Richard Duchossois, patriarch of Arlington, dies at age 100

Richard Duchossois was decorated as a World War II veteran, respected as a hard-nosed businessman and revered as the patriarch of Chicagoland horse racing.

Four months after his baby, Arlington Park, was sold to the Chicago Bears, the man known as “Mr. D” died Friday. He was 100. Associates said his health had deteriorated in recent months. A news release said Duchossois died at his home in the Chicago suburb Barrington Hills.

“We are profoundly saddened today by the loss of Richard Duchossois,” said CEO Bill Carstanjen of Churchill Downs, the company that bought Arlington from Duchossois and then sold it just before he became a centenarian. “His impact on those of us involved in this industry was simply immeasurable.”

Born Oct. 7, 1921, and raised in Chicago, Duchossois left Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Va., in 1942 to fight in World War II. As a U.S. Army officer, he was assigned to a tank-destroyer battalion under the command of Gen. George Patton in France, where he was wounded while playing a role in an offensive that led to Germany’s retreat and surrender.

In 1952 he became CEO of Chicago-based Thrall Car Manufacturing Company. In the coming years Duchossois would acquire Chamberlain Manufacturing and then delve into horse racing with his purchase of the Hill ’N Dale breeding operation in Barrington, Ill.

It was in the summer of 1983 when Duchossois joined a group of investors led by track president Joe Joyce to pay at least $19 million to buy Arlington Park from Gulf+Western.

Only two years later, the track grandstand burned down in a predawn electrical fire that got out of control. Refusing to accept defeat, Duchossois doubled down on his investment. First he saw to it that the debris was cleared and temporary seating and tents were set up to host the fifth annual Arlington Million. That 1985 running has been called the “Miracle Million” ever since.

Before he fully committed to rebuilding the track, Duchossois bought out his partners and then offered to build a new facility in Lake County. He proposed to flip the Arlington land into an industrial complex. Asking for tax breaks in return, Duchossois was turned down by the Illinois General Assembly.

That first of many clashes with the government had Duchossois threatening to build a new racetrack just over the state line in Wisconsin. In the end, he would authorize the building of a splashy, new grandstand in 1987 where the old one stood. When it was completed two years later, it reopened under the new name Arlington International Racecourse.

The track became the centerpiece of Thoroughbred racing in the upper Midwest, hosting Cigar’s record 16th consecutive victory in 1996. But a year later, after growing weary of seeing gambling spread to riverboats and failing to get slot machines at his track, Duchossois closed Arlington Park. There would be no racing there for 2 1/2 years.

Only a month after he finally reopened Arlington Park in the spring of 2000, Duchossois sold the track to Churchill Downs Inc.

At first the relationship was good. Together they hosted the 2002 Breeders’ Cup. Five years later, CDI invested in a trendy, new Polytrack racing surface. With a sterling reputation for having one of the cleanest, most pristine racing plants in the world, Arlington also did a steady business with its simulcast wagering facility.

Steady, but dwindling. Under siege from alternative forms of gambling, the horse-racing business began to shrink nationwide. No longer an influential voice at CDI, Duchossois watched as the company first joined the call for racetracks to get sports betting and expanded gaming options. When the state legislature finally said yes, CDI did an about-face and decided not to apply for them, at least not at Arlington.

The racetrack Duchossois rebuilt was put up for sale, and CDI announced it no longer would apply for racing dates after closing day of the 2021 meet on Sept. 25. Four days later, the Bears said they were paying $197.2 million to buy Arlington and its 326 acres, presumably to build a stadium to replace Soldier Field.

Arlington general manager Tony Petrillo said Duchossois stayed away from the track since the outbreak of COVID. Petrillo said last September he still stayed in touch with the man who hired him nearly 29 years ago.

“The more you speak with him the sharper he gets,” Petrillo said. “I just cherish those hours that I get to spend with him. There were days where we would sit for three hours and go over the same subject in detail so many times. He presented things to you in so many different ways. He was really trying to teach whoever he was working with and pass on his knowledge and his experience. I’m forever grateful for that.”