http://horseracing.about.com/library/blnytracks.htm
[quote]
Spurred by the success of Saratoga, Leonard Jerome bought organized
racing to the metropolitan New York City area. He opened Jerome Park
in 1866 on the old Bathgate Estate, near Fordham. The track lasted
until 1887, when the city needed the property for a reservoir. The
Belmont Stakes had its beginnings at Jerome Park. Jerome named the
race for his good friend, August Belmont, a man who helped finance the
new track.
[close quote]
Hmm - Leonard Jerome was Jenny Jerome's father. Jenny married Lord
Randolph Churchill and bore Winston.
