Saxon (1871–1895) was a British-bred American-trained

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 that won the 1874

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 ...

, the eighth running of that

stakes race The following is a glossary of North American horse racing. Additional glossaries at: *Glossary of Australian and New Zealand punting *Glossary of equestrian terms This is a basic glossary of equestrian terms that includes both technical term ...

Background

Saxon was a brown

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 ...

sired by

Beadsman Bedesman, or beadsman (Middle English , , from the Old English , ; ; and from the Anglo-Saxon ), was generally a pensioner or almsman whose duty was to pray for his benefactor. Function A beadsman (or beadswoman) in Medieval times occupied thei ...

, and was bred in England,New York Racing Association "1874 Belmont" ''The Belmont Stakes'' by Joseph Hawley.Hewitt ''Great Breeders'' pp. 232-233 He was imported into the United States by Pierre Lorillard,Bruce ''American Stud Book'' Vol. 1 p. 90 along with his dam.Bruce ''American Stud Book'' Vol. 4 p. 28 Saxon's dam was the imported mare Girasol, who was sired by

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 ...

and out of the mare Gillyflower. Gillyflower was sired by Venison.Hogan ''Index to Stakes Winners'' p. 236

Racing career

As a two-year-old, Saxon won the 1873

August Stakes The August Stakes is a Listed flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Windsor over a distance of 1 mile 3 furlongs and 99 yards (2,303 metres), and it is scheduled to ...

. Saxon won the 1874 Belmont while owned by Pierre Lorillard. This was the eighth running of the stakes race.New York Racing Association "Belmont Stakes" ''The Belmont Stakes'' The race was run on June 13, 1871 at a distance of miles (i.e. ) on a fast track. He finished first by a neck over Grinstead, and third place went to Aaron Pennington. All the horses in the race carried , and the value to the winner was $4,200 (about $ today), with the winning time being 2 minutes and seconds. The winning jockey was

George Barbee George Joseph Barbee (December 12, 1849 – October 30, 1939) was an English-born jockey who was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1996. Published reports indicate Barbee lived to be 89, and is buried near Belmon ...

, and the winning trainer was William Pryor. In his racing career, Saxon won 2 times out of 8 starts, with total earnings of $5,150 (about $ today).

Stud record

As a breeding stallion, he sired three stakes winners: Gerald out of Girl of the Period by

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...

, Hiawasse out of Vandalite by

Vandal The Vandals were a Germanic people who were first reported in the written records as inhabitants of what is now Poland, during the period of the Roman Empire. Much later, in the fifth century, a group of Vandals led by kings established Vandal ...

, and Zamora out of Zoo Zoo by imported Australian.Hogan ''Index to Stakes Winners'' p. 663 Gerald, an 1879 brown stallion, won the 1881

Foam Stakes The Foam Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually from 1880 through 1910 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. An event for two-year-old horses of either sex, the race was run on dirt over a distanc ...

. Hiawasse, an 1879 brown mare, won the 1882

Ladies Handicap The Ladies Stakes is a historic American Thoroughbred horse race for Fillies and Mares four years of age and older held annually at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York. Inaugurated at the Jerome Park Racetrack in 1868, it is the oldest stakes ...

, 1881

Monmouth Oaks The Monmouth Oaks is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Monmouth Park Racetrack in Oceanport, New Jersey for three-year-old fillies. Named for England's Epsom Oaks, first run in 1779, the inaugural American edition took place in 1 ...

, and the 1881

Mermaid Stakes The Mermaid Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. An important event for three-year-old fillies, the race was run on dirt over a distance of one mile and one furlong u ...

.Hogan ''Index to Stakes Winners'' p. 504 Hiawasse was undefeated as a three-year-old racehorse. Zamora, an 1881 gray mare, won the 1884

Tennessee Oaks Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina to the east, Georgia, Alabama, and Missi ...

.Hogan ''Index to Stakes Winners'' p. 524 Saxon was used as a breeding stallion by his owner, Pierre Lorillard. Once, Lorillard's brother George teased Pierre that Saxon's offspring were not as good as expected. Pierre then challenged George to a match race between one of Saxon's offspring against any racehorse that George owned. The result was that Hiawasse won the match race by four horse lengths.Robertson ''History of Thoroughbred Racing in America'' p. 128 Saxon died in February 1895 at the Cliff Lawn Stud, the farm of W.B. Cheatham, in

Nashville 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 ...

.Staff "Post and paddock" ''Spirit of the Times''

Notes

Citations

References

* * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Saxon 1871 racehorse births 1895 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United States Belmont Stakes winners Thoroughbred family 28