Justin Morgan is still a famous name in the state of Vermont. Morgan bred harness racers in the 1800s.
While Hambletonian was the dominate harness racing sire of the day in the mid-19th Century, other horses bred by several influential family entities gained importance, as well, including Morgan.
Morgan Horse Originally A Thoroughbred?
The Massachusetts horseman Justin Morgan gave his horse his own name. However, the exact story of this trotting breed is a mixed bag.
The most popular version of the Morgan horse breeding background is that Justin Morgan, the horse, was a Thoroughbred from the English line of True Briton. Regardless of that story, the Morgan family bred the likes of Ethan Allen, a great grandson of Justin Morgan, and a son of Vermont Black Hawk.
The Morgan horses, used primarily as road horses, were small, ranging from 14 to 15 hands high. They were, preceding Hambletonian, some of the fastest of the early harness horses.
Hambletonian's Gait Superior
As the speedy progeny of Hambletonian prevailed, the Morgan-bred horses fell out of favor in the harness racing world.
The trotting gait of the Hambletonian descendants proved superior on the track, and Hambletonian was more and more sought after as a breeder.
The Clays' Influence
The Henry Clay family tried their hand at breeding harness racing worthy competitors. An imported stallion from Tripoli named Grand Bashaw begat some prestigious trotters. Grand Bashaw offered Thoroughbred influence and a cross to Messenger, the harness racing's trotting and pacing foundation sire. Messenger's grandson Hambletonian was the accepted speed king of the day.
Richard B. Jones, the American Tripoli consul, brought Grand Bashaw to the Clays. In turn, during his stud years in Pennsylvania, Grand Bashaw sired Young Bashaw, a gray who sired good trotters named for famous persons, such as Andrew Jackson.
Andrew Jackson sired the Clay family founding sires, Harry Clay, Henry Clay, Cassius M. Clay, and Cassius M. Clay, Jr.
The Clay group competed against Hambletonian's best. Clay-bred American Girl and Lucy trotted opposite big names Goldsmith Maid and George M. Patchen.
Mambrino Chief Becomes Prominent
Warren Williams owned Mambrino Chief, but the Chief's dam was an American western mare of unknown breeding. Mambrino Chief was bred by a New Yorker, Richard Eldridge. The stallion was purchased by James B. Clay of Kentucky in 1854 and became the founding sire of Kentucky's best trotters.
Hambletonian's son Dexter handily defeated Mambrino Chief's daughter Lady Thorn in several competitions. Mambrino Chief's offspring, therefore, became Hambletonian broodmares.
Blue Bull Takes Hambletonian Challege
Elijah Stone of Indiana bred a horse he named Blue Bull. But Blue Bull's get weren't always properly recorded in the breeding register. Arguments as to which were which became the norm.
In the short term, Blue Bull produced winners who set trotting and pacing speed records. But, with clouded breeding logs and no indication of Thoroughbred blood, the source of great speed, in his line, Blue Bull's progeny ultimately couldn't surpass the speed of the lasting Hambletonians.
BarbaraAnne Helberg - Barbara Anne Helberg, Supporter of Better Lives for Animals and Clean, Spirited, Competitive Sports
