A recent question from a reader brought up the subject of Devonshire Racetrack.
As Windsor tries to shed its “sin city” moniker, a look back at our history shows we’ve always been the playground for what the Americans can’t have. There was a time when Windsor boasted 3 Horse racing tracks. The Windsor Jockey Club, Kenilworth Racetrack, and Devonshire Racetrack.
Horse racing was once illegal in Michigan, and as a result, Windsor cashed in on what our neighbours to the north couldn’t get at home. The postcard of the racetrack above dates to about 1927.
Photo from the DTE Energy collection @ Wayne State University
This aerial view shows the ghost of Devonshire Racetrack in 1967, on a site that would soon see construction erect our illustrious Devonshire Mall. How original of a name. Look across Howard Ave, and you’ll see the old Roundhouse, which gave way to the equally imaginatively named Roundhouse Centre.
I’m not sure when the track operated, but I know it outlived the Jockey Club, that gave way to Jackson Park in 1930. Once Michigan legalized Horce Racing, our industry went in the crapper. You would think that after all these years we would learn to stop relying on our Northern neighbours so much…
I grew up around Jackson Park and remember when I was young being able to see some of the footings for the racetrack that was there. My father had pointed them out to me at the time. Not sure if I could find them again, but what a neat little parcel of Windsor history underfoot at Sunken Gardens, errr… Queen E II Gardens.
I quite like that the mall is named Devonshire and the Roundhouse the uh, Roundhouse. Sometimes there is a complete obliteration of history — so at least the names live on.
I’m trying to remember — the Roundhouse building is gone right? Where Toys r us now (I can’t remember if it’s tucked in behind….but now I’m remembering riding my bike along the tracks, and it’s all big box).
Too bad it couldn’t have been saved and converted. Our Roundhouse up here in Toronto (at the base of the CN Tower) is about to partially become a Leons, to the horror of many. However it is allowing for a railway museum in the space too (the Steamwhistle brewery is also in the building).
I remember the Roundhouse in its final days and it was in really rough shape. You could tell the railroad had no plans for its future just by looking at it falling apart. It was right next to the offramp for the E.C. Row , so yes…. just about where Toys R Us is now.
A question that shows I really don’t know Windsor very well……
Was that a Canadian National roundhouse at one time? I thought they used the one by the river between the ferry dock and Walkerville as their service facility……
Given the proximity to the tracks, I’d say CNR would be right.
I grew up in Remington Park in the 1960’s. We used to cross the Grand Marais drainage ditch and then what was the original two lane E.C. Row to play in the ruins of the devonshire Race Track. Even then the ruins of the track were still standing (stone gates, grand stands etc.) Many portions of the property were under about three feet of water so we used to build rafts and cruise about. Frogs and polywogs were plentiful then. At one time a woman was murdered there and her body was found in several pieces. I believe that crime was never solved. Maybe someone from the local blogosphere might like to follow up on that.
In the photo it looks like E.C. Row (the road) ended at Howard.
Even as late as the early 80s my mom would drive us to the mall along the old E.C. row all the the way (before the expy was extended to Tecumseh).
I still like seeing the bits of the old road that exist along various sides of the expressway.
Greetings All. As for the roundhouse and tracks in the photo-it was NewYork Central RR. The rail history, lineage if you will is as follows, CanadaSouthern (CASO), Michigan Central, NewYork Central, PenCentral, Conrail, and now is joint ownership CP and CN with CN having control of this section. paul
Thanks Paul.
The railway’s ’roundhouse’ was right alongside Howard. Note the curve of the x’way off ramp from east bound E.C.Row to southbound Howard. The roundhouse was right where the ramp meets Howard. It’s now part of the parking lot. The Toys ‘R Us is located at the back of the property about 200’ or so from where the roundhouse itself was. Go to the far back where some idiot decided to build the former White Rose store and the new Linen ‘n Things, back in the 60s it was all overgrown and in several feet of water. People back then and still do today walk thru paths to get from South Windsor to the Devonshire Mall. Lots of hidden pathways that the railroads don’t want people walking on.
At any rate, that is an excellent picture of the old Devonshire Raceway and you can see the Kenilworth track in the bottom left corner of the picture as well.
The expressway was not yet built when that picture was taken.
Awww the good old days.
Before EC Rowe was built, that road was a Sandwich East Twsp road called 3rd Concession. It went from Howard east as far as Banwell which is where Tecumseh town limits started. It was 2 lanes. You can see remnants of it from behind the mall alongside EC Rowe to Turner, and east of Walker , it picks back up at Central and becomes N. Service Road. to Pillette. . East of Lauzon, it is S. Service Road.
I know this has not been replied to in some time, but,the woman that died on this site was told to me by my parents. Her name was Judy Kane. She was in her 20’s. I was very young, so she is just a name to me, but I thought I would answer that question for Pete A. And yes, it was because she had not been found for a few days that her body was dragged & they believed it was dogs that pulled her along that caused the damage & the seperation of the body parts.It remains, to this day, an unsolved mystery.
I remember my Dad hoisting me on his shoulders to see races at the old Devonshire and Kenilworth tracks. Around 1949 – 50ish, an ex horseman named Doug Hayes rented the old Devonshire building and lived there with his wife Doris. They held hay rides and sled rides for various groups. I helped one winter in making the gallons of hot chocolate for the guests to drink after the cold sled ride. Just beyond the old roundhouse there were a row of apartments called “the flats”. My parents lived in one of the attached houses for three years when they were just starting out. That area has a lot of history buried under shopping malls.
I don’t recall the old roundhousebut i do remember the old coaling tower that was close to it and a couple old section buildings a friends dad workedfor the NYC as a brakeman
John that roundhouse belonged to the NEW YORK CENTRAL the CN had theirs on the river front
shirley the 3rd concession you mentioned was the original E C ROW a 2 lane tar road
there was another racetrack just off Howard ave called Dayus but i don’t think it was a horse track
Dayus Speedway stock car racing on Howard Av. and Checker Flag in Tecumseh in the old days.
How do I access the DTE historical air photos? The link in this page is not direct. If anyone knows how/if i can access these online, please email me at jon.choquette@gmail.com
Much appreciated
-Jonathan
Here you go Jonathan http://tinyurl.com/5tp4unr 🙂
We lived in the 2200 block of Howard. When the circus came to town for Emancipation Day or the Firemen’s Field Day, the whole troupe would leave the roundhouse and parade down Howard in front of our house. There’d be wagons with tigers, clowns and everything that made a circus. The best was always last and that of course was the steam powered caliope which could be heard for blocks. Oh, for the days of steam engines! As kids, we’d put pennies on the tracks at the Powell siding or lay flat on homebuilt rafts in the ditch behind Jackson Park. When the locos would pass between McDougal and Dougal, they’d vent their steam in these massive white clouds over the ditch. No one was stupid enough to raise his head above the raft as we lay there, deafened by the noise.