# Matt Winn
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{{short description|American horse racing executive}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2021}}
{{Infobox person
| honorific_prefix = [Colonel](/source/Kentucky_Colonel)
| name = Matt Winn
| image = Matt Winn - 1912.jpg
| image_size =
| caption = Winn, 1912
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1861|06|30}}
| birth_place = [Louisville, Kentucky](/source/Louisville%2C_Kentucky), U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|October 6, 1949|June 30, 1861}}
| death_place = Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.
| death_cause =
| resting_place = [St. Louis Cemetery](/source/St._Louis_Cemetery_(Louisville))
Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.
| education =
| occupation = Horse racing executive
| known_for = The [Kentucky Derby](/source/Kentucky_Derby)
| political_party =
| spouse = Mollie Doyle
| children =
| parents =
| relatives =
| boards = President, [Churchill Downs Incorporated](/source/Churchill_Downs_Incorporated)
| honors = {{unbulleted list
| [Matt Winn Stakes](/source/Matt_Winn_Stakes) at [Churchill Downs](/source/Churchill_Downs)
| Matt Winn Dining Room at Churchill Downs
Matt Winn Steakhouse at Churchill Downs (2020-Present)
| [Racing Hall of Fame](/source/National_Museum_of_Racing_and_Hall_of_Fame) Pillar of the Turf )2017)
}}
}}
thumb|Matt Winn's picture appeared on the official 1949 Kentucky Derby Mint Julep Glass with the caption "He Has Seen Them All." He had seen every derby run, since the first derby in 1875, when he was 14 years old.
'''Martin J.''' "'''Matt'''" '''Winn''' (June 30, 1861 – October 6, 1949) was a prominent personality in [American](/source/United_States) [thoroughbred horse racing](/source/thoroughbred_horse_racing) history and president of [Churchill Downs](/source/Churchill_Downs) racetrack, home to the [Kentucky Derby](/source/Kentucky_Derby) race that he made famous. In 2017, he was inducted into the [National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame](/source/National_Museum_of_Racing_and_Hall_of_Fame) as a Pillar of the Turf.[{{cite web|title=Phipps, Gaines, Winn Named 2017 Pillars of the Turf|url=http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/221742/phipps-gaines-winn-named-2017-pillars-of-the-turf|website=BloodHorse.com|accessdate=24 May 2017|language=en}}]
==Biography==
Matt Winn was born in [Louisville, Kentucky](/source/Louisville%2C_Kentucky) on June 30, 1861.[{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/pressreferencebo00labr/page/123 |title=Press Reference Book of Prominent Kentuckians |editor-first=Ben |editor-last=LaBree |publisher=The Standard Printing Company |location=Louisville, Kentucky |page=123 |year=1916 |access-date=2021-12-23 |via=Internet Archive}}]
A businessman, he had been a racing enthusiast since the day his father brought him to see the first running of the Kentucky Derby in 1875. In 1902, Matt Winn was operating as a merchant tailor. He was asked by one of his clients, William E. Applegate, (who, at that time, owned over eighty percent of the New Louisville Jockey Club) to become involved in the reorganization and management of Churchill Downs. Winn came on board as vice president to run the catering operation and summer entertainment and in 1914 he was listed as general manager of the new Louisville Jockey Club.[{{Cite book|title=Churchill Downs: A Documentary History of America's Most Legendary Race Track|last=Thomas|first=Samuel W.|publisher=Kentucky Derby Museum|year=1995|isbn=0-9617103-2-2|location=Louisville, Kentucky|pages=8}}] A skilled marketer, in his first year running the racetrack, his promotions for the event saw the business make its first-ever annual profit. A few years later, Winn was involved in changing the wagering from [bookmaker](/source/bookmaker) betting to a [Parimutuel betting](/source/Parimutuel_betting) system and in 1911 increased business substantially by reducing the wager ticket from $5 to $2.
Matt Winn used his understanding of marketing to weave an aura of romance around the Kentucky Derby. In 1915, he convinced the multimillionaire sportsman [Harry Payne Whitney](/source/Harry_Payne_Whitney) to ship his highly rated filly [Regret](/source/Regret_(horse)) from [New Jersey](/source/New_Jersey) to Louisville to compete in the Derby. Whitney agreed, and Winn's effort paid off with nationwide publicity surrounding the first filly to ever win the Derby. Winn called Regret's victory a turning point, and he worked to create an event of exotic grandeur that women soon flocked to, coming from both [fashionable society](/source/Social_class) and the ordinary [working class](/source/working_class)es. Under Winn, the Kentucky Derby became the preeminent thoroughbred horse race in America and in recognition of his accomplishments, the [Governor of Kentucky](/source/Governor_of_Kentucky) bestowed on him the [honorary title](/source/Title_of_honor) of [Kentucky Colonel](/source/Kentucky_Colonel). In 1937, Winn and the Derby made the cover of the May 10 issue of [''Time'' magazine](/source/Time_(magazine)).
In 1944, Colonel Winn collaborated with [Frank G. Menke](/source/Frank_G._Menke) to publish ''Down The Stretch: The Story of Col. Matt J. Winn''.
He died in Louisville on October 6, 1949. He is buried in his family plot in [St. Louis Cemetery](/source/St._Louis_Cemetery_(Louisville)), 1215 Barret Avenue, Louisville.[{{Cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/91033833/col-matt-winn-dies-in-sleep/ |title=Col. Matt Winn Dies in Sleep |first=John |last=Dietrich |newspaper=[The Knoxville Journal](/source/The_Knoxville_Journal) |location=Louisville |agency=UP |page=21 |date=1949-10-07 |access-date=2021-12-23 |via=Newspapers.com}}] The [Matt Winn Stakes](/source/Matt_Winn_Stakes) for three-year-olds held each May at Churchill Downs was named in his honor.
==See also==
*[List of people from the Louisville metropolitan area](/source/List_of_people_from_the_Louisville_metropolitan_area)
==References==
{{reflist}}
===Sources===
* ''Horse Racing's Top 100 Moments'', Chapter 19: ''Matt Winn Saves Churchill Downs and the Derby'' by the Staff of [Blood Horse Publications](/source/Blood-Horse_Publications) (2006) [Eclipse Press](/source/Blood-Horse_Publications) {{ISBN|978-1-58150-139-1}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20101125045616/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,787858,00.html March 7, 1934 ''TIME'' magazine article on Matt Winn]
* [http://www.kentuckyderby.com/2009/about-churchill Matt Winn biography at the official Churchill Downs Incorporated website]
* [https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=888&dat=19491007&id=gMkKAAAAIBAJ&sjid=GU4DAAAAIBAJ&pg=1556,2821250 October 7, 1949 ''St. Petersburg Times'' obituary for Matt Winn]
==External links==
*[http://stevelutzphoto.smugmug.com/gallery/613250/14/30335575/ Photo of Matt Winn's grave, GPS coordinates: N 38 14 01.2; W 085 43 18.5] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716095801/http://stevelutzphoto.smugmug.com/gallery/613250/14/30335575/ |date=July 16, 2011 }}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Winn, Matt}}
Category:1861 births
Category:1949 deaths
Category:Businesspeople from Kentucky
Category:Churchill Downs executives
Category:Kentucky Derby
Category:Sportspeople from Louisville, Kentucky
Category:Burials at St. Louis Cemetery, Louisville
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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Matt Winn](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Winn) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Winn?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.