William Stamps Farish III

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William Stamps Farish III (born March 17, 1939 in Houston, Texas) is an American businessman and a former U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom (2001-2004).

Contents 1 Family 2 Business 3 Lane's End Farm 4 Relationship with the Bushes 5 Political Donor 6 Ambassador 7 Board memberships 8 External links 9 References

[edit] Family

His father, William Stamps Farish, Jr., was killed in an airplane accident during World War II. He is the grandson of William Stamps Farish II, who was President of Standard Oil from 1937 to 1942.

• Wife: Sarah
• Son: William Stamps Farish IV
• Daughters: Mary Farish Johnston, Laura Farish Chadwick, Hillary Farish Stratton
• Belongs to Augusta National Golf Club
• Belongs to Idle Hour Country Club

[edit] Business

Farish owns W.S. Farish & Co., a trust company based in Houston, Texas. In 2003, he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Kentucky.

[edit] Lane's End Farm

A breeder of Thoroughbred racehorses, William Farish owns the 1800 acre Lane's End Farm near Lexington, Kentucky. A leading breeder of horses that compete around the world, Lane's End Farm hosted Queen Elizabeth during her visit to Lexington.

Lane's End has a secondary 400 acre operation near Hempstead, Texas. Farish's operations have bred and/or raced over 225 horses that became stakes winners, both individually and with partners. In 1972, his horse Bee Bee Bee won the Preakness Stakes. In 1992 and again in 1999, he received the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Breeder.

William Farish has served as chairman of Churchill Downs, home to the Kentucky Derby.

[edit] Relationship with the Bushes

William Farish III has been a longtime family friend of President George W. Bush and is a major supporter of the Republican Party. Prescott Bush and William Farish II were business partners in the 1930s and 1940s. William Farish III served on the board of George H. W. Bush's Zapata Corporation starting in 1966. {{fact}

In 1980, W.S. Farish & Co. was appointed managers of Vice President Bush's blind trust. Millie, George W. Bush's White House Dog, was a gift of Farish and his wife, Sarah. Farish and Bush, Sr. are known to be occasional tennis partners.

In 1980, George H.W. Bush placed his father's family inherence in a blind trust managed by his old friend and quail hunting partner, William Stamps Farish III.

Farish's grandfather, William Farish, on March 25th, 1942, pleaded no contest to conspiring with Nazi Germany while president of Standard Oil in New Jersey. He was described by Senator Harry Truman in public of approaching "treason" for profiting off the Nazi war machine. Standard Oil, invested millions in IG Farben, who opened a gasoline factory within Auschwitz in 1940.^{[citation needed]}

President George W. Bush appointed Farish American Ambassador to London.

[edit] Political Donor

Farish's contributions to the Republican Party include:

• $100,000 to the Bush-Cheney inauguration committee fund
• $26,875 to Republican candidates and parties between 1999-2000, including the maximum $1,000 to President Bush's campaign
• $5,000 to the Bush-Cheney vote recount

Farish's support for Democrats was limited to a single contribution of $1000 to the unsuccessful campaign of former Rep. Scotty Baesler (D-Ky.).

William Farish's wife Sarah has also contributed to Republican politicians:

• $11,000 between 1999-2000
• $1,000 to President Bush's campaign

[edit] Ambassador

Farish was nominated by President George W. Bush as U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom on March 5, 2001, appointed on July 11, 2001 and served until he resigned in early summer, 2004.

The United Kingdom newspaper The Guardian commented on his low profile during the period leading up to the Iraq War[1].

[edit] Board memberships

Vaalco Energy Inc., Director

Preceded by Philip Lader

U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom 2001–2004

Succeeded by Robert H. Tuttle

[edit] External links

• Heir to the Holocaust
• Heir to the Holocaust (PDF)
• Casual Look (horse)
• Official portrait of William Farish by David Griffiths

[edit] References

• Lane's End Farm