In this week's Rewind Robert Smith recalls some names, places and happenings from a one time hotbed of harness racing located in many small towns of Central Eastern Ontario
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Years ago when the sport moved from town to town to put on its show, it often did so within sort of undefined Geographical zones. Some called them "circuits". Horsemen travelled in a fairly small circle, quite often not too far from home where they usually returned at day's end. Many had just a one horse trailer, a home packed lunch and an optimistic outlook for the day ahead. Their reward was not just monetary; it was the thrill of competition and also the camaraderie that was a part of the times. People made friends, reminisced about old times and most often couldn't wait until the next stop along the way. While some may remember it as the "Golden Age" of harness racing, there was never the need for a Brinks Truck that anyone can recall.
This was an era of many one horse stables and part-time horsemen. Most learned the trade from a parent or a neighbour and their apprenticeship was most often without pay. The sport had not yet evolved to the point of being able to provide a living but it was certainly a great pastime. A number of the people listed below worked at some of the large industrial concerns that were located in this part of the country. I am sure they arranged their vacations and other days off to coincide with a day of racing or traded shifts with a non-horseman. Unlike today, not too many people were in a hurry or it seemed like that anyway.
I have selected an area with "boundaries" sort of between Gananoque on the East and Port Hope on the West, a stretch of some 200 kilometres,or a little over 100 miles. Much of the data comes from around 1961 which makes it about 50 years ago. This summary is not intended to capture each and every detail, but to give a general look at who was racing then and where they were doing it. I will try at a later date to cover some of the other Eastern Ontario territories as they were all an important part of the landscape.
Here is a list of at least part of the racing towns that staged racing in 1961 and are located in the general area of the search. There certainly could have been more.
Racing Towns:
Belleville, Brighton, Campbellford, Centreville, Coe Hill, Delta, Gananoque, Kingston, Lakefield, Lansdowne, Madoc, Marmora, Napanee, Norwood, Odessa, Peterborough, Picton, Port Hope, Roseneath, Shannonville, Stirling, Tweed, Warkworth, Wolfe Island. Many race days were part of the Town's annual Fair.
The following is a very incomplete list of people who were involved in harness racing in the general area that is the subject of this week's Rewind. Unfortunately there is no central registry to refer to (or if there is I don't have access to it) so I am left with looking through piles of old results, stories and the personal recollections of those familiar with the area. If anyone wishes to add to, correct or otherwise contribute please feel free to do so. This is aimed more at a nostalgic review than a scientific experiment.
Racing Personnel:
Patrick Adair, Frank Alexander, Ted Atkinson, Curtis Baker, John Ball, Chas. Barclay, Jim Baskin, Jack Bisonnette, Lorne Brethour, Orval Brethour, Bob Brown, Ernie Brown, Osler Burrison, Bruce Carleton, Cecil Carleton, Al Casselman, Al Caughey, Don Chatterson, Harold Cochrane, Lloyd Cochrane, Bert Compton, Bernie Corcoran, Hank Corcoran Sr. , Hank Corcoran Jr. , Ike Corcoran, Neil Curran, Ross Curran, Tom Curtin, Barney Davey, Albert DeFosse, Geo. Dolley, Orville Fallis, Bill Faulkner, Stan Fife, Don Fines, Morley Fleet, Alex Forrest, Don Gallinger, Roy Givens, Dave Godkin, Chas. Gollogly, Jack Gordon, Cliff Gorsline, Jas. Hampton, Ken Harnden, Don Heath, Carl Heath, W. A. Hennessey, Retta Herrington, Cliff Hie, Carman Hie, Joe Hogan, Johnston Holmes, Harold Hooey, Lawrence Hooey, Mac Hope, Bernie Hunt, John Huntbach, Harry Ingles, Don Johnson, Ken Kerr, Joe Keyes, Kenny Keyes, Victor Keyes, Garnet Kirkpatrick, Earl Lake, Guy LaRush, Wm. Lee, Gerald Lowery, Ray Lowery, Art McDonald, Jim McIntyre, Burns McKane, Russ McQuaid, Don Moorehouse, John Murphy, Leo Murphy, J. J. Orde, Ted Orser, Allan Pacey, Bucky Platford, Bob Polk, Jack Reid, John Renaud, Basil Samons, Delaware Sands, Earl Shea, Bruce Shea, Graydon Sheldon, Gord Sherwin, Percy Sproule, Hilliard Steiner, Hugh Stewart Jr. , Philip P Stewart, Ivan Thackeray, Eddie Till, Allan Vance, Cam Wannamaker, Irvin Warner, Jack Warner, Al Watts, Jack Weeks, Ken Weeks, Ben Wemp, Hugh Wemp, Junior West, Larry Zebedee.
My thanks to Al Caughey, a long time ORC Official and lifetime horseman from Amherst Island, Ont., for his encouragement, interest and input.
Thank you Mr. Smith for
Thank you Mr. Smith for including my late father's name Lawrence (Pete) Hooey and my uncle Harold's name in your list. All of the great race horse families we knew back then, such as the Brethours, Currans, and the Hie's too. When you do your list west of Port Hope you must include our hometown of Orono. Two other names on this list from Orono are Jack Reid and Junior West. Jack's son Charles is still breeding and racing horses in Orono. He has had recent success with trotters.
I also remember Russ McQuaid and Osler Burrison whose wife recently passed away. Not to mention George Dolley and Jack Gordon who drove our horses back then and who were both the greatest of guys. They had great wives too of course.
And Dad's great friend Ernie Brown who we would ride with to Greenwood and St. Catherines etc. with he and his late wife Billy. Ernie was a good driver and he always had to get to the track in good time as he drove the starting gate for years at all of the A tracks. Or they would ride with us. Many a late night on the road returning home.
My mother and Ernie still have talks on the phone.
I don't know if you remember but my dad had one of the great pacers of the day in Muddy George. Muddy George the horse with the big heart who liked the mud. He was so honored to have him compete in the Canadian American Pacing Series with the greatest driver in the sulky, Ronnie Waples. Ronnie and Muddy George raced for years on the A tracks and near the end of his career no one wanted to race against him. Back in those days the Toronto Star had race track reporters and Muddy George would be featured many a week in their articles. We still have them.
We have a great picture of dad and his great friend Bill Armstrong in the winner's circle with Muddy Hanover. He was Muddy George's sire.
Dad also had a good one named Lint who raced the circuit for years. He was blind in one eye and was a big horse who gave his all. I think Dad retired him when he was thirteen. And also the beautiful grey, Futurity Chief.
My brother John and Dad also had the trotter Portia Lobell who won trotter of the year back then. My dad loved going to the sales in Lexington and raising great horses which had the Meadow H. name like Meadow H. Annette. For a quiet man he handled the interviews and honors with humbleness. The thrill of racing was in his blood. I know he also loved and enjoyed the many people that he met, worked with and knew over the years.
Travelling to all of the great tracks in Ontario, Quebec and the United States was quite a thrill over all of those years. I have the fondest memories of the weekend trips to Montreal on the train. (Richelieu, Blue Bonnets, Three Rivers) We would have our own roomette on the train, which had a magical little cupboard by the door into which you could put your shoes. The porter could access the cupboard from the corridor and shine your shoes in the night and they would be in the little cupboard in the morning. Unbelievably, I actually got to meet and know my favourite African American porter who shone my shoes when I was a kid years later in Toronto - we actually discovered that we were neighbours. He had worked the Toronto to Montreal run for years. He was a good friend until his death.
I always loved and had never forgoten his beaming smile and gentle, kindly manner.
I treasure the memories growing up in the wonderful world of harness racing and all of the great people that I met over the years. Not to mention all of the terrific horses that I got to see race and set records. It is so sad that a lot of the great tracks are no longer in existence. What I wouldn't give to spend just one exciting summer night at Greenwood Racetrack and hang out on the back stretch after the races. To hang out in a tack room again and hear the banter of horse talk. I can only do that through my memories.
Thank you again for your rewind.
Super Stuff!! From "me Home
Super Stuff!!
From "me Home Town" , or at least home area!
I raced "Quinte Lad" in the 'Black Diamond Cheese Stake' in 1966! Didn't win but the cheese was sure good then! I did win, a few years later, the "Hiram Walker" (I think it was!) at Frontenac Downs with "Quinte Worthy" and the "Greenleaf Memorial Stake" at Belleville with "Quinte Magic Mac". Almost all the tracks and fairs had locally sponsored stakes like these for green horses.
Here's a few more people I can remember racing in that area at that time. I'm sure there are still others that just don't pop into my old mind immediately!
First and foremost would be "Buck" Newton and his brother Clarke who first got me hooked on harness racing with their little chestnut pacer "Teddy Grattan Royal"
Then in no particular order I remember :
Willmot "Wim" Brethour, Creighton Carr, Sam Mulholland, Jack Jeffries, Dr. Harry Wellbanks, Keith West, Norm Jones, Orval Sleeth, Roy Boyce, Herman Lucas and Irvin Ness.
Robert - many thanks for these great "Rewinds" - Just keep the old memories rolling!!
Thanks Bob and Al for
Thanks Bob and Al for putting me on the list. Probably this is one list that i am in the minority to be alive. Not one person on the list that I didn't or don't like. A horseman's list now may contain some!!!