Saxon (horse)

Saxon
Sire Beadsman
Grandsire Weatherbit[1]
Dam imported Girasol
Damsire Asteroid
Sex Stallion
Foaled 1871
Country England
United States
Colour Brown
Breeder Joseph Hawley
Owner Pierre Lorillard
Trainer W. Prior
Jockey G. Barbee
Record 8 starts, 2 wins
Earnings $5,150 (about $100,000 today)
Major wins
1874 Belmont Stakes
Horse (Equus ferus caballus)

Saxon (1871-1895) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse that won the 1874 Belmont Stakes, the eighth running of that stakes race.

Contents

Background

Saxon was a brown stallion sired by Beadsman, and was bred in England,[2] by Joseph Hawley.[3][1][notes 1] He was imported into the United States by Pierre Lorillard,[3] along with his dam.[4] Saxon's dam was the imported mare Girasol, who was sired by Asteroid and out of the mare Gillyflower. Gillyflower was sired by Venison.[5]

Racing career

As a two-year-old, Saxon won the 1873 August Stakes.[5]

Saxon won the 1874 Belmont while owned by Pierre Lorillard. This was the eighth running of the stakes race.[6] The race was run on June 13, 1871 at a distance of 1 12 miles (i.e. 12 furlongs (2,400 meters)) on a fast track. He finished first by a neck over Grinstead, and third place went to Aaron Pennington. All the horses in the race carried 110 pounds (50 kg), and the value to the winner was $4,200 (about $81,000 today),[7][2] with the winning time being 2 minutes and 39 12 seconds.[2] The winning jockey was G. Barbee, and the winning trainer was W. Prior.[6]

In his racing career, Saxon won 2 times out of 8 starts, with total earnings of $5,150 (about $100,000 today).[7][1]

Stud record

As a breeding stallion, he sired three stakes winners: Gerald out of Girl of the Period by Virgil, Hiawasse out of Vandalite by Vandal, and Zamora out of Zoo Zoo by imported Australian.[8] Gerald, an 1879 brown stallion, won the 1881 Foam Stakes.[5] Hiawasse, a 1879 brown mare, won the 1882 Ladies Handicap, 1881 Monmouth Oakes, and the 1881 Mermaid Stakes.[9] Hiawasse was undefeated as a three-year-old racehorse.[10] Zamora, an 1881 gray mare, won the 1884 Tennessee Oaks.[11]

Saxon was used as a breeding stallion by his owner, Pierre Lorillard. Once, Lorillard's brother George, teased Pierre that Saxon's offspring were not as good as expected. Pierre then challenged George to a match race between one of Saxon's offspring against any racehorse that George owned. The result was that Hiawasse won the match race by four horselengths.[10]

Saxon died in February 1895 at the Cliff Lawn Stud, the farm of W.B. Cheatham, in Nashville.[12]

Notes

  1. ^ The racing chart for the 1874 Belmont Stakes gives his breeder as Thomas Hawley, but this is contradicted by the American Stud Book and other sources writing after the race.[3][1]

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d Hewitt Great Breeders pp. 232-233
  2. ^ a b c New York Racing Association "1874 Belmont" The Belmont Stakes
  3. ^ a b c Bruce American Stud Book 1 p. 90
  4. ^ Bruce American Stud Book 4 p. 28
  5. ^ a b c Hogan Index to Stakes Winners p. 236
  6. ^ a b New York Racing Association "Belmont Stakes" The Belmont Stakes
  7. ^ a b Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–2008. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved December 7, 2010.
  8. ^ Hogan Index to Stakes Winners p. 663
  9. ^ Hogan Index to Stakes Winners p. 504
  10. ^ a b Robertson History of Thoroughbred Racing in America p. 128
  11. ^ Hogan Index to Stakes WInners p. 524
  12. ^ Staff "Post and paddock" Spirit of the Times

References