James Gordon Rowe Sr. (1857 – August 2, 1929) was an American

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...

and

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 ...

elected to the

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

for

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 ...

Horse racing 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 ...

. He won the

Belmont Stakes The Belmont Stakes is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is run over the worldwide classic distance of . Colt (horseracing), Colt ...

twice as a jockey and 8 times as a trainer. He had 34 champion horses to his credit, more than any other trainer in the Hall of Fame.

Early life and education

Rowe was born in the environs of

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

, and went to work at a racetrack as a boy of 10 years old. He went from an apprentice rider to being considered the leading jockey in the U.S. at age 14, a position he kept from 1871 to 1873.

Career

With age came weight, and in 1875, at the age of 18, Rowe retired from racing as a jockey. He began working for the Davis & Hall racing stable as an assistant to the trainer, David W. McConn. Rowe eventually became head trainer for the stable. In 1879, Rowe joined the Dwyer Brothers Stable. On May 17, 1881, with the future Hall of Fame horse Hindoo, he became the youngest trainer to win the

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 ...

. Hindoo won eighteen straight races that year. The Dwyers pushed their horses hard, in a manner that would be unacceptable and illegal today. Rowe quit the Dwyers in 1885 in a dispute regarding over-racing their horses, especially the mare

Miss Woodford Miss Woodford (1880–1899) was a champion American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who was one of the top American fillies of all time, winning 16 consecutive races. Background Miss Woodford was bred in Kentucky by the Runnymede Farm#Ezekie ...

. Rowe trained for Alfred F. Walcott's Fairfax Stable, after which he was a public or freelance trainer until 1889. While he ran his own stable one of his clients was

August Belmont August Belmont Sr. (born Aron Belmont; December 8, 1813November 24, 1890) was a German-American financier, diplomat, and politician. He served as Chair of the Democratic National Committee from 1860 to 1872. He was also a thoroughbred racehors ...

. In 1891, Rowe was hired as the race starter at minor racetracks. In January 1892, he was hired by the Board of Control as starter for the Monmouth Park Association, Coney Island Jockey Club, Brooklyn Jockey Club, and the New York Jockey clubs. In 1899, Rowe became head trainer for the racing operations of James R. Keene. In 1911, he took charge of the racing stable of

Harry Payne Whitney Harry Payne Whitney (April 29, 1872 – October 26, 1930) was an American businessman, thoroughbred horse breeding, horse breeder, and member of the prominent Whitney family. Early years Whitney was born in New York City on April 29, 1872, as ...

, for whom he trained his second Kentucky Derby winner. Rowe was the leading money winner in horse racing in 1908, 1913, and 1915, the year the Whitney stables' Regret became the first

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 ...

to win the Kentucky Derby. Regret was named 1915's Horse of the Year. She was later elected to the Racing Hall of Fame. Rowe had four second-place finishes with horses in the

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held annually on Armed Forces Day, the third Saturday in May at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland (except in 2026 when it will move to Laurel Park (race track), Laurel Park dur ...

and won it with Broomspun in 1921. Despite his many victories in important races, it is for the performance of his horses in the

that Rowe is most remembered. Between 1883 and 1913, he won the Belmont Stakes 8 times, more than any other trainer in history. One of those victories came in 1908 with a horse named Colin, who went unbeaten during his 15-race career. Rowe considered Colin to be the greatest horse he had ever trained. He once said that for his epitaph he wanted only these words: "He trained Colin."

Legacy

Following the formation of 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 ...

in 1955, James Rowe Sr. was inducted posthumously. His son, James Jr., also had a very successful career as a trainer but died at age 42 of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

.''New York Times'' - October 22, 1931
/ref>

Early life and education

Career

Legacy

References

Further reading