1907
1907
Elias J. “Lucky” Baldwin, cash in hand, opens the original Santa Anita Park racetrack, a few blocks east of its current location, in what is now Arcadia Park. At the time owns much of Pasadena, Sierra Madre and Arcadia. 1935
1935
 The inaugural running of the Santa Anita Handicap is won by Azucar. The race’s build up and running, with its purse being an unheard of at the time $100,000, makes front page news of the Los Angeles times. 1942
1942
 From March 27 through October 27, 1942 the United States government used Santa Anita Park during World War II. This regrettable time in our nation's history has been remembered with a Memorial located near the Kingsbury Fountain. (Source of image & more information) 1978
1978
 Affirmed and Laffit Pincay Jr. win the Santa Anita Derby to set them on their run towards the 1978 Triple Crown title. Affirmed would go on to claim all three Triple Crown races that year and win Horse of the Year. 1982
1982
 John Henry wins his second Santa Anita Handicap, and is hailed as a modern-day Seabiscuit. Both horses are now immortalized in the Santa Anita Park statuary. 1984
1984
 Santa Anita Park plays host to equestrian events at the 1984 Olympic Summer Games in Los Angeles, California. 1987
1987
 Hall of Famer Laffit Pincay Jr. wins seven races in one day. Legendary hornblower, Jay Cohen, joins Santa Anita Park and persists as its iconic trumpeter today. 1999
1999
 The opening of the FrontRunner restaurant. The FrontRunner sits atop the Grandstands on the 5th floor featuring a 215 ft long bar and a seasonally revolving menu. 2005
2005
 Introduction of the Tokyo City Cup at Santa Anita, a celebration of its sister track in Japan, Ohi Racetrack. 2012
2012
 Zenyatta becomes one of three horses to be honored with a statue in the Santa Anita paddock gardens, joining 1930's star Seabiscuit and 1980's fan favorite John Henry. 2014
2014
 Hosted the Breeders’ Cup World Championships an unprecedented three years in a row. The two day event set a record in attendance and would be the eighth time Santa Anita played host to this world class event.
2016
2016
 Two tremendous battles unfolded in the 2016 Breeders' Cup World Championship hosted for a record ninth time at Santa Anita Park. Beholder wins the Distaff in a thrilling stretch battle over the undefeated Songbird. The Breeders' Cup Classic followed with an epic battle as Arrogate chased down heavy favorite California Chrome, surpassing his rival at the wire.  | 1934
1934
After the legalization of pari-mutuel gambling in 1933, San Francisco dentist Dr. Charles H. Strub and movie mogul, Hal Roach, create a new Santa Anita Park in its current location at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains and find success despite being in the midst of the Great Depression. 1940
1940
 Seabiscuit wins the 1940 Santa Anita Handicap after two previous attempts; the magnetic starting gate is first introduced into the Santa Anita Park meet. 1969
1969
 Tuesdee Testa becomes the first female jockey to win a race at Santa Anita Park. 1980
1980
 Spectacular Bid, with Bill Shoemaker aboard, has a perfect 1980 season. 1983
1983
 Santa Anita Park’s legendary announcer, Trevor Denman, joins Santa Anita and remained as its voice for 33 years before calling it quits at the end of 2015. 1986
1986
 Santa Anita Park hosts its first Breeders’ Cup World Championships. This spectacular event features the world's greatest horses, jockeys and trainers on one stage competing for millions of dollars. It would be the first of many that Santa Anita Park would host. 1990
1990
 Bill Shoemaker’s last ride and farewell speech at Santa Anita Park. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1958 and had one of the most memorable careers in Thoroughbred racing. 2002
2002
 Filming of the movie “Seabiscuit” takes place at Santa Anita Park with jockey Gary Stevens playing the role of George Woolf. “Seabiscuit” in the film is played by Fighting Furrari, who still entertains fans at Santa Anita Park today. 2009
2009
 Zenyatta becomes the first female to win the Breeders’ Cup Classic hosted at Santa Anita Park, helping her remain undefeated. With that win she also became the first to ever win two different Breeders' Cup races and her victory is remembered by many as the greatest moment in Breeders' Cup history.
2013
2013
 The Great Race Place went through a makeover of over $15 million in renovations including a brand new Club House Mezzanine featuring new eateries and state of the art HD television screens. The iconic Chandelier Room was also redesigned along with the inclusion of the new Eddie Logan Suite.
2015
2015
 Triple Crown Champion American Pharoah returns to Santa Anita Park to parade in front of over 28,000 fans in attendance. American Pharoah became the first horse in over 37 years to capture the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. 2018
2018
 Justify wins the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby en route to capturing the elusive Triple Crown, joining Seattle Slew as only the second undefeated three year old to do so.  |