Walter Childs Rollins (1857 – January 18, 1908) was an American

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, 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 basic ...

trainer about whom the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' said "was for thirty years one of the most successful trainers of thoroughbred racers in America."

Early life

Born in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County. By population, it is the second-largest city in Kentucky and 57th-largest city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 28th-largest ...

, Walter Rollins first worked in the racing industry as a stable hand for

H. Price McGrath Henry Price McGrath (January 13, 1814 - July 5, 1881) was a "sporting-man" who opened the first gambling house in the American South, and bred the race horse, Aristides, the winner of the first Kentucky Derby in 1875. In the 905 page book prepare ...

, owner of McGrathiana Stud. He was a jockey for a time but met with limited success.

Training career

As a trainer, Rollins spent the majority of his career at racetracks in the

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New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York (state), New York; on the ea ...

area, making his home in

The Bronx, New York The Bronx () is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state, state of New York (state), New York. It is south of Westchester County, New York, Westchester County; north and east of the ...

. His first major success came with the

colt Colt(s) or COLT may refer to: * Colt (horse), an intact (uncastrated) male horse under four years of age People *Colt (given name) *Colt (surname) Places * Colt, Arkansas, United States *Colt, Louisiana, an unincorporated community, United State ...

General Monroe A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OE ...

with whom he won the 1883 and 1884 editions of the

Saratoga Cup The Saratoga Cup was an American Thoroughbred horse race open to horses of either sex age three and older although geldings were not eligible from 1865 through 1918. Between 1865 and 1955 it was hosted by Saratoga Race Course, in Saratoga Springs, ...

and the inaugural running of the

Suburban Handicap The Suburban Stakes is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is now run at the mile distance on dirt for a $700,000 purse. Named after the City and Su ...

in 1884. Walter Rollins trained for prominent owners such as

Norman Kittson Norman Wolfred Kittson (March 6, 1814 – May 10, 1888) was one of early Minnesota's most prominent citizens. He was best known as first a fur trader, then a steamboat-line operator and finally a railway entrepreneur and owner of thoroughbr ...

Pierre Lorillard IV Pierre J. Lorillard IV (October 13, 1833 – July 7, 1901) was an American tobacco manufacturer and Thoroughbred race horse owner. Early life Born in Westchester, New York, he was the son of Pierre Lorillard III (1796–1867) and Catherine Gr ...

, and the Oneck Stable of

Harry K. Knapp Harry Kearsarge Knapp (September 25, 1864 - January 31, 1926) was a United States financier and a prominent executive in the Thoroughbred horse racing industry in which he had been a steward, secretary-treasurer and vice-chairman of The Jockey Clu ...

and his brother, Dr. Gideon Lee Knapp. Rollins' most famous horse was Oneck Stable's

Sir Walter Sir Walter (foaled 1890 in California) was an outstanding American Thoroughbred racehorse known for his gritty determination which saw him win a number of races by a matter of inches. Background Sir Walter was bred by James Ben Ali Haggin at hi ...

. He also owned some of the horses he trained, notably

Deerslayer Nathaniel "Natty" Bumppo is a fictional character and the protagonist of James Fenimore Cooper's pentalogy of novels known as the ''Leatherstocking Tales''. Fictional biography Natty Bumppo, the child of white parents, grew up among Delaware I ...

, winner of the 1896

Carter Handicap The Carter Handicap is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for three-years-old and older run over a distance of seven furlongs run annually in early April at Aqueduct Racetrack. Race history First run in 1895, the race was named for Br ...

and

Autumn Cup The Autumn Cup was an ice hockey competition in the United Kingdom between 1946 and 2000. The competition was originally divided into English and Scottish competitions, known as the English Autumn Cup and the Scottish Autumn Cup between 1946 and 195 ...

, as well as

Herbert Herbert may refer to: People Individuals * Herbert (musician), a pseudonym of Matthew Herbert Name * Herbert (given name) * Herbert (surname) Places Antarctica * Herbert Mountains, Coats Land * Herbert Sound, Graham Land Australia * Herbert, ...

, who won back-to-back runnings of the

Merchants and Citizens Handicap The Merchants and Citizens Handicap is a discontinued American Thoroughbred horse race which was first run in 1900 at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. Open to horses aged three and older, it was contested on dirt. The inaugural ...

in 1901 and 1902.

Retirement

Plagued by health problems, by 1901 Rollins had hired trainer Robert Healey to assist him and then retired in 1903 at age forty-six. In the fall of 1908, Mrs. Rollins died. Despondent over her loss and his own failing health, Walter Rollins killed himself. He was living in

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...

near the

Jerome Park Racetrack Jerome Park Racetrack was an American thoroughbred horse racing facility from 1866 until 1894. It was located in a part of Westchester County, New York that was annexed into the Bronx in 1874. Jerome Park Racetrack was the home of the Belmont Sta ...

at the time of his death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rollins, Walter C. 1857 births 1908 deaths Suicides by firearm in New York City Horse trainers from Lexington, Kentucky 1908 suicides Jockeys from Lexington, Kentucky