Daniel Aloysius Maher (October 29, 1881 – November 9, 1916) was an American

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

who also became a Champion jockey in Great Britain.

U.S. riding career

Danny Maher commenced his career at the age of 14, weighing 65 pounds. He served his apprenticeship under "Father" Bill Daly, a well known developer of jockey talent. Three years later, in 1898, he topped America's jockey's list. Maher was best known in the United States for winning the

Metropolitan Handicap The Metropolitan Handicap, frequently called the "Met Mile", is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is contested on dirt over a distance of one mile (8 furl ...

on Ethelbert (1900), the

Brooklyn Handicap The Brooklyn Invitational Stakes (formerly known as the Brooklyn Handicap) is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in early June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, on Long Island. It currently is a Grade II event open to four-year-ol ...

and

Toboggan Handicap The Toboggan Stakes, formerly the Toboggan Handicap, is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually during the first week of March at Aqueduct Race Track in Queens, New York. Open to horses aged three and older, the Grade III event is contest ...

on Banaster (1899), the Champagne Stakes on Lothario (1898), and the

Ladies Handicap The Ladies Stakes is a historic American Thoroughbred horse race for Fillies and Mares four years of age and older held annually at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York. Inaugurated at the Jerome Park Racetrack in 1868, it is the oldest stakes ...

on Oneck Queen (1900). Danny Maher was America's leading jockey in 1898. The

Hart–Agnew Law The Hart–Agnew Law was an anti-gambling bill passed into law by the Legislature of the State of New York on June 11, 1908. It was an amalgam of bills enacted as Chapter 506 and 507 which were sponsored by conservative Assemblyman Merwin K. Hart ...

anti-gambling legislation forced Maher and numerous other jockeys and trainers to leave America for Europe where they quickly made a mark on European racing.

English riding career

In England, Maher won 1,421 races with 25 percent of his mounts. He won his first

English Classic The English Classic was a professional golf tournament which was played annually from 1979 to 1983. It was a fixture on the European Tour schedule, and hosted at The Belfry in Wishaw, Warwickshire, England. Two of the five winners were major ch ...

on Aida in the 1901

1,000 Guineas The 1000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 ...

and later that year won the

Chester Cup The Chester Cup is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 2 miles, 2 furlongs and 147 yards () at Chester in ...

on the colt

David Garrick David Garrick (19 February 1717 – 20 January 1779) was an English actor, playwright, theatre manager and producer who influenced nearly all aspects of European theatrical practice throughout the 18th century, and was a pupil and friend of Sa ...

, owned by American

Pierre Lorillard IV Pierre J. Lorillard IV (October 13, 1833 – July 7, 1901) was an American tobacco manufacturer and Thoroughbred race horse owner. Early life Born in Westchester, New York, he was the son of Pierre Lorillard III (1796–1867) and Catherine Gri ...

. In 1903, Maher won two-thirds of England's Triple Crown with

Rock Sand Rock Sand (1900–1914) was a British Thoroughbred race horse and sire. In a career which lasted from the spring of 1902 until October 1904 he ran twenty times and won sixteen races. He was a leading British two-year-old of his generation, w ...

. He also won The Derby three times (1903, 1905, 1906), five

Eclipse Stakes The Eclipse Stakes is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Sandown P ...

(1902, 1904, 1906, 1909, 1910), and was a two-time winner of the Ascot Gold Cup (1906, 1909). In 1907 Maher's wins included the King's Gold Vase. He was Britain's leading jockey in 1908 and 1913, the year he obtained British citizenship. Maher died at the age of 35 of

consumption Consumption may refer to: *Resource consumption *Tuberculosis, an infectious disease, historically * Consumption (ecology), receipt of energy by consuming other organisms * Consumption (economics), the purchasing of newly produced goods for curren ...

. He is buried in

Paddington Cemetery The North Brisbane Burial Ground was a former cemetery in the Town of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was in the area now known as the suburbs of Milton and Paddington. It was also known as North Brisbane Cemetery, Paddington Cemetery and Mi ...

Mill Hill Mill Hill is a suburb in the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is situated around northwest of Charing Cross. Mill Hill was in the historic county of Middlesex until 1965, when it became part of Greater London. Its population counted 18, ...

, London, England. In 1955, Maher was one of the inaugural inductees in the United States' Racing Hall of Fame. In 1999, the

Racing Post ''Racing Post'' is a British daily horse racing, greyhound racing and sports betting publisher which is published in print and digital formats. It is printed in tabloid format from Monday to Sunday. , it has an average daily circulation of 6 ...

ranked Maher as third in their list of the Top 50 jockeys of the 20th century.

Career at a glance

U.S. riding career: 1895–1900
Number of Mounts: 6,781
Number of Winners: 1,771
Winning percentage: 26.1 percent British riding career: 1900–1915
Number of Mounts: 5,684 est.
Number of Winners: 1,421
Winning percentage: 25 percent

External sources

Eclipse Stakes winners

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maher 1881 births 1916 deaths American jockeys British jockeys Sportspeople from Hartford, Connecticut United States Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame inductees Jewish American sportspeople 20th-century deaths from tuberculosis British Champion flat jockeys Sportspeople from Connecticut Tuberculosis deaths in England American expatriate sportspeople in England