William Robert (Billy) Haughton (November 23, 1923 – July 15, 1986) was an American harness driver and trainer. He was one of only three drivers to win the Hambletonian four times, the only one to win the Little Brown Jug five times, and the only one to win the

Messenger Stakes The Messenger Stakes is an American harness racing event for 3-year-old pacing horses. It was organized in 1956 at Roosevelt Raceway in Westbury, New York (on suburban Long Island) to join with the Cane Pace and the Little Brown Jug to create t ...

seven times. With a career record of 4,910 wins and about $40 million in earnings, he was first in annual winnings 12 times – 1952–59, 1963, 1965, 1967, and 1968 – and in heats won from 1953 to 1958.

Early life and career

Born in

Gloversville Gloversville is a city in the Mohawk Valley region of Upstate New York, and the most populous city in Fulton County. Gloversville was once the hub of the United States' glovemaking industry, with over two hundred manufacturers in Gloversville a ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, Haughton came from a farming background, where he competed in fairground races before coming into harness driving. In the early 1960s, he started developing a stable of his own. His best horses were Rum Customer that won the pacing Triple Crown in 1968, Green Speed that was named Harness Horse of the Year in 1977, and Nihilator that was named Harness Horse of the Year for 1985. With his Meadow Paige, Haughton paced a world record 1:55.2-minute mile in a time trial at

Lexington Lexington may refer to: Places England * Laxton, Nottinghamshire, formerly Lexington Canada * Lexington, a district in Waterloo, Ontario United States * Lexington, Kentucky, the largest city with this name * Lexington, Massachusetts, the oldes ...

in 1967.

Personal life and death

Haughton was married to Dorothy Bischoff, and together they had five children. On July 15, 1986, Haughton died in

Valhalla In Norse mythology Valhalla (;) is the anglicised name for non, Valhǫll ("hall of the slain").Orchard (1997:171–172) It is described as a majestic hall located in Asgard and presided over by the god Odin. Half of those who die in combat e ...

, from head injuries sustained at

Yonkers Raceway Yonkers Raceway & Empire City Casino, founded in 1899 as the Empire City Race Track, is a one-half-mile standardbred harness racing dirt track and slots racino located at the intersection of Central Park Avenue and Yonkers Avenue in Yonkers, New Y ...

at the age of 62. Haughton's son, Peter, who was also a driver, died in a car crash in 1980. His wife Dorothy died on March 31, 2019, at the age of 87 in

Newfields, New Hampshire Newfields is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,769 at the 2020 census. The primary village in town, where 378 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined as the Newfields census-designated place (C ...

References

External links

* 1923 births 1986 deaths People from Gloversville, New York American harness racing drivers American horse trainers United States Harness Racing Hall of Fame inductees Sports deaths in New York (state) {{US-horseracing-bio-stub