from Harness Racing Communications, a division of the USTA

Freehold, NJ — The Fourth of July celebration in Goshen, New York, might be just 90 minutes from New York City, but it’s 150 years back in time.

The county seat of Orange County, Goshen is home to the 26th annual Great American Weekend celebration — two days of activities that celebrate the nation’s independence. Activities are centered in and around the town’s historic, tree-ringed green, surrounded by stone office buildings, churches, and Queen Anne-style homes dating to the late 1700’s.

Goshen is home to Historic Track, a harness racing track that opened in 1838, and the country’s oldest active horse racing track. There’s been trotting horse racing in the village of Goshen since the Revolutionary War era and it will once again take place over the July 4th holiday, on June 30, July 1, 2, 3 and 4 at 1:00 p.m. True to history, there is no betting and stables are open to the public.

The track is on the National Park Service’s registry of historic landmarks and is located in the heart of the small town. Private homes line one boundary of the track and residents host cookouts for their guests to watch races and munch hot dogs.

Racing fans sit in a circa 1920 grandstand that was a gift from philanthropist Mary Averill Harriman.

On July 1, fans can cheer Harness Racing Hall of Fame drivers and meet them in an autograph session after the race. Admission is $3.00 for adults, children 12 and younger are free. For information call the track at (845) 294-5333.

The rest of Goshen’s Fourth of July celebration takes place on June 30 and July 1. All events are on or near the town green, running from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 30 and Sunday, July 1. Events include continuous musical entertainment, a craft show, road races, book sale and story time at the library and food tents with festive fare. For more information, contact the Goshen Chamber of Commerce at (845) 294-7741.

Directly adjacent to the racetrack is the Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame, which offers free admission. Housed in a 1920s-era Tudor carriage house, the museum interprets the history of harness racing throughout the world and is home to several priceless collections. Among them is a sterling silver Faberge soup tureen created for Czar Nicholas of Russia and given to New Yorker CKG Billings when he raced his fine trotters in Russia. The museum is also home to what is believed to be the largest single collection of Currier & Ives equine prints.

The museum’s most popular exhibit is the racing simulator theater, where guests get a 3-D presentation of racing as if they’re driving in a race, feeling the wind in their hair and jiggling along with every step of the speeding horse. Induction ceremonies for the Harness Racing Hall of Fame are held on July 1 at 6:00 p.m.

For information on The Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame, call (845) 294-6330 or visit www.harnessmuseum.com.

IF YOU GO: Goshen is 65 miles north of New York City. It is accessible via the Shortline Bus from Port Authority in NYC. From the south, take the New York State Thruway to Exit 16 (Harriman) and Route 17 west to Exit 124. Left off the ramp and right at the next light will put you in front of the town green. From the north, take the Thruway south to I-84 and go west to Exit 4 and Route 17. Take Route 17 east to Exit 124. Airports are Stewart in Newburgh, N.Y., about 25 minutes away, or Newark, N.J., about an hour south.

LODGING: There are several motel chains with lodging in the Goshen area. The Dobbins Inn is just steps from the museum, www.dobbinsinn.com, (845) 294-5526. There are a number of bed and breakfasts within 20 minutes of Goshen. Among those are the Brass Rose Inn (Warwick, rates $80-200, (845) 986-5603) and The Hambletonian House B & B (Chester, (845) 469-6425). For more visit www.new-york-inns.com.