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Horses of Andrew Jackson

Andrew_Jackson_astride_Sam_Patch,_painted_by_Ralph_E._W._Earl_circa_1833_Andrew_Jackson's_Hermitage
Andrew Jackson Astride Sam Patch by Ralph E. W. Earl

Andrew Jackson, who served as the seventh U.S. president from 1829 to 1837, was involved with horse trading, and the racehorse business, for much of his life. He worked as a horse trader from a very early age, such that by age 15 in 1782 he was already considered "shrewd."[1] When he worked as a merchant and slave trader in the 1790s and 1800s, he or his assistant John Hutchings often shipped both horses and people to "the lower country" for resale.[2][3]

The most historically significant horse in his stable was Truxton, simply because the planned race against Joseph Erwin's Ploughboy led to the fatal duel with Erwin's son-in-law Charles Dickinson, which was later made an issue in the 1828 U.S. presidential election.[4] Truxton was the offspring of Diomed and Nancy Coleman.[5] Other important racehorses owned by Jackson included Doublehead, Opossum Filly, and Pacolet.[5] He also owned Bolivia, Busiris, Emilie, Indian Queen, and Lady Nashville, to name a few.[6][7]

Jackson was the only president to keep his own stable at the White House.[8] The horses he had while President were nominally owned by his son.[9] According to biographer Stanley Horn, "...it is plain to see that Jackson had a very exalted idea of the position he held and a keen understanding of the desirability of keeping the occupant of the President's chair entirely disassociated with the sordid business of horse racing."[10] Jackson's White House horses "so overflowed the Monroe stable that wooden shanties had to be built for further housing along the west fence of the grounds," and Jackson later convinced Congress to fund the construction of a larger brick-built stable, which stood from 1834 to 1857.[8] When Jackson's son Andrew Jackson Jr. got into financial trouble during and after his presidency, Jackson sold off his stable of thoroughbreds to help raise funds for debt service.[11]

In old age, Jackson told an interviewer that his one abiding regret in life was that none of his horses had ever been able to beat Jesse Haynie's Maria in a race.[12] There were nine separate times when Maria raced horses owned by Andrew Jackson, including races against Yellow Queen,[9] and Decatur, a son of Truxton,[1] and Maria won every single time. Her jockey in all nine races was an enslaved man named Simon, also known as Prince and Monkey Simon. According to one account, "Before one contest, Jackson approached the rider and said, 'Now Simon, when my horse and rider come to pass you, don't spit your tobacco juice in their eyes.' 'Why General,' the Prince replied, 'I rode a great deal against your horses, but none of them ever got close enough to catch my spit.'"[13]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Durant, John. "TENNESSEE TURFMAN". Sports Illustrated Vault (SI.com). Archived from the original on 2021-04-23. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  2. ^ Bancroft, Frederic (2023) [1931, 1996]. Slave Trading in the Old South (Original publisher: J. H. Fürst Co., Baltimore). Southern Classics Series. Introduction by Michael Tadman (Reprint ed.). Columbia, S.C.: University of South Carolina Press. pp. 250, 300. ISBN 978-1-6433-6427-8. LCCN 95020493. OCLC 1153619151.
  3. ^ The Papers of Andrew Jackson - Vol. I, p. 261, 269, Vol. II, p. 6
  4. ^ "Making the American thoroughbred, especially in Tennessee, 1800-1845, by James Douglas Anderson; including Reminiscences of the turf, by Balie Peyton, ..." HathiTrust. pp. 45–50. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  5. ^ a b American Turf Register and Sporting Magazine. J.S. Skinner. 1833.
  6. ^ Rust, Randal. "Early Horse Racing Tracks". Tennessee Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  7. ^ "Andrew Jackson's Horse - Bolivia". WHHA (en-US). Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  8. ^ a b Bushong, William. "Presidents as Horsemen". WHHA (en-US). Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  9. ^ a b Kupfer, Barbara Stern (1970). "A Presidential Patron of the Sport or Kings: Andrew Jackson". Tennessee Historical Quarterly. 29 (3): 243–255. ISSN 0040-3261. JSTOR 42623730.
  10. ^ "The Hermitage, home of Old Hickory, by Stanley F. Horn". HathiTrust. Retrieved 2025-01-05.
  11. ^ Galloway, Linda Bennett (1950). "Andrew Jackson, Junior (Continued)". Tennessee Historical Quarterly. 9 (4): 306–343. ISSN 0040-3261. JSTOR 42621053.
  12. ^ Vidette, John Oliver For The (2022-06-02). "Looking Back: My Maria". Lebanon Democrat. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  13. ^ Gilligan, Patrick Lawrence (2021-02-24). "The enslaved jockey who got the better of this U.S. President - time and again". Thoroughbred Racing Commentary. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
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