When it comes to fillies and the Santa Anita Derby, one name immediately comes to mind: Winning Colors. And that is perfectly understandable. After all, this front-running filly ran big to win the 1988 renewal en route to taking victory in the Kentucky Derby a few weeks later.

That Santa Anita Derby score came not long after Winning Colors defeated fellow fillies in the Santa Anita Oaks, giving her a very rare double in Santa Anita lore.

While Winning Colors will forever be remembered for that achievement in Arcadia, she was not the first one to sweep those longtime staples on Huntington Drive.

That distinction belongs to another filly who beat Winning Colors to it about thirty years earlier.

A daughter of the legendary Citation, Silver Spoon entered the first phase of that double undefeated. In her first four starts, she won on debut at Belmont Park in September of 1958 before notching the next three at Santa Anita between late December of that year and late January of 1959. Already a proven sprinter by that point in her career, Silver Spoon had topped rivals at both six and six and one-half furlongs. The class she inherited from Big Cy was evident as well, for those latter two outings came in Santa Anita's La Centinela and Santa Ynez Stakes. But her next start called for a new assignment: routing.

Race number five in the career of Silver Spoon came in the Santa Susana Stakes, which later turned into the Santa Anita Oaks. The Santa Susana consisted of a mile and one-sixteenth, a sizable increase in distance compared to six and one-half furlongs. But being a daughter of the 1948 Triple Crown champion, going long seemed to be within the wheelhouse of Silver Spoon's abilities as a racehorse.

And was it ever.

Heavily favored at .65-1, Silver Spoon and jockey Ray York went to second place early, letting Gun Box and Bill Shoemaker set the tempo early. But after getting the lead by the three-quarters mark, Silver Spoon and York owned the Santa Susana. After a mile and one-sixteenth in 1:41 4/5, the duo finished up a whopping 10 1/2 lengths ahead of runner up Miss Uppity, who was piloted by Ralph Neves. It was complete dominance, and the fact that Silver Spoon had Citation as a sire might have brought back some memories of Big Cy to those who saw his daughter dominate her rivals.

After the Santa Susana came the Santa Anita Derby at a mile and one-eighth. The public liked Silver Spoon's chances, making her 1.50-1 in the wagering as she was again the top choice in a field of ten. If she won, she would accomplish what Ciencia had back in 1939: winning the Santa Anita Derby as a filly.

With York aboard again, Silver Spoon closely followed the leaders like she did in the Santa Susana. Fightin Indian took control early with Ole Fols right behind in second and Silver Spoon third. That remained the order for a little while before Silver Spoon had second place at the six furlong checkpoint. Only Fightin Indian was ahead of her now. And that would not be for too much longer.

Getting the lead in the stretch, Silver Spoon matched Ciencia, arriving at the wire 2 1/2 lengths clear of Royal Orbit. That gave C.V. Whitney, Silver Spoon's owner, a chance to experience something his dad had more than four decades earlier. In 1916, Harry Payne Whitney was the owner of Regret, who beame the first filly to win the Kentucky Derby. C.V. now had his special filly, and they would indeed go to Louisville that May.

Silver Spoon was unable to join Regret or Citation as a Kentucky Derby champion, finishing fifth while over three lengths behind the winner. But Silver Spoon would follow her sire as a divisional champion. She did not win any of the Triple Crown races like Citation did, but the Triple Crown still played a role in Silver Spoon's campaign.

When all was said and done, she would own a victory over both Kentucky Derby winner Tomy Lee and Preakness Stakes winner Royal Orbit. Both finished ahead of her in Louisville, but Silver Spoon beat Royal Orbit in the Santa Anita Derby and Tomy Lee in the Cinema Handicap at Hollywood Park later that spring. Those victories played an important part in Silver Spoon being named Champion Three-Year-Old Filly by the Thoroughbred Racing Association (TRA) , while Daily Racing Form (DRF) chose Royal Native for the honor.

Along with being a divisional award winner, Silver Spoon emulated Citation in another way. They both did something unprecedented in front of Southern California racing fans. Citation became the sport's first millionaire when he retired as winner of the Hollywood Gold Cup in 1951. And Silver Spoon became the first horse to sweep Santa Anita's top three-year-old events for males and females.

In that sense, Silver Spoon really was her dad's daughter.