The late Allan Carter held an important role in New York thoroughbred racing, serving as the official historian of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. He channeled his passion for the state’s role in the sport’s storied past to author three books on the subject.

The most recent volume, NEW YORK’S GREATEST THOROUGHBREDS: A Contemporary History, was released just six weeks after Carter’s passing at the age of 81, following a year-long battle with lung cancer.

"NEW YORK’S GREATEST THOROUGHBREDS is an outstanding guide to the Empire State’s most accomplished thoroughbreds of the past half-century."

The New York-bred thoroughbred spent most of the 20th century as an underdog, often overlooked for unfashionable pedigrees or its distance from Kentucky. However, New York-breds rose to increasing levels of national prominence in the 1980s, winning top-level races and arguably reaching a peak with Funny Cide, the first Empire State-bred winner of the Kentucky Derby, in 2003.

In subsequent years, it has become standard for horses hailing from New York to win contests all over the world. They can and do compete at every level with the best international competitors.

Carter outlines the achievements of these racehorses in blurbs underneath their names, which are organized chronologically. This information is valuable to those looking for an overview of stellar New York-breds, and is coupled with a brief explanation of how changing legislation played a role in their progress.

I was anticipating a narrative that went into more detail about the horses, their connections and New York’s changing equine landscape. Still, I am happy to report that NEW YORK’S GREATEST THOROUGHBREDS is an outstanding guide to the Empire State’s most accomplished thoroughbreds of the past half-century.