Title: 1952 Kentucky Derby General Admission Ticket Stub - 78th Annual Churchill Downs Grounds Pass - Hill Gail Victory - Vintage Horse Racing Ephemera
Description: This is an authentic, original 1952 Kentucky Derby general admission ticket stub from the historic 78th running of America's premier horse race, held on Saturday, May 3, 1952, at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. In a spectacular performance, the legendary colt Hill Gail, ridden by future Hall of Fame jockey Eddie Arcaro and trained by the iconic Ben A. Jones for Calumet Farm, captured a brilliant victory while tying the then-standing track record. This genuine green grounds pass stub represents a classic piece of post-war Triple Crown history. It is a fantastic addition for horse racing historians, sports ephemera collectors, and vintage sports enthusiasts alike.
Race/Item Specifications
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Event: 78th Running of the Kentucky Derby (1952)
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Race Winner: Hill Gail (Owned by Calumet Farm)
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Date: Saturday, May 3, 1952 (Derby Day)
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Venue: Churchill Downs (Louisville, KY)
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Admission Tier: General Admission Grounds Check — Section D, Ticket No. 25184
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Original Price Breakdown: $2.13 Established Price + $0.42 Federal Tax = $2.55 Total
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Item Type: Genuine Vintage Race Ticket Stub
Detailed Condition & Flaw Report
This 74-year-old racing stub is explicitly sold as-is. Please read the structural physical details carefully before purchasing:
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Front Surface & Graphics: The front face features a pale green textured security background with a darker forest green decorative checkerboard framing border and a large stamped "D" section identifier. All original typography, the pricing matrix, serial numbers, and the "Churchill Downs 1952" logo are fully crisp and clear. The front surface is incredibly clean, showing no modern ink signatures, pencil scoring marks, or heavy scuffs. A tiny speck of natural handling soil or paper aging is present on the lower right border tip.
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Reverse Side Condition: The back of the stub features a clean layout detailing the Churchill Downs, Inc. legal disclaimer and general admission restrictions printed by "The Arcus Ticket Co. Chicago". It features the printed signature of track president Bill Cammack. The reverse surface shows excellent preservation; it is entirely free of heavy scrapbook glue stains or extensive paper skinning, exhibiting only an old, faint trace of edge handling wear along the left torn boundary.
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Edges & Corners: The right-hand margin features a rough, hand-torn edge from where the gate entry pass was separated by the track attendant at Churchill Downs, showing standard vintage edge fraying and minor uneven paper fibers. The top, bottom, and left margins are clean, uniform, and straight-cut. The four corners exhibit very minor softening and light rubbing from handling but remain well-defined without severe layer splitting.
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Creases & Bends: The cardstock body sits completely flat and sturdy. It is entirely free of heavy vertical pocket creases, deep horizontal fold lines, or surface wrinkling across the main typography fields.
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Photo Reminder: Please examine all high-resolution listing photos closely to verify the exact edges, front-side crispness, and reverse-side scrapbook glue stains before placing your order.
Shipping & Store Logistics:
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Combined Shipping Savings: Purchasing multiple collectible items, vintage entertainment programs, or pieces of historical ephemera? Add them all to your shopping cart before checking out to automatically receive our flat-rate combined shipping discount on your entire order. Plus, get FREE shipping on most orders with a subtotal over $50 (some exclusions apply)! Browse our store to add more to your collection and save.
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Archival-Safe Protection: Mid-century paper programs are highly prone to edge nicks, rolling, or folding if improperly packaged. To protect your investment, this 1952 Kentucky Derby ticket stub will be safely enclosed in a protective sleeve, placed between heavy cardboard reinforcement panels, and shipped inside a clean, rigid, crush-resistant box to ensure it arrives flat.
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Tracked Delivery: All orders are securely packed and shipped promptly with tracking numbers sent directly to you via email.
