Thomas Goodisson (1782–1840) was a four times

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby, and as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey o ...

winning British jockey. He was the son of

Dick Goodisson __NOTOC__ Richard Goodisson (c. 1750 – 1817) was an English classic-winning jockey and trainer, who won the first three runnings of the Oaks Stakes between 1779 and 1781. Career Born in Selby, Goodisson moved south to Newmarket, Suffolk, l ...

, the jockey who won the first three runnings of The Oaks. Goodisson was only 12 years old when he had his first race ride, on the

Duke of Bedford Duke of Bedford (named after Bedford, England) is a title that has been created six times (for five distinct people) in the Peerage of England. The first and second creations came in 1414 and 1433 respectively, in favour of Henry IV's third so ...

-owned Cub at Newmarket. At that age, he was an incredibly lightweight jockey. In 1795, he weighed only 4

stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

1 pound when he won a famous 500

guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from t ...

match race A match race is a race between two competitors, going head-to-head. In sailboat racing it is differentiated from a fleet race, which almost always involves three or more competitors competing against each other, and team racing where teams consis ...

between the Duke of Queensberry's horse, Pecker, and Benington on the Beacon Course at Newmarket. On 18 May 1809, Goodisson lined up in the

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...

on board

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

against nine other horses. From the start, the Duke of Rutland's colt Salvator took the lead and was the frontrunner until

Tattenham Corner Tattenham Corner is in north Surrey, UK, the name is principally associated with Epsom Racecourse. The railway station of the same name is in the Tattenhams ward of Reigate and Banstead Borough. Location Tattenham Corner refers to the sharp ...

when Mr. Wilson's chestnut colt Wizard took the lead. Wizard held his position until "within a few strides of the winning-post" when Goodisson "made one serve for all" and took the win from Wizard by a neck. It was said afterwards that Goodisson "rode his horse with great skill and judgement" and "gave great satisfaction to all present." A few years later, in 1813, he won his first Oaks riding a

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

called

Music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

. That same year he went on to complete the Derby/Oaks double, winning the Derby on the black

colt Colt(s) or COLT may refer to: *Colt (horse), an intact (uncastrated) male horse under four years of age People * Colt (given name) *Colt (surname) Places *Colt, Arkansas, United States *Colt, Louisiana, an unincorporated community, United States ...

, Smolensko, one of only two black horses to have won the Derby. As payment for winning the Derby, the horse's owner, Sir Charles Bunbury gave Goodisson a ten-pound note. He insisted that he would have given the jockey more had his

bookmaker A bookmaker, bookie, or turf accountant is an organization or a person that accepts and pays off bets on sporting and other events at agreed-upon odds. History The first bookmaker, Ogden, stood at Newmarket in 1795. Range of events Bookma ...

, a man called Brograve, cut his own throat rather than paying out his losses. Goodison would go on to repeat the Oaks/Derby double in 1815 for another of his retainers, the

Duke of Grafton Duke of Grafton is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1675 by Charles II of England for Henry FitzRoy, his second illegitimate son by the Duchess of Cleveland. The most notable duke of Grafton was Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke ...

, on

Minuet A minuet (; also spelled menuet) is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually in time. The English word was adapted from the Italian ''minuetto'' and the French ''menuet''. The term also describes the musical form that accompa ...

and

Whisker Vibrissae (; singular: vibrissa; ), more generally called Whiskers, are a type of stiff, functional hair used by mammals to sense their environment. These hairs are finely specialised for this purpose, whereas other types of hair are coarser ...

respectively. Besides Bunbury and Grafton, his principle patron was the

Duke of York Duke of York is a title of nobility in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of English (later British) monarchs. The equivalent title in the Scottish peerage was Du ...

for whom he won the 1822 Derby on

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...

. He won more big races for the Duke of York than almost any other jockey. After retiring, Goodisson became a

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 ...

of horses. He died at Newmarket in 1840.

Classic race victories

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

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 (2, ...

– ''

(1813)'', ''

(1815)'' *

– ''

(1809)'', '' Smolensko (1813)'', ''

(1815)'', ''

(1822)'' *

St. Leger 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 d ...

– ''

Barefoot Barefoot is the state of not wearing any footwear. There are health benefits and some risks associated with going barefoot. Shoes, while they offer protection, can limit the flexibility, strength, and mobility of the foot and can lead to ...

(1823)''

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Goodisson, Tom 1782 births 1840 deaths British jockeys

Classic race victories

References

See also

Bibliography