Timoleon (foaled in either 1813 or 1814, depending on source*), was an American

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 ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, 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 bas ...

and notable sire.

Background

chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Description ...

horse whose only marking was a small white star and standing 15 hands 3 inches high, Timoleon was bred by Benjamin Jones in Greensfield County,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

. He was described as "a red sorrel, with a star in his forehead, and no other mark. His limbs are clean and hoofs firm and deep. He is very stout and of great length and remarkable for the proximity of his hips to the point of his shoulder. The bridge of his nose, though bony, is too large for elegance; and his ears, when pricked, are too near a horizontal position agreeable to the notion of beauty; but a better moth, nostril, trottle or eye can't be found on any animal of the species...His form, his appearance, nay, everything about him, evince that he is genuine." He was by one of America's greatest foundation

stallion A stallion is an adult male horse that has not been gelded ( castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cre ...

s and a

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 ...

inductee,

Sir Archy Sir Archy (or Archy, Archie, or Sir Archie; 1805–1833) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse considered one of the best racehorses of his time and later one of the most important sires in American history. He was inducted into the National M ...

. Timoleon's dam was the Saltram mare (A24) (1801) by the imported

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

stallion, Saltram, from the Wildair mare (1795) by Syme's Wildair. In 1800, when Saltram was 20 years old he was imported to

, then the heart of Thoroughbred breeding in the United States, by the Virginian "gentleman," William Lightfoot. Through this pedigree Timoleon combined the blood of the three Thoroughbred sirelines:

Eclipse An eclipse is an astronomical event which occurs when an astronomical object or spacecraft is temporarily obscured, by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer. This alignment of three ...

, Herod and

Matchem Matchem (1748 – 21 February 1781), sometimes styled as Match 'em, was a Thoroughbred racehorse who had a great influence on the breed, and was the earliest of three 18th century stallions that produced the Thoroughbred sire-lines of today, in ...

Racing record

At three, Timoleon was purchased by William Wynn of

Petersburg, Virginia Petersburg is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 33,458 with a majority bla ...

who seems to have regretted his purchase because Timoleon was rapidly sold on to Robert R. Johnson. Wynn then went through an immediate change of heart. Ten days after selling the horse, he offered to buy him back for a thousand dollars more than his selling price, saying he was, "...superior to any race horse that ever turned a gravel on any race course in the United States". Of his racing career at age three, it is known that he won the colt purse at Petersburg in straight heats, covering the mile in 1:47 and 1:48, distancing the field in the second heat. Earlier that same day, he had won a half mile match against a Potomac colt. Later that same year, he lost the Post Stake at Petersburg to Reality, winning the first heat in 3:46 before losing the next two "for want of strength in the rider." Timoleon was the "Pride of Virginia." But racing so long ago, the actual statistics on his career on the track are hard to trace. It seems he might have started 15 times and that he won 13 of those starts, which were over the then-usual distances of three or four miles. It also seems he might have won all fifteen if he'd been entered in better form.Baseball Magazine
/ref> Four of his wins were "walk-overs." In his day if a horse like Timoleon was scheduled to compete but no horse could be found to challenge him, then he (or she) would be allowed to canter the course, winning the purse and the race. It is certain he defeated some of the best horses of his time. He defeated the two best daughters of Sir Archy:

Reality Reality is the sum or aggregate of everything in existence; everything that is not imagination, imaginary. Different Culture, cultures and Academic discipline, academic disciplines conceptualize it in various ways. Philosophical questions abo ...

and Lady Lightfoot, who were both highly regarded. The only horses that ever beat him were the aforementioned Reality and the highly regarded mare Transport. His final race took place in February 1818. He'd suffered with equine distemper (also called

Strangles Strangles (also called equine distemper) is a contagious upper respiratory tract infection of horses and other equines caused by a Gram-positive bacterium, ''Streptococcus equi''. As a result, the lymph nodes swell, compressing the pharynx, la ...

) a week before, was still entered, but had to be pulled up with respiratory problems, his second and last defeat.

Stud record

Timoleon then stood briefly at stud at the farm of Johnson and Wynn's stables in

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

. In 1819 he was sold to Colonel David Dancy who took him first to General Hunter's plantation in Madison County,

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, and then, in 1829, to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

and one year later, to

Charles City County, Virginia Charles City County is a county (United States), county located in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated southeast of Richmond, Virginia, Richmond and west of Jamestown, Virginia, Jamestown. It is ...

. He stood there for $50, compared to the $75 stud fee for

Leviathan Leviathan ( ; ; ) is a sea serpent demon noted in theology and mythology. It is referenced in several books of the Hebrew Bible, including Psalms, the Book of Job, the Book of Isaiah, and the pseudepigraphical Book of Enoch. Leviathan is of ...

, then the most expensive stallion standing in America. Timoleon proved to be a good sire, even if only by producing

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

who sired the outstanding sire Lexington. He also sired: * Sally Walker, his best

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 ...

, was considered one of the best in her day *

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

who defeated the great

Henry Henry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Henry (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters * Henry (surname) * Henry, a stage name of François-Louis Henry (1786–1855), French baritone Arts and entertainmen ...

* Hotspur, a notable four-mile horse He was also an influential sire in the development of the

American Quarter Horse The American Quarter Horse, or Quarter Horse, is an American breed of horse that excels at sprinting short distances. Its name is derived from its ability to outrun other horse breeds in races of or less; some have been clocked at speeds up to ...

breed, as one of his descendants was American Quarter Horse foundation sire Steel Dust. He died in 1836, at the age of 23 years.

Sire line tree

*TimoleonByerley Turk Line
/ref>
/ref>The Bloodlines Chart
/ref>
/ref> **Washington **Marquis **Sir John Falstaff **Hotspur **Jackson **

***Arlington ***Cost Johnson ***Ringgold ****Woodford ****Ringmaster ****Tipperary *****Aaron Pennington ***** Calvin ***Commodore ****Gen Rosseau ***Red Eye ***Cracker ****Billy Cheatham ****Bruce ***Big Boston ***Jack Hawkins ****Odd Fellow ***Arrow ***Bob Johnson ***Wade Hampton *** Lecomte ****Sherrod ****Umpire *****Not Out *****Decider ***Piketon ***Zero ****Judge Leonard *** Lexington ****Daniel Boone *****Cottrill ****Goodwood ****Colton *****Monday ****Lightning *****D'Artagnan ****Optomist *****Mars *****Osman ****Uncle Vic *****Victory *****Harry Edwards *****Uncle Tom ****Bulletin ****Jack Malone *****Chickamauga *****Muggins *****Camargo *****Damon *****Bazar ****Lexington (Embry) ****Thunder ****Avalanche ****Censor ****Frank Boston ****Harper *****Bay Jack ****Jim Sherwood *****Dan Heaney ****Lexington (Hunter) *****Joe Johnson *****Judge Wickliffe ****

War Dance A war dance is a dance involving mock combat, usually in reference to tribal warrior societies where such dances were performed as a ritual connected with endemic warfare. Martial arts in various cultures can be performed in dance-like setting ...

*****Ramadan *****Wheatly *****St George *****Big Fellow *****Monmouth *****Stampede *****Bullion *****Chance ****Union Jack ****Copec ****Rogers ****

Asteroid An asteroid is a minor planet—an object larger than a meteoroid that is neither a planet nor an identified comet—that orbits within the Solar System#Inner Solar System, inner Solar System or is co-orbital with Jupiter (Trojan asteroids). As ...

*****George Wilkes *****Harvey Villain *****Aerolite *****Artist *****Asteroid *****Astral *****Ballinkeel *****Ceylon *****Creedmore ****Beacon ****Chesapeake ****

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

****Donerail ****

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 ...

*****Silk Stocking *****Scratch *****Bertram ****Loadstone ****

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

Portraits: Norfolk
/ref> *****Norfall *****Bradley *****Flood *****Duke of Norfolk *****Prince of Norfolk *****Alta *****Estil *****

Emperor of Norfolk Emperor of Norfolk (1885–1907) was an American Champion and Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse. His large size, strong hindquarters, and racing record earned him the name of the "California Wonder". Background In the 1870s, when Joseph Cairn ...

*****The Czar ***** El Rio ReyLong before Chrome, El Rio Rey brought horse racing fame to N. Nevada
/ref> ****Ulverston *****Keene Richards ****Woodburn *****Hardwood ****Ansel ****Bay Dick ****Gilroy *****Grinstead *****John M Clay ****Harry of the West ****Luther *****Sharpcatcher ****Veto ****Edinborough ****Jonesboro ****King Lear ****Lee Paul ****Lever *****Leveller *****

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

****Merrill ****Norway ****Red Dick ****Watson ****Baywood ****Concord *****Galway ****King Tom *****King George ****Marion *****Logan ****Newry ****Bayonet ****Crossland **** General Duke *****Bonnie Duke ****Hazard ****Paris ****Pat Malloy *****Ozark ***** Lord Murphy *****Blue Grass *****Bob Miles *****Favor ****Vauxhall *****Viator ***** Cloverbrook ****Barney Willams ****Chillecothe ****Foster *****Jim Brown ****

Kingfisher Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly coloured birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species living in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

*****Turco *****Prince Royal ****Pilgrim ****

Preakness Preakness may refer to: * The Preakness or Preakness Stakes, an American flat thoroughbred horse race held in Baltimore, Maryland * Preakness (horse), an American thoroughbred racehorse from Preakness Stables * Preakness, New Jersey, a section of W ...

*****Fiddler ****Creole Dance ****

Harry Bassett Harry Bassett (1868–1878) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse, winner of the 1871 Belmont Stakes and an outstanding racehorse of the 19th century. He also won a number of other stakes races, and was named the Champion male of his age group ...

*****George McCullough *****King Nero ****Monarchist *****Longfield *****Storey *****Monarch *****Loftin ****Pimlico ****Wanderer **** Tom BowlingTom Bowling, The Wild Horse
/ref> *****Black Prince *****General Monroe *****Sligo *****Tacoma ****Acrobat ****Breathitt *****Melikoff ****Jack Boston ****King Bolt **** Tom Ochiltree *****Tattler *****Cynosure *****Major Domo *****Sluggard ****Charley Howard ****Fiddlesticks **** Shirley ****Brown Prince *****Shillelagh *****Kilsallaghan ****Frederick the Great **** Duke of MagentaHall of Fame: Duke of Magenta
/ref> *****Leo *****Young Duke *****Duke of Kent *****

Eric The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, Eirik, or Eiríkur is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-N ...

****Uncas *****

Dunboyne Dunboyne () is a town in County Meath, Ireland, north-west of Dublin city centre. It is a commuter town for Dublin. In the 20 years between the 1996 and 2016 censuses, the population of Dunboyne more than doubled from 3,080 to 7,272 inhabitan ...

*****Oneko *****Sorcerer *****Fake

Pedigree

References

{{Reflist * “The History of Thoroughbred Racing in America,” by William H.P. Robertson, Bonanza Books, New York (*Australian Stud Book says 1814. Bloodlines says 1813.)

External links

Timoleon's pedigree and stats
1814 racehorse births 1836 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Virginia Racehorses trained in the United States Byerley Turk sire line Thoroughbred family A24