Little Brown Jug and Delaware County Fair

The Little Brown Jug is one of the most important harness races in North America — part of the sport's informal Triple Crown for three-year-old pacers — and it has been held in Delaware every September since 1946. The race takes place at the Delaware County Fairgrounds racetrack on the north side of the city, as part of the Delaware County Fair.

The fair runs for a week in mid-September and brings a genuine county-fair atmosphere: livestock competitions, carnival rides, midway food, and the sharp smell of horses. The racing grandstand fills with fans who know their harness racing, and the atmosphere on race day is energetic without being overwhelming.

If you are visiting Delaware outside of September, the fairgrounds and half-mile racetrack are still visible on the north side of town, though quiet. The race itself is the reason to time a visit.

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The Little Brown Jug takes its name from a popular nineteenth-century song about a farmer and his jug of whiskey — the race's founders had a sense of humor. Since 1946 the race has been held on the third Thursday in September at the Delaware County Fairgrounds, and the winner's connections receive a small brown ceramic jug as the trophy. It is one of harness racing's Triple Crown events, alongside the Hambletonian and the Kentucky Futurity.