--- description: It's been 37 years since the last horse won the Triple Crown. Here, a look back at the 1948 winner, Citation. title: Meet the Winner of the 1948 Triple Crown image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb2b2518e68a60065/69885105f887dc176de90922/150520-citation-triple-crown-01.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Meet the Winner of the 1948 Triple Crown by [Liz Ronk](/author/liz-ronk/) ## Liz Ronk Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 3, 2015 12:00 PM CUT  1948 Triple Crown winner Citation at Calumet Farm in Lexington, Ky. 1948 Triple Crown winner Citation at Calumet Farm in Lexington, Ky.Tony Linck—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images by [Liz Ronk](/author/liz-ronk/) ## Liz Ronk Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 3, 2015 12:00 PM CUT This Saturday, June 6, will mark the 147th running of the Belmont Stakes, the final leg of racing’s elusive Triple Crown. It has been 37 years since the last winner, Affirmed, earned the title in 1978\. This year, American Pharoah, having already won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes, will become the third horse in four years to attempt the feat. In 1948, LIFE Magazine took a closer look at Citation, a winning 3-year-old colt from Calumet Farm. A Triple Crown hopeful, he was also the top money-maker for the Lexington, Ky., farm, which had previously produced a winner with Whirlaway in 1941. “In 14 months of competition Citation has won 16 out of 18 starts, including the 1948 Kentucky Derby and the Preakness,” LIFE wrote. “If he also wins the Belmont Stakes on June 12 he will become the eighth horse to gallop off with racing’s ‘triple crown.’” As history is already written, we know that Citation did in fact go on to win the Triple Crown – and decisively, at that. He would also become the first thoroughbred to achieve millionaire status. Will American Pharoah break the decades-long losing streak? Odds are certainly against him (although the bookies might beg to differ), but the racing community is rooting for him, hoping to add his name to the list of the world’s greatest racehorses.  June 7, 1948 issue of LIFE magazine. LIFE Magazine  1948 Triple Crown winner Citation at Calumet Farm in Lexington, Ky. Tony Linck—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  1948 Triple Crown winner Citation at Calumet Farm in Lexington, Ky. Tony Linck—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Working out, Citation (right) is accompanied by lead pony to keep him calm. On lead pony is Trainer Jimmy Jones, son of Calumet's famed Ben Jones. Tony Linck—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Munching grass is a luxury for Citation after workout. His daily diet, above average for racer, is 20 pounds of hay, 9 quarts of oats, 2 quarts of bran. Tony Linck—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  1948 Triple Crown winner Citation at Calumet Farm in Lexington, Ky. Tony Linck—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  1948 Triple Crown winner Citation at Calumet Farm in Lexington, Ky. Tony Linck—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Citation and Coaltown (left) are held by Jimmy Jones, Coaltown has won $47,950 for Calumet, finished second to Citation in Kentucky Derby. Tony Linck—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Guarded by a watchman, Citation peers out of stall screened to keep away flies and people. Tony Linck—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  1948 Triple Crown winner Citation at Calumet Farm in Lexington, Ky. Tony Linck—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3891348/1948-triple-crown/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3891348/1948-triple-crown/"},"headline":"Meet the Winner of the 1948 Triple Crown","datePublished":"2015-06-03T12:00:07.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:03:23.394Z","description":"As American Pharoah runs after horse racing's biggest title, a look back at a winner of yesteryear","url":"https://time.com/3891348/1948-triple-crown/","keywords":["Sports topic","photography","LIFE Magazine","Horse Racing","triple crown","1948"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb2b2518e68a60065/69885105f887dc176de90922/150520-citation-triple-crown-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Liz Ronk","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/liz-ronk/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb2b2518e68a60065/69885105f887dc176de90922/150520-citation-triple-crown-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"1948 Triple Crown Winner Citation","caption":"1948 Triple Crown Winner Citation","creditText":"Tony Linck—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3891348/1948-triple-crown/","name":"Meet the Winner of the 1948 Triple Crown"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Know Right Now: American Pharaoh Sets Sights on Triple Crown","description":"American Pharaoh is looking to clinch the first Triple Crown win since 1978.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/vgBTAhhZ/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-06-02T20:14:33.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/vgBTAhhZ.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3891348/1948-triple-crown/","duration":"PT1M1S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3891348/1948-triple-crown/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```