Meddler (1890–1916) was a British

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 ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

who was a leading two-year-old in

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, when he won all three starts including the Dewhurst Plate. He was then sold to America where he became the leading sire in 1904 and 1906.

Background

Bred and raced by George Baird, his sire, St. Gatien, dead heated for the win in the 1884

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby, and as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey o ...

and won the 1885

Ascot Gold Cup The Gold Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 2 miles 3 furlongs and 210 yards (4,014 ...

. His dam was Baird's brilliant racing

mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four ...

, Busybody, winner of the 1884 Epsom Oaks and

1000 Guineas Stakes 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 ...

Racing career

Meddler won all three starts at age two and was regarded as second only to

Isinglass Isinglass () is a substance obtained from the dried swim bladders of fish. It is a form of collagen used mainly for the clarification or fining of some beer and wine. It can also be cooked into a paste for specialised gluing purposes. The E ...

among the colts of his generation. The last of his wins came in the Dewhurst Stakes at Newmarket on October 27 when he led all the way to beat Raeburn by half a length. According to rules governing the sport of British horse racing in effect at the time, when his owner

George Alexander Baird George Alexander Baird (30 September 1861 – 18 March 1893) was a wealthy British race horse owner, breeder and the most successful amateur jockey (gentleman rider) of his day, who rode under the assumed name of Mr Abington. He was a controve ...

died, all of Meddler's future race bookings were void. As such, Meddler could not race in the

British Classic Races The British Classics are five long-standing Group 1 horse races run during the traditional flat racing season. They are restricted to three-year-old horses and traditionally represent the pinnacle of achievement for racehorses against their own ...

at age three and was sold for $76,000 to American William H. Forbes of

Readville, Massachusetts Readville is part of the Hyde Park neighborhood of Boston. Readville's ZIP Code is 02136. It was called Dedham Low Plains from 1655 until it was renamed after the mill owner James Read in 1847. It was part of Dedham until 1867. It is served by R ...

who brought him to the United States in 1893 to stand at his Neponset Stud. On Forbes' death in 1894, Meddler was purchased by

William Collins Whitney William Collins Whitney (July 5, 1841February 2, 1904) was an American political leader and financier and a prominent descendant of the John Whitney family. He served as Secretary of the Navy in the first administration of President Grover Clev ...

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who sent him to stand at stud at his La Belle Stud at

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 ...

Stud record

Among Meddler's offspring, his son

Royal Tourist Royal Tourist (1905–1909) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the American Classic Preakness Stakes in 1908 and who later that year set a World Record time in winning the Winters Handicap at Emeryville Race Track in Oakland, Ca ...

won a 1908 American Classic, 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 () on ...

, and set a

World Record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

time on dirt in winning the Winters Handicap at

Emeryville Race Track Emeryville may refer to: * Emeryville, California * Emeryville, Ontario * Emeryville, predecessor of International Transtar, a model of International Harvester truck See also * Emoryville Emoryville is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated com ...

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

. In 1905 Meddler's daughter,

Tanya Tanya may refer to: * Tanya (Judaism),an early work of Hasidic philosophy by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi. * Tanya (name), a given name and list of people with the name * Tanya or Lara Saint Paul (born 1946) * List of Mortal Kombat characters#Tany ...

, became the second

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

to ever win the

Belmont Stakes The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is run over 1.5 miles (2,400 m). Colts and geldings carry a weight of ; fillies carry . The race, nicknamed Th ...

. In 1906 his son Go Between's wins included the extremely important

Suburban Handicap The Suburban Stakes is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is now run at the mile distance on dirt for a $700,000 purse. Named after the City and Su ...

and was the retrospective

American Champion Older Male Horse The title of American Champion Older Dirt Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a stallion or gelding, four years old and up, for performances on dirt and main track racing surfaces. In 1971, it became part of ...

. Through his daughter, Mineola, Meddler was the dam sire of

Johren Johren (1915–1932) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in the United States. His most important win came in the 1918 Belmont Stakes. Background Johren was a "massive" bay horse owned and bred by Harry Payne Whitney. He was sired by ...

, the 1918

American Horse of the Year The American Award for Horse of the Year, one of the Eclipse Awards, is the highest honor given in American thoroughbred horse racing. Because Thoroughbred horse racing in the United States has no governing body to sanction the various awards, "Hor ...

, and, from Miss Minnie, he was the damsire of 1921 American Horse of the Year and U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee,

Grey Lag Grey Lag (1918–1942) was a Thoroughbred race horse born in Kentucky and bred by John E. Madden. At his Hamburg Place near Lexington, Kentucky, Maddon had a good stallion called Star Shoot which he bred to all of his mares. Out of a failed r ...

Clarence Mackay Clarence Hungerford Mackay (; April 17, 1874 – November 12, 1938) was an American financier. He was chairman of the board of the Postal Telegraph and Cable Corporation and president of the Mackay Radio and Telegraph Company. Early life He ...

bought Meddler for $51,000 at the dispersal sale of William Collins Whitney's horses. MacKay stood him at William S. Fanshawe's Silverbrook Farm in

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, then at Kingston Farm run by

Foxhall A. Daingerfield Foxhall may refer to: * Foxhall, County Donegal, Ireland * Foxhall (horse) (1878-1904), an American-bred thoroughbred racehorse and sire * Foxhall, Pembrokeshire, Wales * Foxhall, Suffolk, a civil parish in the Suffolk Coastal district of Suffolk, ...

near

. Meddler was eventually sent to a breeding operation in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

where he died at age twenty-six on April 17, 1916.

Pedigree

References

{{Reflist

External links

Full profile of The Meddler at

Thoroughbred Heritage The National Sporting Library & Museum or NSLM (formerly the National Sporting Library) is a research library and art museum in Middleburg, Virginia in the United States. History The National Sporting Library was founded in 1954 in the personal ...

1890 racehorse births 1916 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom United States Champion Thoroughbred Sires Byerley Turk sire line Whitney racehorses Thoroughbred family 1-w