Muriel Vanderbilt (November 23, 1900 – February 3, 1972) was an American

socialite A socialite is a person from a wealthy and (possibly) aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having traditio ...

and a

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 owner/breeder who was a member of the wealthy

Vanderbilt family The Vanderbilt family is an American family who gained prominence during the Gilded Age. Their success began with the shipping and railroad empires of Cornelius Vanderbilt, and the family expanded into various other areas of industry and philanthr ...

Early life

Muriel was born on November 23, 1900 in New York City. She was the daughter of

William Kissam Vanderbilt II William Kissam Vanderbilt II (October 26, 1878 – January 8, 1944) was an American motor racing enthusiast and yachtsman, and a member of the prominent Vanderbilt family. Early life He was born on October 26, 1878, in New York City, the seco ...

(1878–1944) and Virginia Graham Fair (1875–1935). Her paternal grandparents were

William Kissam Vanderbilt William Kissam "Willie" Vanderbilt I (December 12, 1849 – July 22, 1920) was an American heir, businessman, philanthropist and horsebreeder. Born into the Vanderbilt family, he managed his family's railroad investments. Early life William Kiss ...

and Alva Erskine Smith.

Harold Stirling Vanderbilt Harold Stirling Vanderbilt CBE (July 6, 1884 – July 4, 1970) was an American railroad executive, a champion yachtsman, an innovator and champion player of contract bridge, and a member of the Vanderbilt family. Early life He was born in Oakdale ...

was her uncle and

Consuelo Vanderbilt Consuelo Vanderbilt-Balsan (formerly Consuelo Spencer-Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough; born Consuelo Vanderbilt; March 2, 1877 – December 6, 1964) was a socialite and a member of the prominent American Vanderbilt family. Her first marriage ...

, the Duchess of Marlborough until her divorce from

Charles Spencer-Churchill, 9th Duke of Marlborough Charles Richard John Spencer-Churchill, 9th Duke of Marlborough, (13 November 1871 – 30 June 1934), styled Earl of Sunderland until 1883 and Marquess of Blandford between 1883 and 1892, was a British soldier and Conservative politician, and a ...

in 1921, was her aunt. Her maternal grandfather,

James Graham Fair James Graham Fair (December 3, 1831December 28, 1894) was an Irish immigrant to the United States who became a highly successful mining engineer and businessman. His investments in silver mines in Nevada made him a millionaire, and he was one o ...

, was a

United States senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

from

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

who made a large fortune investing in silver mines on the

Comstock Lode The Comstock Lode is a lode of silver ore located under the eastern slope of Mount Davidson, a peak in the Virginia Range in Virginia City, Nevada (then western Utah Territory), which was the first major discovery of silver ore in the United ...

. Her parents separated when she was a small girl and she would grow up on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

and on 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 ...

where her mother had been born.

Career

She shared her father and grandfather Vanderbilt's love of horses. Her mother was also a fan of

Thoroughbred horse racing Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in t ...

and established

Fair Stable Fair Stable was an American Thoroughbred horse racing stable owned by heiress Virginia Graham Fair that operated during the 1920s and the first half of the 1930s. Ms. Fair was the daughter of the wealthy mining magnate James Graham Fair. In 1899 ...

that in 1924 and 1925 won back-to-back Horse of the Year honors with

Sarazen Sarazen (1921–1940) was an American National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame Eclipse Award, Champion Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse. Owned by Phil T. Chinn, Colonel Phil T. Chinn's Himyar Stud, Sarazen won his first three ...

. She owned a ranch in

Carmel Valley, California Carmel Valley is an unincorporated community in Monterey County, California, United States. The term "Carmel Valley" generally refers to the Carmel River watershed east of California State Route 1, and not specifically to the smaller Carmel V ...

where she built stables and kept thoroughbred racehorses. In 1930, it was reported that she received permission by the Chief of police of Middletown to carry a pistol after riding breeches were stolen from her. In May 1946,

Frank B. Porter Franklin Benjamin Porter (March 23, 1886 – May 9, 1977), was a pioneer businessman and real estate developer of Monterey Peninsula. In 1926, he launched the first residential subdivision in Carmel Valley, California that became Robles del Rio, C ...

and his son Paul bought the farm from Vanderbilt for an estiamted $200,000 (). In 1947, with her third husband, she bought Edenvale Farms, a horse farm south of

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

where she bred and raised Thoroughbreds and built her own private training track. Her horse, Miche, won the 1952

Santa Anita Handicap The Santa Anita Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early March at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is a Grade I race for horses four years old and up and was once considered the most important race for old ...

and

Desert Trial A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...

captured several important

West Coast West Coast or west coast may refer to: Geography Australia * Western Australia *Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia * West Coast, Tasmania **West Coast Range, mountain range in the region Canada * Britis ...

stakes including back-to-back editions of the Ramona Handicap. In 1956, she sold Edenvale Farm to Samuel Hamburger of San Francisco, for $650,000, who in turn sold it to real estate developers for approximately $1 million. Later in life, Muriel Vanderbilt Adams owned an horse farm in Marion County,

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. Bred and trained at her

Ocala Ocala ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Marion County within the northern region of Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city's population was 63,591, making it the 54th most populated city in Florida. Home to ...

farm in 1970,

Desert Vixen Desert Vixen (1970–1982) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. She was the leading American filly of her generation, winning an Eclipse Award at the ages of both three and four. She was later inducted into the U. S. Racing Hall of Fame. Ra ...

was the most famous horse she ever owned and bred and in 1979 the

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 ...

was inducted into the United States'

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 ...

. The farm is now part of the exclusive gated community,

Jumbolair Jumbolair Airport is a private-use airport. It is located in the unincorporated community of Anthony, which is seven miles (11 km) northeast of Ocala, Florida, United States. Frank Merschman owned and operated Jumbolair until 2019 when it ...

Personal life

Muriel Vanderbilt married three times, the first in 1925 to Frederic Cameron Church, Jr., a

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

insurance executive. The marriage ended in divorce in 1929 and in September 1931, she married New Yorker Henry Delafield Phelps (1902–1976). Divorced from her second husband in 1936, she married for a third time in 1944 to John Payson Adams. Muriel died in Florida on February 3, 1972 at the age of seventy-one.

References

External links

Edenvale Farms

Desert Vixen at the United States National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vanderbilt, Muriel American socialites American racehorse owners and breeders 1900 births 1982 deaths Muriel People from Carmel-by-the-Sea, California