Sagamore Farm
You don’t get many chances in life to be a part of the story in restoring the legacy of a historic institution, and I am honored to be able to say that I was a part of three of such projects; Sagamore Farm being the first. While an associate with Blackburn Architects, I led the design team for the restoration of the old Vanderbilt farm from 2007 until I moved on from the firm in 2014.
Location
Glyndon, MD
Project Type
Equestrian - Thoroughbred Breeding + Training
Project Scope
Renovations + New Construction
Years Involved
2007 - 2014
Scale
530 acres
20-stall Broodmare
16-stall Foaling
24-stall Yearling
10-bedroom Dormitory (8,100 gsf)
Project Team
Sagamore Leadership
Blackburn Architects (architect)
Silman (structural)
Precise Buildings (barn contractor)
Mariner Custom Home (dorm contractor)
Restoring a Thoroughbred Racing Legacy
Sagamore has a rich story in the sport of thoroughbred racing. Established in 1925, it was owned by Isaac Edward Emerson of Baltimore, who assembled the property as a gift for his daughter, Margaret. After his death and on his instructions, Margaret Emerson Vanderbilt passed it to her son Alfred G. Vanderbilt, Jr. for his 21st birthday. As a member of New York's wealthy Vanderbilt family, Alfred would become the owner and president of Baltimore's Pimlico Race Course, President of Belmont Park, and served at various times as head of the New York Racing Association and the United States Jockey Club. In 1938, Vanderbilt staged the infamous match race between Seabiscuit and War Admiral at Pimlico.
The Vanderbilt/Sagamore Farm best known racehorses were Discovery, Bed o'Roses, and the ‘Galloping Grey Ghost’ Native Dancer, all of whom were inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. Native Dancer was one of the greatest race horses of all time with a record of 21-1-0, and one of only two horse to make the cover of Time magazine.
As with any property that has a rich history and extensive cost to operate and maintain, Sagamore fell into disrepair and was saved from becoming a housing development thanks to historic easements being placed on the property. In 2007 Maryland native Kevin Plank, CEO of Under Armour apparel company, bought the farm with a long-term plan for a major restoration.
Starting in 2007, we first prepared a structural assessment of the barns and developed a 15-year Master Plan, which outlined the priorities and timeframes for its redevelopment. We began the renovations with Broodmare + Foaling barns, new entries to the farm, roads, and new paddock layouts. In the barns, overhead haylofts were removed from above the stalls and continuous ridge skylights were added to provide vertical ventilation to the old dank barns. The red + white color scheme on the outside pays homage to the old racing farm, while modernizing the technology their appearance. But the historic roots were maintained - down to the diamond shaped tack boxes. The original wood framing was even salvaged and reused, for instance the tongue and groove hayloft old-growth pine floors were used to create the cabinets, desks, and storage in the barn offices.
In 2011, we designed the new 16-stall Yearling barn. Then in 2013 the 10-bedroom groom and farm manager dormitory, which replaced the old jockey dorm structure. During this time, we also prepared concepts for renovating the old Bank Barn to convert it into the home of Sagamore Whiskey, but discovered that a prohibition era law still on the books prevented a distillery from being established on agricultural land.
In 2020 Kevin announced he is getting out of the sport, and the historic 530-acre farm will transition into supplying rye, corn and limestone-filtered spring water to support a his successful whiskey distillery in Baltimore. He plans to continue to maintain the farm, so it can continue its story.
Footage of the farm captured on a glorious October morning in 2014
