Richard Cecil "Dick" Dawson (1865 – 1955) was an Irish-born owner and trainer of

racehorses 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 ...

. From his home and racing stable in Cloghran, Dawson went to

Lambourn Lambourn is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. It lies just north of the M4 Motorway between Swindon and Newbury, and borders Wiltshire to the west and Oxfordshire to the north. After Newmarket it is the largest centre of ra ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in 1897 and set up shop at Whatcombe Stables in Berkshire near

Wantage Wantage () is a historic market town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, England. Although within the boundaries of the historic county of Berkshire, it has been administered as part of the Vale of White Horse district of Oxfordshire since 1974. T ...

. He brought with him the steeplechase horse Drogheda who won the 1898

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool, England. First run in 1839, it is a handicap st ...

. Dawson left Whatcombe Stables to train at Scotland Farm on Salisbury Plain in 1917 but soon returned to his old base though he took Lagrange at Newmarket for a few months in 1918 as an additional yard. His many successful owners included

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Sir Edward Hulton (1869-1925) but contrary to popular myth he never trained for him privately or at Newmarket. At Whatcombe after the War his horses for ten years included those of HH Aga Khan III. Dick Dawson was British Champion Trainer in 1916, 1924 and 1929, winning numerous important races including four Epsom Derbys, three

St. Leger Stakes The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a ...

, one

2,000 Guineas The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) and scheduled to take place each year a ...

, and two

Epsom Oaks The Oaks Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 6 yards ...

. Dawson owned

Blandford Blandford Forum ( ), commonly Blandford, is a market town in Dorset, England, sited by the River Stour about northwest of Poole. It was the administrative headquarters of North Dorset District until April 2019, when this was abolished and ...

, the English champion sire in 1934, 1935 and 1938 who sired Bahram, the 1935 English Triple Crown champion. Blandford stood at both Whatcombe and Cloghran. The latter is a townland circa 5 miles from Dublin city centre and less than a mile from Dublin airport. In Dawson's time it would have been a rural agricultural area. His former yard is still there today at the end of Turnapin Lane, a former turnpike road.

References

Richard Dawson profile at the National Racing Museum, Newmarket
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dawson, Richard C. 1865 births 1955 deaths Irish racehorse owners and breeders Irish racehorse trainers