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 ...
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 () o ...
in a performance the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...
'' called "the most brilliant victory in the history of the Preakness."
Bred by Arthur B. Hancock, Vigil was a bay horse sired by the
Hopeful Stakes
The Hopeful Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. Open to two-year-old horses, the Hopeful is the first Grade I stakes for two-year-olds each season and historically has ...
winner Jim Gaffney. His dam, Vignola, was a great-granddaughter of the British mare Thoughtless, whose other descendants included the
2000 Guineas
The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) and scheduled to take place each year ...
winner Adam's Apple. Vigil was purchased and raced by
Walter J. Salmon, Sr.
Walter Joseph Salmon Sr. (1871 – December 25, 1953) was a New York City real estate investor and developer. According to the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, Salmon was "responsible for rebuilding the north side of West 42n ...
Racing at age two, Vigil won for the first time on July 10, 1922, at Empire City Race Track when he captured the Debut Purse for maidens under jockey
James Butwell
James H. "Jimmy" Butwell (c. 1892–1956) was an American Racing Hall of Fame jockey. His birth year placed at the Family Search.org website is stated as 1896. However, although there were no child labor laws in the United States, it seems ...
. He went on to win other minor races including a division of the Baldwin Purse at
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 actu ...
under jockey
Lavelle Ensor
Emory Lavelle "Buddy" Ensor (April 27, 1900 – November 13, 1947) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey.
Biography
A native of Maryland, Lavelle Ensor got his first professional riding job in 1918 with future Hall of Fa ...
.
1923
Overshadowed by Rancocas Stable's Champion colt, Zev, Vigil entered 1923 well down the list of important three-year-old prospects. On April 30, 1923, he ran second to H. P. Whitney's filly, Enchantment, in the Carolina Purse at Maryland's
Havre de Grace Racetrack
The Havre de Grace Racetrack was an American horse racing track on Post Road in Havre de Grace, Harford County, Maryland. Nicknamed "The Graw," it operated from August 24, 1912, to 1950. For a time, it was owned by the Harford Agricultural and B ...
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 () o ...
was run first and Vigil easily defeated Zev to win the May 13 race in a performance the
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...
called "the most brilliant victory in the history of the Preakness."
The great Zev finished in twelfth place, more than twenty-five lengths behind Vigil. Zev was so soundly beaten that his trainer
Sam Hildreth
Samuel Clay Hildreth (May 16, 1866 – September 24, 1929) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame trainer and owner.Kentucky Derby. However, Hildreth changed his mind and Zev won the Derby with Vigil finishing third behind runner-up, Martingale.
During the remainder of his three-year-old campaign, Vigil never returned to the form he had shown in the Preakness. Among his significant races, he finished third in the
Havre de Grace Handicap
The Havre de Grace Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race first run on the August 26, 1912 opening day of the new Havre de Grace Racetrack in Havre de Grace, Maryland. Although most of its runnings would take place in early fall, its fin ...
Lawrence Realization Stakes
The Lawrence Realization Stakes was an American horse race first run on the turf in 1889. The race, for three-year-old Thoroughbred colts, geldings and fillies, was last run in 2005.
History
Inaugurated at the Sheepshead Bay Race Track at Gravese ...
. Vigil returned to race at age four and five with little success.