Richard Louis Duchossois (pronounced DUCH-ah-swah; October 7, 1921 – January 28, 2022) was an American businessman and racehorse owner. He was the founder and chairman of The Duchossois Group, Inc., a family-owned company headquartered in Elmhurst,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

that is known for its ownership stakes in

Arlington Park Arlington International Racecourse (formerly Arlington Park, the name was Arlington Park Jockey Club from as soon as 1948 up to 1955) was a horse race track in the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, Illinois. Horse racing in the Chicago regi ...

and

Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, famed for hosting the annual Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was ...

race tracks, as well as for rail car and defense manufacturing.

Early life and education

Duchossois was the son of Ernestine (Hoessler) and Alphonse Duchossois. He graduated from

Morgan Park Military Academy Morgan Park Academy (MPA) is a coeducational, college preparatory, independent day school serving pre-kindergarten through 12th grade . It is located in the Morgan Park neighborhood on the south side of Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1873, Morg ...

and attended

Washington and Lee University , mottoeng = "Not Unmindful of the Future" , established = , type = Private liberal arts university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.092 billion (2021) , president = William C. Dudley , provost = Lena Hill , city = Lexingto ...

, before starting active military service during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Military career

He served in five European campaigns, including Normandy where he was a commander with the 610th

Tank Destroyer Battalion The tank destroyer battalion was a type of military unit used by the United States Army during World War II. The unit was organized in one of two different forms—a towed battalion equipped with anti-tank guns, or a mechanized battalion equipp ...

of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

. He served as the military governor for the region of

Eichstätt Eichstätt () is a town in the federal state of Bavaria, Germany, and capital of the district of Eichstätt. It is located on the Altmühl river and has a population of around 13,000. Eichstätt is also the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese ...

and attained the rank of

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

before he was released from active service in 1946.Arlington owner Duchossois, at 90, fights cancer and for his track http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20111009/news/710099904/ He received a Purple Heart for his injuries in combat at the

Moselle River The Moselle ( , ; german: Mosel ; lb, Musel ) is a river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becom ...

Career

Richard Duchossois joined

Thrall Car Manufacturing Company Thrall Car Manufacturing Company was a manufacturer of railroad freight cars in Chicago Heights, Illinois from 1917 to 2001. The company was sold to Trinity Industries in 2001. Company history A.J. Thrall established the Union Wagon Company in 191 ...

after World War II and became CEO in 1952. In 1980, the firm purchased Chamberlain Manufacturing Corp., with Duchossois becoming its chairman. At the same time, he retained the chairmanship of the parent company, but appointed his son, Craig, as CEO. In 1983, as Chairman of renamed Duchossois Industries (DII), he purchased Arlington Park Race Track. In 2000, Arlington Park merged with Churchill Downs Incorporated, where DII has several seats on the board of directors. He also owned

Des Moines Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...

TV Station

KDSM-TV KDSM-TV (channel 17) is a television station in Des Moines, Iowa, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. The station is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, and has studios on Fleur Drive in Des Moines; its transmitter is located in Allem ...

(formerly KCBR-TV) from 1983 to 1991. He served as a director of TCMC, Inc., the Emirates World Series of Racing, and the Thoroughbred Racing Association.

Personal life and death

He married his high school sweetheart, Beverly Thrall. His son Craig J. Duchossois is chief executive officer of The Duchossois Group, Inc. and served as chairman of the Board of Visitors of the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

. Duchossois celebrated his 100th birthday in October 2021, and died on January 28, 2022, in

Barrington Hills, Illinois Barrington Hills is a village located about northwest of Chicago in the U.S. state of Illinois. Per the 2020 census, the population was 4,114. It straddles approximately over four counties, Cook, Kane, Lake, and McHenry. The Village of Barrin ...

Awards and honors

He received a Purple Heart and two Bronze Stars for his military service in World War II. His awards include the 1986 American Jockey Club's Gold Medal, the 1988 Special

Sovereign Award {{refimprove, date=October 2021 The Sovereign Award is given annually since 1975 by the Jockey Club of Canada to the outstanding horses and people in Canadian Thoroughbred racing. The most prestigious award for horses is Sovereign Horse of the Y ...

from the

Jockey Club of Canada The Jockey Club of Canada was formed in 1973 to oversee thoroughbred horse racing in Canada. Based in Toronto, Ontario, the club is responsible for the annual Sovereign Awards program and the Canadian Graded Stakes Committee. Founding members: * C ...

, and Lord Derby Award from the Horserace Writers and Reporters Association of Great Britain, the Joe Palmer Award for Meritorious Service to Racing from the National Turf Writers Association, the 2003

Eclipse Award of Merit The Eclipse Award of Merit is part of the American Eclipse Awards in Thoroughbred horse racing. The industry's highest honor, it is presented to an individual or entity displaying outstanding lifetime achievement in, and service to, the Thoroughbre ...

, and in 2019 inducted into the

Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame The Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame, located in the Hawthorne Race Course, in Stickney/Cicero, near Chicago, honors sports greats associated with the Chicago metropolitan area. It was founded in 1979 as a trailer owned by the Olympia Brewing Compan ...

. That same year, Duchossois was voted into the

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 ...

as one of its esteemed Pillars of the Turf. He received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Washington and Lee. In 2015, Washington and Lee University honored him with the Washington Award. With his wife Judi in 2014, they received the Sword of Loyola award from Loyola University Chicago for their philanthropy.

References

Duchossois Industries website

''Los Angeles Times'' article, August 19, 2000

NTRA Eclipse Award

External links

* USMA West Point Oral History interview of Richard Duchossois http://www.westpointcoh.org/interviews/seek-strike-destroy-a-tank-destroyer-commander-rolls-across-europe * National World War II Museum Oral History Interview of Richard Duchossois http://www.ww2online.org/terms/3957?page=10 {{DEFAULTSORT:Duchossois, Richard 1921 births 2022 deaths American business executives American sports businesspeople American centenarians Businesspeople from Chicago Military personnel from Illinois Men centenarians Morgan Park Academy alumni Washington and Lee University alumni United States Army personnel of World War II People from Barrington, Illinois American horse racing industry executives United States Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame inductees American racehorse owners and breeders Churchill Downs executives Eclipse Award winners United States Army officers