1877 Kentucky Derby
The 1877 Kentucky Derby was the 3rd running of the Kentucky Derby. The race took place on May 22, 1877. The 1877 Derby was the first to attract a major celebrity spectator, Polish actress Helena Modjeska. Mint juleps, sometimes associated with the Derby, were first served at this race to Modjeska. Baden-Baden, the horse that won, went on to win the Travers Stakes, one of only ten horses to do this. William Walker, his jockey, was one of the Black jockeys who dominated the sport in the South after the Civil war. He went on to become a respected expert and advisor on Thoroughbred and attended every Derby for the rest of his life.