Lou Dillon
Encyclopedia
Lou Dillon was a Standardbred trotting horse. She was the first trotter to trot a mile in under 2:00, at Memphis
in 1903.
The mare Lou Dillon, by Sidney Dillon out of Lou Milton, was foaled in 1898 by the Pierce Brothers Stock Farm near Santa Ynez, California. She was a two-time great-great-granddaughter of Hambletonian. Her owner was Henry Pierce, who never raced her professionally. She was trained initially by Charles Tanner, who drove her in many amateur events. Later her workouts under Millard Sanders (1856-1928) were sensational, and she attracted a lot of attention. She was high strung and hard to handle. Sanders was the only man who knew her.
Henry Pierce refused to sell her, even for the $20,000 offered by E.E. Smathers in 1903. Ten days after this offer was made, Pierce suddenly died in San Francisco. All his stock was sold at a dispersal sale in Cleveland. C.K.G. Billings
bought Lou Dillon, and she again went into training with Millard Sanders. Billings, too, refused to race her professionally. She did run exhibitions against time, to sulky, high-wheeler and saddle, but no Grand Circuit stakes.
In 1903 in Readville, Massachusetts
, she became the first trotter to register 2:00 for the mile. On October 24, 1903 she bettered her own mark, trotting 1:58½ at Memphis. This record astounded the racing world. Four days later in Memphis she raced 2:00 drawing a four-wheel wagon, Billings driving. With her new-found fame, she began an exhibition tour of the United States and Europe, driven by Billings and Sanders. She thrilled spectators in Berlin, Moscow and Vienna.
Lou Dillon never returned to the great form she had shown in 1903. In 1904 she was involved in a doping scandal at the Memphis Gold Cup (innocently — a rival doped her to prevent her from winning.) She was retired in 1906, and died at the age of 26 in 1925. She was buried in Santa Barbara, near where Lou Dillon Lane is found today. Her original gravestone is now on display at the Harness Museum in Goshen, New York
.
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
in 1903.
The mare Lou Dillon, by Sidney Dillon out of Lou Milton, was foaled in 1898 by the Pierce Brothers Stock Farm near Santa Ynez, California. She was a two-time great-great-granddaughter of Hambletonian. Her owner was Henry Pierce, who never raced her professionally. She was trained initially by Charles Tanner, who drove her in many amateur events. Later her workouts under Millard Sanders (1856-1928) were sensational, and she attracted a lot of attention. She was high strung and hard to handle. Sanders was the only man who knew her.
Henry Pierce refused to sell her, even for the $20,000 offered by E.E. Smathers in 1903. Ten days after this offer was made, Pierce suddenly died in San Francisco. All his stock was sold at a dispersal sale in Cleveland. C.K.G. Billings
C.K.G. Billings
Cornelius Kingsley Garrison Billings was a wealthy industrialist, a noted horseman and tycoon...
bought Lou Dillon, and she again went into training with Millard Sanders. Billings, too, refused to race her professionally. She did run exhibitions against time, to sulky, high-wheeler and saddle, but no Grand Circuit stakes.
In 1903 in Readville, Massachusetts
Readville, Massachusetts
Readville, called Low Plains from 1655 until renaming in 1847 after Mr. James Read originally part of Dedham until 1867 but now a part of Boston, is considered either a part of the Hyde Park neighborhood, or a neighborhood in its own right. It is served by Readville station on the MBTA Commuter Rail...
, she became the first trotter to register 2:00 for the mile. On October 24, 1903 she bettered her own mark, trotting 1:58½ at Memphis. This record astounded the racing world. Four days later in Memphis she raced 2:00 drawing a four-wheel wagon, Billings driving. With her new-found fame, she began an exhibition tour of the United States and Europe, driven by Billings and Sanders. She thrilled spectators in Berlin, Moscow and Vienna.
Lou Dillon never returned to the great form she had shown in 1903. In 1904 she was involved in a doping scandal at the Memphis Gold Cup (innocently — a rival doped her to prevent her from winning.) She was retired in 1906, and died at the age of 26 in 1925. She was buried in Santa Barbara, near where Lou Dillon Lane is found today. Her original gravestone is now on display at the Harness Museum in Goshen, New York
Goshen (village), New York
Goshen is a village in and the county seat of Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 5,676 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport,...
.