1962 Irish Sweeps Derby Hospital Lottery Ticket Stub and Counterfoil - Complete Ticket - 1962 Ireland Hospitals Trust Sweepstakes Ticket

This listing is for the photographed 1962 Irish Hospitals Sweepstakes/ Irish Sweeps Derby Lottery Ticket Stub and Counterfoil. This ticket was part of the Irish Free State Lottery, with this lottery ticket valid only for the drawing at the Irish Sweeps Derby at The Curragh, Ireland, in 1962. As explained on the ticket, the closing date of the lottery was May 28th, 1962. Both the lottery ticket stub and separated counterfoil are included, a rarer complete/full ticket for this lottery! The ticket stub and counterfoil are in Extremely Fine (XF/EF) grade/condition, having some minor visible signs of circulation. Incredibly interesting and beautiful piece from a famous event! Must have for any collection!

The Irish Hospitals' Sweepstakes was a lottery established in the Irish Free State in 1930 with the goal of financing hospitals across Ireland. These lotteries proved to be very successful, especially with foreign participants from countries like the United States and the United Kingdom where national lotteries were prohibited. British and American buyers would illegally purchase Irish Sweepstakes tickets in the country, mailing themselves the ticket stubs in their home country. The Irish Hospitals' Sweepstakes proved to be incredibly successful in the decades following their establishment, largely due to its international popularity. The organization sponsored the 1962 Irish Sweeps Derby, which was held at the Curragh Racecourse in County Kildare, Ireland on June 30th, 1962. The derby was also the first televised Irish Sweeps Derby, showing on TV broadcasts in Ireland, the UK, and the US. The derby itself was historic, drawing massive crowds of Irish, British, American, and even Canadian audiences, an estimated 40,000 to 70,000 total attendees, in large part due to the incorporation of the derby with the Irish Hospitals' Sweepstakes Lottery. The race became the richest ever run in Europe, accruing immense profit from sold lottery tickets such as this one. Participants in the lottery would choose which horse they predicted would win or place in the race when purchasing their tickets, and each of the horses would be assigned to a specific ticket, which would be given to the participant. The lottery was directly connected to the outcome of the race, with the largest prizes being drawn from tickets associated with horses than won or placed in the race. The winner of the lottery won 50,000 pounds, showing the immense amount of money put into the event. 

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1962 Irish Sweeps Derby Hospital Lottery Ticket Stub and Counterfoil - Complete Ticket - 1962 Ireland Hospitals Trust Sweepstakes Ticket