Standardbred’s are everywhere. They have become immortalized in song, story-telling, and lithographs that capture the spirit of a legendary American breed.
In the 1800’s the Standardbred played an important part in our American culture. They provided transportation for families, and soon became the swiftest of road horses. Often raced in road matches, the horsemen became enchanted with their speed, power and smooth gait. The Standardbred was slowly transformed from a road horse to a racehorse that ruled the turf for many years.
We are all familiar with horse weathervanes. Copper weathervanes of trotting horses can be seen on barns, proudly perched atop ornate cupolas throughout the country.
Did you know that the trotting horse was modeled after a Standardbred named Dexter, a son of the great Hambltonian’s first great progeny and set a record for trotting a mile in 2 minutes 17.25 seconds. He was a blazed faced gelding whose low-headed way of moving became immortalized in the weathervanes we see today. Dexter can also be seen in many lithographs. One color illustrations by William Boell, features President Ulysses S. Grant racing Dexter down Bloomingdale Road, NY in 1868.
Lithographs from
The song Jingle Bells is familiar to us all. Do you know what the song is really saying? The final verse to jingle bells tells you to get a trotting horse, a “bob-tailed nag, two forty at his speed”, and hitch him to an open sleigh….and you will take the lead!
What about the “Old Grey Mare”? We all know that “she ain’t what she used to be”, but was she real or an imaginary horse that composer Frank Panella’s created for his popular song? She was genuine and her name was Lady Suffolk, a great granddaughter of Messenger. Her life began pulling a fish wagon in Long Island, but things were about to change when she was hired to drive William Porter from New York to Commack. Porter thought she should be a harness racing horse. She became a champion in her day, held in high regard for her speed and stamina. She pulled a heavy two-wheeled high sulky against the best trotters, traveling to and from most of her races pulling her own harness equipment. In 1845 she was the first trotter to “set the standard” and pull the sulky around the mile in 2:30, and was 12 years old when the record was set. The versatile Lady Suffolk also raced the mile under saddle.
Stephen Foster’s song about the “bob-tail nag” is a tune in which we are all familiar. Camptown races is about a horse born in Oneida County, NY in 1845. Legend says that her tail was “docked with a jack-knife before she was an hour old”. She was also characterized as “willful and witchlike”. She became a livery stable horse and was on her way to New York City with a herd of cows when she caught the eye of Jonathan Vielee who purchased for $175. He saw promise in this feisty mare that barelyt stood 14 hands. Two weeks later, he sold her to George Perrin for $250 and he transformed her from a flighty mare to a true stepper that began winning road races. Sold again to G.A. Vogel for $600, her legendary racing career launched. Her name was Flora Temple and was dubbed “queen of the turf” by the NY Times. She was so popular, that babies were being named after her. She was loved by all and was immortalized in many of Currier & Ives lithographs. Flora Temple died on December 21, 1877. She was an extraordinary horse that earned her place in racing history and won the hearts of all Americans.
Standardbreds are truly everywhere! They are a part of American folk lore in song and story as well as beautiful lithographic renditions, weathervanes and even in print. Author Margqerite Henry’s books “Born to Trot” and “One Man’s Horse” are found in schools, libraries and bookstores. Her books have been read by many and capture the life of the great Hambletonian…..as known as “The Great Progenitor” of Standardbreds – but that’s another story.
Lithograph "Dexter" courtesy The Newark Public Library
Lithograph "Lady Suffolk" courtesy Jenness Cortez and Classic Gallery
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