, a bill was introduced in the Kentucky legislature to abolish parimutuel betting. The church's rector, Reverend Thomas Lever Settle, had paid his way through seminary school by working at stables and racetracks in his native Ireland. He made an impassioned speech to the legislature, arguing that abolishing pari-mutuel wagering would lead to illegal bookmaking and drive the horse industry from Lexington. The bill was defeated by a single vote.

In gratitude, horsemen from around the country – breeders, owners, exercise riders, and stablehands of every faith – raised nearly $200,000 to build the congregation a new church. A plaque in the church's narthex reads:
"To the glory of God this church is given to Him by the lovers of the horse all over the country as a token of appreciation of their Father's goodness to His children."

Get up-to-date racing news on the Internet at Cindy Pierson Dulay's Horse-Races.net