Book Synopsis
Older histories of America's first and greatest sport are peppered with a few untruths. But when it comes to the first California horses to run for gold, just about everything is upside-down.
This book is the first to expose the half-truths about Black Swan, an Australian import universally lauded as the region's first Thoroughbred. Except that she was not. The author tackles her Down Under roots, her fraudulent playboy importer, her complete California resume, and the oddball team of a Spanish don and a Cherokee pioneer that was responsible for the Golden State's first sporting spectacle.
Along the way, the author reveals which horses deserved the accolade of "first," while settling every other important Californian horse racing mystery forever. And debunks a famous piece of art in the process.