Robert Aitcheson Alexander (c. 1819 – December 1, 1867) was an American

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 ...

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

and

Standardbred horse The Standardbred is an American horse breed best known for its ability in harness racing where they compete at either a trot or pace. Developed in North America, the Standardbred is recognized worldwide, and the breed can trace its bloodlines ...

Biography

Born on a

farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...

near Midway, Woodford County,

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

, he and his siblings inherited the property on his father's death. Alexander was sent to study in England, where he earned a degree at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

. While there he became the beneficiary of the Scottish estate of Sir William Alexander, his uncle, at Airdrie and Cowdenhill. He lived on this estate for nine years, then in 1849 returned to Kentucky. Back home, Alexander set about establishing a stud farm, and in the early 1850s returned to

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

to spend two years studying the techniques of breeding farms in Germany, France, and England. Starting with purchased from his family, Robert Alexander built his

Woodburn Stud Woodburn Stud was an American horse breeding farm located in Woodford County, Kentucky about from the city of Lexington. It was established in the 18th century as an original land grant property of General Hugh Mercer to whom it had been grant ...

Spring Station, Kentucky Spring Station, Kentucky is an unincorporated community in the northern part of Woodford County, Kentucky located approximately three miles west of Midway. The area is said to have been settled during the early part of the 19th century and it b ...

into the leading horse breeding operation in the United States. He also founded Airdrie, Kentucky in 1855 to mine for iron ore, a project he shortly abandoned and returned to his stud farm. Alexander purchased two

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

enslaved people,

Ansel Williamson Ansel Williamson (c. 1806–1881) was an American thoroughbred horse racing trainer and a member of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. He trained horses who won the Kentucky Derby, Travers Stakes, Belmont Stakes, Jerome Handicap, Ph ...

and Edward D. Brown, who were taught the business of breeding and training horses. Both became

horse trainer A horse trainer is a person who tends to horses and teaches them different disciplines. Some responsibilities trainers have are caring for the animals' physical needs, as well as teaching them good behaviors and/or coaching them for events, which ...

s and had careers. After they were freed by the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, they remained as employees of Alexander until his death. Each went on to train

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...

winners and had outstanding careers that led to Brown's 1984 induction into the

National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred horse racing, Thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and Horse trainer, trainers. In 1955, the museum ...

and Williamson's in 1998. In February 1865, soldiers of the

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...

attacked the village of Midway. They burned down the

railroad station A train station, railroad station, or railway station is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight, or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track, and a station building providing such ...

, robbed its residents, and stole fifteen of Alexander's prized thoroughbred horses. Alexander died on December 1, 1867. His brother, Alexander John Alexander (known as "A.J."), took over the management of Woodburn Stud and further enhanced its reputation. Alexander is portrayed in the best selling novel ''Horse'' by Geraldine Brooks, published in 2022, which is based upon the life of the racehorse Lexington. A depiction of the Confederate attack is included in the book.

Biography

References

Bibliography

Further reading