Running Water (foaled 1903 at

Runnymede Farm Runnymede Farm is an American horse breeding farm located outside Paris, Kentucky on U.S. Route 27, the Paris-Cynthiana Road. It is said to be the longest continuously running Thoroughbred horse farm in Kentucky, established in 1867 by American ...

near

Paris, Kentucky Paris is a home rule-class city in Bourbon County, Kentucky. It lies northeast of Lexington on the Stoner Fork of the Licking River. Paris is the seat of its county and forms part of the Lexington–Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. As ...

) was an American

Champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, an ...

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 ...

racemare Glossary of North American horse racing: Additional glossaries at: *Glossary of Australian and New Zealand punting *Glossary of equestrian terms This is a basic glossary of equestrian terms that includes both technical terminology and jargon ...

Breeding

Running Water was sired by the 1888

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 ...

winner

Sir Dixon Sir Dixon (1885-1909) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse best known for winning the 1888 Belmont Stakes. Background Sir Dixon was bred by Ezekiel F. Clay and Catesby Woodford at Runnymede Farm in Kentucky. His sire was Billet ...

who also sired

1905 Kentucky Derby The 1905 Kentucky Derby was the 31st running of the Kentucky Derby. The race took place on May 10, 1905. The field was reduced to only three competitors when Dr. Leggo and McClellan scratched. Full results *Winning Breeder: Runnymede Farm (E ...

winner Agile and the good filly,

Blue Girl Blue Girl (1899–1919) was an American Thoroughbred racemare that was the Champion 2 and 3-year old female in 1901 and 1902, respectively. Pedigree Blue Girl was bred in Kentucky by the Ezekiel Clay & Catesby Woodford breeding partnership and ...

. Running Water's mare was Breakwater whose sire was Hindoo, a three-time U.S. Champion, the

1881 Kentucky Derby The 1881 Kentucky Derby was the 7th running of the Kentucky Derby. The race took place on May 17, 1881. Full results Payout *The winner received a purse of $4,410. *Second place received $200. References

{{Kentucky Derby Kentucky Der ...

winner and a U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee.

Racing career

Owned and trained by

Woodford Clay Woodford may refer to: Places Australia *Woodford, New South Wales *Woodford, Queensland, a town in the Moreton Bay Region *Woodford, Victoria Canada *Woodford, Ontario England *Woodford, Cornwall *Woodford, Gloucestershire *Woodford, Greater ...

, he raced Running Water at age two and for most of her three-year-old season until selling her on August 8, 1906 to trainer Thomas Welsh and the

Newcastle Stable The Newcastle Stable was a Thoroughbred racing partnership formed in 1903 by Life magazine publisher Andrew Miller, Blair Painter, Francis Cunningham Bishop, and trainer Thomas Welsh. Based in New York City, in January 1907 the partners leased th ...

, a racing and breeding partnership made up of Andrew Miller, Francis R. Bishop and Blair Painter. The American Co-Champion Three-Year-Old Filly of 1906, Running Water had a redoubtable career in

Thoroughbred 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 i ...

during which she won top races against the best competition including beating male opponents on a regular basis. In winning the

Merchants and Citizens Handicap The Merchants and Citizens Handicap is a discontinued American Thoroughbred horse race which was first run in 1900 at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. Open to horses aged three and older, it was contested on dirt. The inaugural ...

she set a new

Saratoga Race Course Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track located on Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs, New York, United States. Opened in 1863, it is often considered to be the oldest major sporting venue of any kind in the country, but is actua ...

track record while beating the highly touted

John Madden John Earl Madden (April 10, 1936 – December 28, 2021) was an American football coach and sports commentator in the National Football League (NFL). He served as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders from 1969 to 1978, who he led to eight pla ...

-trained colt Dandelion as well as

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 Brooklyn Derby winner Cairngorm. In the

Saratoga Cup The Saratoga Cup was an American Thoroughbred horse race open to horses of either sex age three and older although geldings were not eligible from 1865 through 1918. Between 1865 and 1955 it was hosted by Saratoga Race Course, in Saratoga Springs, ...

, run at a distance of a mile and three-quarters, she defeated the likes of

Travers Stakes The Travers Stakes is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is nicknamed the "Mid-Summer Derby" and is the third-ranked race for American three-year-olds according to internation ...

winner Frank Gill and

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 ...

winner Nealon.

Broodmare in France

Due to the

Hart–Agnew Law The Hart–Agnew Law was an anti-gambling bill passed into law by the Legislature of the State of New York on June 11, 1908. It was an amalgam of bills enacted as Chapter 506 and 507 which were sponsored by conservative Assemblyman Merwin K. Hart ...

, racing was shut down in all of

New York state New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...

in 1911 and 1912. As a result, in 1910 Running Water had to be sent to American Herman Duryea's Haras du Gazon stud farm in

Bazoches-au-Houlme Bazoches-au-Houlme () is a commune in the Orne department in northwestern France. Geography The commune of Bazoches-au-Houlme is part of the area known as Suisse Normande. The commune is made up of the following collection of villages and ha ...

in France so she could be bred. Running Water's French-born offspring included Boyne, Breakwater, Mayflower, Pierre Qui Roule, Rappahannock, Reprise, Rochebelle, and Runlad.

Pedigree

References

{{reflist 1903 racehorse births American racehorses American Champion racehorses Thoroughbred family 2-c Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States