Stephen Sanford (May 26, 1826 – February 13, 1913) was an American businessman and a member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

from

New York's 18th congressional district The 18th congressional district of New York is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives that contains the northern suburbs and exurbs of New York City. It is currently represented by Democrat Sean Patrick Maloney. ...

Life and career

Born in

Mayfield, New York Mayfield is a town in Fulton County, New York, United States, northeast of Gloversville and Johnstown. The town contains a village also named Mayfield. The population of the town was 6,495 at the 2010 census. History The land that is now th ...

, he was the son of Mary (née Slack) and her husband John Sanford (1803–1857). He attended the common schools and local academy at

Amsterdam, New York Amsterdam is a city in Montgomery County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 18,219. The city is named after Amsterdam in the Netherlands. The City of Amsterdam is surrounded on the northern, eastern ...

Georgetown College Georgetown College is a private Christian college in Georgetown, Kentucky. Chartered in 1829, Georgetown was the first Baptist college west of the Appalachian Mountains. The college offers 38 undergraduate degrees and a Master of Arts in educat ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, for two years, and the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

West Point, New York West Point is the oldest continuously occupied military post in the United States. Located on the Hudson River in New York, West Point was identified by General George Washington as the most important strategic position in America during the Ame ...

. He joined his father's

carpet A carpet is a textile floor covering typically consisting of an upper layer of pile attached to a backing. The pile was traditionally made from wool, but since the 20th century synthetic fibers such as polypropylene, nylon, or polyester hav ...

manufacturing business in 1844 but in 1854, the mill burned to the ground. His father retired but Stephen Sanford rebuilt the business to the point where it was employing twenty-five hundred workers. In 1849, Stephen Sanford married Sarah Jane Cochrane (1830–1901) and had five children. Eldest child John Sanford II (1851–1939) would take over the family business. Sanford was elected as Republican to the Forty-first Congress (March 4, 1869 - March 4, 1871). He declined to be a candidate for renomination. In 1876, he served as a delegate to the Republican National Convention. He died in Amsterdam, New York in 1913 and was interred in the family plot in the Green Hill Cemetery.

Thoroughbred horse racing

Stephen Sanford operated Hurricana Stock Farm near the town of

where he bred and trained

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 ...

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 ...

. He named many his top American horses after members of the

Mohawk nation The Mohawk people ( moh, Kanienʼkehá꞉ka) are the most easterly section of the Haudenosaunee, or Iroquois Confederacy. They are an Iroquoian-speaking Indigenous people of North America, with communities in southeastern Canada and northern Ne ...

. In 1880 his horses began racing at nearby

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 ...

. His grandson, also named Stephen, owned

Sergeant Murphy ''Sergeant Murphy'' is a 1938 American comedy film directed by B. Reeves Eason and written by Sy Bartlett and William Jacobs. The film stars Ronald Reagan, Mary Maguire, Donald Crisp, Ben Hendricks Jr. and William B. Davidson. The film was r ...

, the 1923 winner of England's

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 ...

steeplechase. His son John would continue on very successfully in racing and the

Sanford Stakes The Sanford Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually during the third week of July at the Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. A six furlong sprint race, the Grade III event is open to two-year-old horses. Inaug ...

was created in their honor in 1913, the year of Stephen Sanford's death.

References

Schenectady Digital History Archive — a service of the Schenectady County Public Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanford, Stephen 1826 births 1913 deaths American polo players American racehorse owners and breeders

Stephen Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...

United States Military Academy alumni Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American businesspeople Georgetown University College of Arts & Sciences alumni