Hedley John Woodhouse (January 23, 1920 - December 29, 1984) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

jockey who won the New York state riding championship in 1953. Born in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, he began his racing career there in 1937 at the

Lansdowne Park Lansdowne Park is a urban park, historic sports, exhibition and entertainment facility in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, owned by the City of Ottawa. It is located on Bank Street adjacent to the Rideau Canal in The Glebe neighbourhood of central Ot ...

racetrack A race track (racetrack, racing track or racing circuit) is a facility built for racing of vehicles, athletes, or animals (e.g. horse racing or greyhound racing). A race track also may feature grandstands or concourses. Race tracks are also use ...

as an apprentice with A.C.T. Stock Farm owned by industrialist Austin C. Taylor. Woodhouse's ability would soon see him racing at tracks along the

West Coast of the United States The West Coast of the United States, also known as the Pacific Coast, Pacific states, and the western seaboard, is the coastline along which the Western United States meets the North Pacific Ocean. The term typically refers to the contiguous U.S ...

and in 1944 he rode Happy Issue to victory in the

Grade I In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

Vanity Handicap The Beholder Mile Stakes is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares aged three and up. It is run over a distance of one mile on the dirt each year in March at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. History The event wa ...

and

Hollywood Gold Cup The Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for horses age three and older over a distance of miles on the dirt held at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California in May. The race currently offers a purse of $400,000 ...

Hollywood Park Racetrack Hollywood Park was a thoroughbred race course located in Inglewood, California, about 3 miles (5 km) from Los Angeles International Airport and adjacent to the Forum indoor arena. In 1994, the original Hollywood Park Casino was added to t ...

in Inglewood, California. Woodhouse rode the

colt Colt(s) or COLT may refer to: *Colt (horse), an intact (uncastrated) male horse under four years of age People * Colt (given name) *Colt (surname) Places *Colt, Arkansas, United States *Colt, Louisiana, an unincorporated community, United States ...

Fisherman A fisher or fisherman is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million commercial and subsistence fishers and fish farmers. Fishers may be professional or rec ...

to a 3rd-place finish in the

1949 Kentucky Derby The 1949 Kentucky Derby was the 75th running of the Kentucky Derby. The race took place on May 7, 1949, on a track rated fast. Full results * Winning breeder: Calumet Farm ( KY) References 1949 Kentucky Derby Derby Derby ( ) is ...

, the best result of his four tries between then and 1957. He rode in the

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held on Armed Forces Day which is also the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs () o ...

on three occasions, his best finish a 5th in 1951. Racing out of New York tracks in the first part of the 1950s, Hedley Woodhouse won the 1953 New York riding championship with 138 victories, and was runner-up on three occasions. After finishing 7th in the 1954 Kentucky Derby on "Fisherman", a colt owned by

Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Cornelius "Sonny" Vanderbilt Whitney (February 20, 1899 – December 13, 1992) was an American businessman, film producer, government official, writer and philanthropist. He was also a polo player and the owner of a significant stable of Thorough ...

and trained by Sylvester Veitch, Woodhouse came within a neck of winning the Belmont Stakes. His 2nd-place finish was his best in the third of the

American Triple Crown In the United States, the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, commonly known as the Triple Crown, is a series of horse races for three-year-old Thoroughbreds, consisting of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes. The three r ...

races. From being based in New York, Hedley Woodhouse would make his way to the

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racing circuit where remarkably at age 50 he won the 1970 jockey title at

Tropical Park Tropical Park is a urban park in metropolitan Miami, Florida. The park is located just southwest of the intersection of the Palmetto Expressway (SR 826) and Bird Road, just west of South Miami. History The land opened as a county public par ...

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

. He retired the following year having won 2,642 races. He was inducted into the

British Columbia Sports Hall of Fame The BC Sports Hall of Fame is a museum located in BC Place Stadium, at Gate A, the main entrance to the stadium, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It collects, preserves, studies and interprets materials that relate to British Columbia's spo ...

in 1979 and the

Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame The Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame was established in 1976 to honour those who have made a significant contribution to the sport of harness and Thoroughbred horse racing in Canada. It is located at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. The ...

in 1980. Married to Elsie Woodhouse (1919–1998), their son

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

was also a successful jockey, capturing a number of important stakes races on the New York circuit. Hedley and Robert Woodhouse are the only father and son to win the

Whitney Handicap The Whitney Stakes (run as the Whitney Handicap through 2013 and still sometimes referred to as such) is an American Grade 1 stakes race for Thoroughbred racehorses three years of age and older run at a distance of miles. The current purse is $1, ...

. Hedley Woodhouse died in 1984.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Woodhouse, Hedley 1920 births 1984 deaths American jockeys Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductees Canadian jockeys Sportspeople from Vancouver Canadian emigrants to the United States