History
A new half-mile track was built in 1939 at Delaware, OH, to host harness racing at the annual Delaware County Fair. It quickly became known as one of the fastest tracks in the country
Through the efforts of Joe Neville, combined with the speed of the track, Delaware won some Grand Circuit racing dates.
Neville felt that there was too much emphasis on trotters throughout Standardbred racing, and he began a campaign to hold a major race for 3-year-old pacers at the track.
The Delaware newspaper held a contest to name the race, and "Little Brown Jug" was the winning entry. Neville became president of the Little Brown Jug Society, which was organized to stage the Grand Circuit meeting.
After successful preview races in 1944 and 1945, the Little Brown Jug was established as a Grand Circuit race in 1946, with a purse of $35,358. The premiere event was won by Ensign Hanover, driver by Wayne "Curly" Smart, who later became superintendent of the track.
When the pacing Triple Crown was established in 1956, the Little Brown Jug became one of the three races, along with the Cane Pace and the Messenger Stakes.