Robert T. Davies (May 19, 1849 – March 22, 1916) was a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
businessman, as well as 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 ...
and
Standardbred
The Standardbred is an American horse breed best known for its ability in harness racing, where members of the breed compete at either a trot or pace. Developed in North America, the Standardbred is recognized worldwide, and the breed can trace i ...
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 ...
owner and
breeder
A breeder is a person who selectively breeds carefully selected mates, normally of the same breed to sexually reproduce offspring with specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics. This might be as a farmer, agriculturalist, or ...
.
Life and career
Born in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
, he studied at Park School and
Upper Canada College
Upper Canada College (UCC) is an elite, all-boys, private school in Toronto, Ontario, operating under the International Baccalaureate program. The college is widely described as the country's most prestigious preparatory school, and has produce ...
. In the early 1870s, Davies married Margaret Matilda Taylor, the daughter of
John Taylor, owner of
paper mill
A paper mill is a factory devoted to making paper from vegetable fibres such as wood pulp, old rags, and other ingredients. Prior to the invention and adoption of the Fourdrinier machine and other types of paper machine that use an endless belt, ...
s in
Todmorden Mills, Ontario, just north of Toronto. By the turn of the century, they had nine children and owned a large home at 244 Don Mills Road (now Broadview/O'Connor) in Todmorden Mills, which they called "Chester Park".
Davies' brother Thomas Davies owned the
Don Brewery at Queen Street near the Don River, which Robert helped manage. In 1877, Robert Davies founded the competing
Dominion Brewery The Dominion Brewery was a brewery in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It operated from 1878 until 1936.
The brewery was founded by Robert T. Davies in 1877. Davies had been a manager at his brother Thomas' brewery, the Don Brewery on the Don River at ...
only two blocks to the west on Queen Street. Ten years later, his success led to the selling of shares in the company to a group of investors arranged by a banking house in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
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 1901, after his wife's family encountered financial difficulties, Davies acquired most of the Taylor family's holdings in the
Don Valley, including two paper mills and the
Don Valley Brick Works
The Don Valley Brick Works (often referred to as the Evergreen Brick Works) is a former quarry and industrial site located in the Don River Valley in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Don Valley Brick Works operated for nearly 100 years and provided ...
. By the time of his death in 1916, Davies was one of the wealthiest people in Toronto.
Horse racing
As a boy, Davies developed a love for
horse racing
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 p ...
and for a while was a
jockey
A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...
in Thoroughbred
flat racing
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 p ...
. In 1865 at the racetrack in
London, Ontario
London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximate ...
, the then sixteen-year-old rode in that year's edition of the
Queen's Plate
The King's Plate (known as the Queen's Plate between 1860 to 1901 and 1952 to 2022) is Canada's oldest Thoroughbred horse race, having been founded in 1860. It is also the oldest continuously run race in North America. It is run at a distance of ...
. He soon turned to training his own horses and at age twenty-two raced and trained
Floss
Free and open-source software (FOSS) is a term used to refer to groups of software consisting of both free software and open-source software where anyone is freely licensed to use, copy, study, and change the software in any way, and the source ...
, which won the 1871 edition of the Plate. The following year, a horse he bred named
Fearnaught won the Plate. As of 2008, Davies is the only person ever to ride in the Queen's Plate as well as own, train and breed winners of that race.
Davies purchased the filly
Southern Maid from a
Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
breeder,
John E. Madden
John Edward Madden (December 28, 1856 – November 3, 1929) was a prominent American Thoroughbred and Standardbred owner, breeder and trainer in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. He owned Hamburg Place Stud in Lexington, Kentucky ...
. A daughter of 1898
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-year ...
winner
Plaudit
Plaudit (1895–1919) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse. A descendant of Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, English Triple Crown champion, West Australian (horse), West Australian, he was bred by Dr. John D. Neet, owner o ...
, Southern Maid was voted the retrospective
American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly
The American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a female horse in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971.
The award originated in 1936 when both t ...
of 1913. As a broodmare for the Davies family, she produced the 1922
King's Plate
The King's Plate (known as the Queen's Plate between 1860 to 1901 and 1952 to 2022) is Canada's oldest Thoroughbred horse race, having been founded in 1860. It is also the oldest continuously run race in North America. It is run at a distance of ...
winner
South Shore.
In 1888, Davies had purchased a large property in the Don Valley from his father-in-law, on which he established a breeding operation that he dubbed Thorncliffe Farms. He raced horses both in Thoroughbred
flat racing
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 p ...
and in
harness racing
Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait (a trot or a pace). They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, or spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australi ...
under the ''
nom de course'' of
Thorncliffe Stable.
Davies served as president of the Canadian Horse Breeder's Association. A vice-president of the
Ontario Jockey Club
Woodbine Entertainment Group (WEG), known as the Ontario Jockey Club from 1881 to 2001, is the operator of two horse racing tracks, a casino and off-track betting stations in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario, Canada. It also owns and operates ...
from 1895 to 1904, he unsuccessfully lobbied for the lifting of the rule that prevented horses foaled outside of the province of
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
from competing in the
King's Plate
The King's Plate (known as the Queen's Plate between 1860 to 1901 and 1952 to 2022) is Canada's oldest Thoroughbred horse race, having been founded in 1860. It is also the oldest continuously run race in North America. It is run at a distance of ...
.
Death and legacy
In 1916, Davies died at "Chester Park" and was buried at the
Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Toronto. For his contributions to the industry, he was inducted in 2001 into the
Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame
The Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame was established in 1976 to honour those who have made a significant contribution to the sport of harness and Thoroughbred horse racing in Canada. It is located at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario.
The H ...
, in the Builders category. His estate sold Thorncliffe Farms to a group of investors from
Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
, who built
Thorncliffe Park Raceway
Thorncliffe Park Raceway was a Toronto-area racetrack that operated from 1917 until 1952. It was located east of Millwood Road, south of Eglinton Avenue East and the CPR's railroad tracks. It was the first home of the Prince of Wales Stakes. The n ...
on the site.
Davies'
Dominion Brewery The Dominion Brewery was a brewery in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It operated from 1878 until 1936.
The brewery was founded by Robert T. Davies in 1877. Davies had been a manager at his brother Thomas' brewery, the Don Brewery on the Don River at ...
complex at Queen Street East and Sumach Street continued until 1936. The brewery complex was renovated from 1987 to 1990 and is now called Dominion Square (and used by Vistek as commercial office space), while the old
Dominion Hotel is now home to the pub Dominion on Queen.
References
Robert Davies at the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of FameHistory of the Taylor/Davies properties and businesses in the Don Valley
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Robert T.
1849 births
1916 deaths
Businesspeople from Toronto
Canadian brewers
Canadian jockeys
Canadian horse trainers
Canadian racehorse owners and breeders
Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductees
Upper Canada College alumni
Owners of King's Plate winners