Kentucky Horse Park
| Kentucky Horse Park | |
|---|---|
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| Location | Fayette County, Kentucky, United States |
| Nearest city | Lexington, Kentucky |
| Coordinates | 38°09′N 84°31′W / 38.150°N 84.517°WCoordinates: 38°09′N 84°31′W / 38.150°N 84.517°W |
| Area | 1,224 acres (4.95 km2) |
| Established | 1978 |
| Visitors | 800,000 (in 2013) |
| Governing body | Kentucky Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet |
| http://www.kyhorsepark.com | |
Kentucky Horse Park is a working horse farm and an educational theme park opened in 1978 in Lexington, Kentucky. It is located off Kentucky State Highway 1973 (Iron Works Pike) and Interstate 75, at Exit 120, in northern Fayette County in the United States. The equestrian facility is a 1,224-acre (4.95 km2) park dedicated to "man's relationship with the horse." Open to the public, the park has a twice daily Horses of the World Show, showcasing both common and rare horses from around the globe. The horses are ridden in authentic costume. Each year the park is host to a number of special events and horse shows.
Additionally, the park contains the International Museum of the Horse, a Smithsonian Affiliate, which has a permanent collection of horse history and memorabilia, along with a rotating historical collection focused on a particular theme. Past themes include A Gift from the Desert (Arabia), Imperial China, and All the Queen's Horses (Britain).
Beginning with the 1979 arrival of Forego, one of the leading handicap horses of the 1970s, the Kentucky Horse Park has been home to some of the world's greatest competition horses, including John Henry, Horse of the Decade for the 1980s and the top money-winning Thoroughbred gelding in racing history. With the exception of a few months in 1986, John Henry lived at the park from 1985 until his death in 2007, alongside other racing greats such as Forego and his fellow 1970s champion Bold Forbes, and more recent residents Cigar, voted Horse of the Decade for the 1990s, and Da Hoss, the first horse to win Breeders' Cup races in non-consecutive years. In late 2008, the champions Alysheba and Funny Cide became residents, but Alysheba died at the park in March 2009. 1994 Kentucky Derby winner, Go For Gin, became a resident of the barn in 2011, while Cigar died at the park in 2014.
Besides Thoroughbred horses, Standardbred pacing greats such as Staying Together and Western Dreamer, Cam Fella (deceased) and Rambling Willie (deceased), and Standardbred trotting champion Mr. Muscleman have made the Kentucky Horse Park their home, as well as 5-gaited American Saddlebred geldings CH Gypsy Supreme, CH Imperator and CH Sky Watch (all deceased).
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