In this week's Rewind, Robert Smith takes a look back at some of the events and people in the sport during the decade of the 1930's in the ongoing monthly feature Years Ago.
1937 - Canada's Top Horse Has Colourful Past
Grattan Axworthy is currently the top aged horse in the Dominion. His record setting mile of 2:04 4/5 at Welland, Ont. established a new standard for a race time over a half-mile track in Canada. The fleet gelding set the new mark with young Alfie Moore from Sarnia, Ont. in the sulky.
This horse was bred and raised by a gentleman named Johnny Wilhelm of Stratford who apparently was not too interested in racing the youngster. Perhaps due to his fashionable breeding which involved some fast relatives from the U.S., a local horse lover named George Bossence approached Wilhelm with an offer to purchase him. He first suggested that two heifer calves would be a suitable trade but this was soon rejected. He reconsidered and offered $100 cash, which was accepted. The deal was sealed by payment of one dollar with the scrawny-looking colt to be picked up the next day.
Later that evening Mr. Bossence feared that word of the deal would be leaked and he might be outbid, so he returned and paid the full $100 and led the colt back home. While the horse possessed ample speed he had never been hitched single, only as a team with farm horses. Several catastrophes and broken equipment later, he was able to be put on the track.
His natural ability soon saw him training exceptionally well over the Stratford track, with a work mile in 2:18 by late May. Now enter a Mr. Robert McIntosh from nearby St. Marys, who saw the potential and laid out $600 for the green youngster. He raced him at a number of local Fairs, with considerable success. A well-to-do Simcoe horse owner named Walter Booth soon became interested and the son of Amun Ra was again in a new stable, this time for $1,000. It was from here that he gained National status, racing against all of the best horses and most often winning. In 1938 Grattan Axworthy was again sold to the millionaire U.S. owner Homer D. Biery of Butler, Pa., where he went on to greater heights on the tough U.S. Circuit. By this time the actual price was not disclosed but described as "a number of thousands of dollars." Not a bad story for a horse that roamed in the barnyard until the age of three.
1936 - Toronto Exhibition Week A Huge Success
Sept. 8-13, 1936 - A very successful week of racing was held as part of this year's CNE with several new stars emerging as winners in the annual CSHS Futurities.
All parties agreed that the manner in which the races were presented was first class. A large tent in the infield was used to good advantage as a staging paddock to ensure that all participants were ready on time.
A view of the huge C.N.E. grandstand taken in 1928 (City of Toronto Archives)
In the three-year-old pacing event the convincing winner in three straight heats was Dillinger Grattan, owned, trained and driven by W.L. "Lindley" Fraser of Forest, Ont. His fastest winning mile of 2:10 1/4 set a new record for this race. The companion Trot for sophomores went to Goldsmith, owned and driven by Jas. Nesbitt of nearby Weston. This youngster too showed an amazing burst of speed stopping the clock in 2:13 flat, also a new record.
The big purse for both events was $3,500 which certainly made the travel to the big city time well spent. Trophies were presented to each Futurity winner with the pacing event offered by The Dominion Harness Horse Assoc. while the trotting colt winner received theirs from The Toronto Driving Club. All races during the meeting carried a purse of at least $500 which is certainly tops for the season.
Two big winners in the aged pacing categories came from the stable of Dr. W.N. Meldrum, the well known medical Doctor from Norwich, Ont. His two top flight horses Dillon Mc and Sir Esme both brought home the major portion of their race's prize money.
Note: At this time the Futurity races did not yet include divisions for two year olds. They were first held in 1939. Another interesting comment is to compare the relative value of a $3,500 purse from 1936 to 2014. Adjusted for inflation over that period of time, today's value would be $59,106.93 and the $500 purse would be $8,443.80. Thankfully they were not just racing for fun.
Left: Dr. W.N. Meldrum is shown with his standout horse Sir Esme, a winner at the CNE. Driver Harry Fields is out of camera range. Right: In this undated photo future Hall of Famer Earle Avery is shown tending to his stable duties.
1937 - Potato Farmer Wins Feature Race at Fredericton, N.B.
July 28, 1937 - When Woodstock, N.B. potato farmer Earle Avery enjoys a day off from cultivating his huge crop of tubers he doesn't take a rest, instead he drives fast horses.
A special three-day event was held at Fredericton and Mr. Avery recorded the meeting's fastest mile behind Tracey Hanover. His clocking of 2:05 1/4 was just a tick off the track record. This horse is only five-years-old and was recently purchased after a successful season on the Grand Circuit. On day three a very special gentleman named John Willard of Presque Isle, Maine, who is 80 years of age, showed the younger set that he could still drive. He was a straight heat winner behind Spud Braden in a Classified Trot & Pace for $200. This meeting which featured Eastern Maine and New Brunswick horses has signaled the return of racing to this area after an absence of several years.
Horseman Earle Avery is pictured behind another of his early horses Ray Henley at the Fredericton track. His record of 2:05 at Island Park taken in 1938 stood for 28 years.
1938 - Orono Fair Bigger And Better
This year's two-day fair at the Town of Orono was advertised as being much bigger and better than ever before and it certainly lived up to its billing.
More land was purchased and the existing 1/3 mile track was replaced by a half-mile oval. After several months of grading it is considered among the best in the Province and has been well used by local trainers. A new grandstand that accommodates over 1,000 people was recently completed which provides a good view of the horse races as well as other events.
This year's races consisted of three contests, each of three heats. The honour of most successful owner went to Mr. H.M. Van Alstine of Port Hope, as he scored wins in six of the nine heats. His green filly Orphan Annie was home first three times, taking the largest share of the $45 purse on closing day. T.W. Jackson of Newcastle will be at the new entrance taking admission tickets as he has done for the past 50 years.
1938 - Lansdowne Park Readies For Ice Racing Meeting
Jan. 13, 1938 - Racing officials with the Lansdowne Driving Club at this Ottawa track have nearly completed their preparations for a three-day race meeting which will start Saturday and conclude next week. The track has been scraped, rolled and banked and will soon be flooded in readiness for an enthusiastic audience which will undoubtedly include visitors from distant points.
For the comfort of fans, a number of large stoves have been placed beneath the grandstand and are already being fired. The doors will be kept closed so that fans can return to get warmed between heats. In addition to the 30 horses already on the grounds a palace car arrived a few days ago with more and accommodations at the south side park are also available. Canadian born horseman Vic Fleming who now competes in the U.S. has been invited to act as an official.
Among the competing horses will be many of those who have seen recent action at Toronto's Dufferin Park as well as a large contingent of Ottawa Valley owned horses. The Pine Ridge Stable of London will have to forego the trip as an unfortunate accident at Dufferin recently sidelined their star pacer Tom Grattan, who performed so admirably here this past fall during Exhibition week.
There will be eight heats daily with a total purse outlay of $1,500 for the three days. Some of the competing drivers will be "Chappy" Chapman, Cecil Champion, and Edward "Pegleg" Jones of Oswego, N.Y., a real veteran of ice racing.