The Montanan Called Spokane

May, 1889. The boisterous crowd at Churchill Downs went silent as two horses lunged for the finish line, well ahead of the rest. One was the massive Proctor Knott, a Kentucky horse, winner of the Futurity, and the obvious favorite. The other was Spokane, a much smaller horse, whom the Chicago Daily Tribune quoted as having eight to one odds (though other sources say six to one).

Spokane’s owner, Noah Armstrong had made his fortune in Montana. He had his fingers in a number of pies, but the most notable piece of his empire was the Helca Corporation silver mines. With his fortune secured, Armstrong had turned to one of his great passions: horse racing. He built a grand three story round barn, complete with an indoor quarter mile training track, outside of Twin Bridges. He also bought a bred mare, Interpose, and brought her to Montana. While at a meeting in Spokane, Washington he received word that the mare had given birth. In celebration he named the foal Spokane. Spokane had a distinguished record as a two year old, and was favored to place at the 1889 Kentucky Derby, but the field was too strong for anyone to think he would win.

Spokane and Proctor Knott finished neck-and-neck, so close that no one in the stands could tell who won. A few moments later, the crowd erupted as Spokane’s number came up. Spokane, the little horse from Montana, had won the Kentucky Derby. He finished the mile and a half track in 2 minutes, 31.5 seconds, setting the Derby record. In 1896, the Kentucky Derby was shortened to one and one quarter miles, meaning that Spokane’s record will never be beaten. If there’s any doubts as to who was the superior horse, Spokane went on to beat Proctor Knott in two more prestigious races.

The distinctive red barn where Spokane was born and trained still sits north of Twin Bridges.