Overview
Canterbury Park has emerged as one of Minnesota’s most popular entertainment destinations. Located in Shakopee about 25 minutes south of downtown Minneapolis, it offers live horseracing during the summer and simulcast tele-racing throughout the year. The newly-created Canterbury Card Club offers 50 tables with poker and a variety of casino style games. Throughout the year, Canterbury Park hosts concerts, snowmobile races, craft shows, business meetings and other events at its 367-acre facility.

History of Canterbury Park

Early Years at the Downs

Horse racing came to Minnesota in 1985 when Canterbury Downs opened its gates in Shakopee. The track opened to enthusiastic acclaim and high expectation for development of a new industry in

Minnesota – horse racing.

But in the late 1980s and early 1990s, pressure from additional gaming had a devastating effect on track operations. During the1980s, Minnesota saw significant growth in the charitable gambling sector, followed by the authorization of the Minnesota Lottery in 1989. Tribal gaming compacts were first signed with the state in 1988, and Mystic Lake opened its doors in 1992 just 5 miles from Canterbury Downs. The odds were too much to overcome, and after the 1992 racing season Canterbury Downs closed.

Racing Revival Under New Management

That's when several local horsemen, led by Curtis and Randy Sampson and Dale Schenian, stepped in. They weren't interested in owning the track, but after a year of struggling to find investors they decided to do it themselves. The Canterbury Park Holding Corporation was formed and the track was purchased in 1994. Canterbury Park is a publicly traded company (Amex: ECP) with over 2,500 shareholders, the majority of whom are Minnesotans.

Live racing returned to Canterbury Park in 1995 and the track made a small profit in 1996. Purses gradually increased and the racing season lengthened as customer support continued to grow. Today, over 1 million visitors attend horse racing, concerts, fairs and other live events at Canterbury Park, with more than 1,000 people employed at the facility.  

Card Club Injection

In 1999, the Minnesota Legislature agreed that racing purses needed a boost, and authorized the Canterbury Card Club. In just under four years, the Card Club has helped revive Minnesota's horse industry. Race purses have increased by more than $4 million, which drives Minnesota's breeding industry. Although still not

back to the levels of the mid-1980's, the number and value of Minnesota-bred horses has risen since the opening of the club. 

Canterbury Park is about to start its eleventh year of managing gaming in Minnesota. Its success as a responsible manager of gaming and entertainment has been recognized nationally. In 2001, Forbes Magazine named Canterbury Park as one of the 200 best small companies in America.

Commitment To Community

In 2003, Canterbury Park Holding Corporation upped the ante in our long tradition of charitable giving, pledging through the Minnesota Keystone Program to give back at least five percent of pre-tax profits to charity annually.

As part of that initiative, Canterbury Park founded the Canterbury Park Minnesota Fund, a donor-advised community fund. Under the mission of giving to organizations that benefit equine and agricultural causes, local communities and responsible gaming programs, thefund approved over $100,000 in grant monies during its initial round of giving.