John Milton "Jack" Gaver Jr. (September 17, 1940 – January 15, 2002) was an American
trainer of
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...
racehorses. He was the son of
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American Thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers. In 1955, the museum moved to its current location on Union Av ...
trainer
John M. Gaver Sr.
John Milton Gaver Sr. (October 29, 1900 – July 11, 1982) was an American Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse trainer.
Born in Mount Airy, Maryland, John Gaver graduated from Princeton University then worked as a prep school language teacher ...
, who was head trainer for the
Whittney family's Greentree Stable
Greentree Stable, in Red Bank, New Jersey, was a major American thoroughbred horse racing stable and breeding farm established in 1914 by Payne Whitney of the Whitney family of New York City. Payne Whitney operated a horse farm and stable at Sar ...
for 38 years. In 1977 his father suffered a
stroke
A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...
and John Jr. took over his responsibilities at Greentree where he would remain for the next fifteen years. For Greentree he trained back-to-back
Champions Late Bloomer in 1978 and
Bowl Game
In North America, a bowl game is one of a number of post-season college football games that are primarily played by teams belonging to the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). For most of its history, the Division I Bowl Subdivis ...
in 1979.
Among his important wins, John Gaver Jr. won the most important
turf races at the time including the 1979
Turf Classic Invitational Handicap and
Washington, D.C. International Stakes
The Baltimore Washington International Turf Cup is an American Grade III invitational horse race run over one mile. Inaugurated in 1952, it was raced at Laurel Park Racecourse on the turf in Laurel, Maryland, at a distance of miles (12 furlongs ...
(Forerunner to the
Breeders' Cup
The Breeders' Cup World Championships is an annual series of Grade I Thoroughbred horse races, operated by Breeders' Cup Limited, a company formed in 1982. From its inception in 1984 through 2006, it was a single-day event; starting in 2007, ...
), and in 1981 the
Rothmans International Stakes.
John Gaver Jr. died at age 61 in
Hollywood, Florida
Hollywood is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States, located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. As of July 1, 2019, Hollywood had a population of 154,817. Founded in 1925, the city grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, and is now ...
where he had been working as a track steward. He was buried in the
Lexington Cemetery
Lexington Cemetery is a private, non-profit rural cemetery and arboretum located at 833 W. Main Street, Lexington, Kentucky.
The Lexington Cemetery was established in 1848 as a place of beauty and a public cemetery, in part to deal ...
in
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...
.
Daily Racing Form - January 17, 2002
/ref>
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaver, John M. Jr.
1940 births
2002 deaths
American horse trainers