Parole (horse)
Encyclopedia
Parole was a Thoroughbred
race horse bred by Pierre Lorillard, a scion of the tobacco
family. Lorillard and his brother George were both horsemen and competed throughout their careers. Pierre founded the Rancocas Stable
in New Jersey
named after the New Jersey town where he owned a country manor.
Parole's sire was the great Leamington
who also produced Longfellow
, Aristides (named by his breeder for Aristides Welch who had imported Leamington into the US), winner of the first Kentucky Derby
, and Iroquois
, first American
bred horse to win the Epsom Derby
and the St. Leger Stakes
.
According to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
, at two Parole was considered the best juvenile racing. He was also, by many, thought the best four- and five-year-old. At four he beat the good gelding Shirley (by Lexington
) in the August Stakes. Shirley had won the Preakness Stakes
. Parole also won the Saratoga Cup
, but more importantly he beat both Ten Broeck
and Tom Ochiltree
in the Baltimore Special at Pimlico Race Course
on October 24, 1877. Both of these horses were considered the best horses in the West as well as the East. In 1877, Ten Broeck had won eight races in a row. One was a walkover since no one would enter against him, and two were races against time for the same reason. Tom Ochiltree, owned by Pierre Lorillard’s brother George, was huge, standing above sixteen hands. One of the last sons of Lexington, he, like Shirley, had won the Preakness Stakes
. Parole was younger than either of them. Earlier he’d beaten Tom Ochiltree in the Saratoga Cup, but in later races, Tom had beaten him twice. Congress
adjourned for the day to attend this Baltimore, Maryland event. Throughout most of the race, Ten Broeck led and Parole trailed. But by the end Parole was coming on fast. He lapped Tom Ochiltree and then passed Ten Broeck, taking the race by four lengths.
The owners of both losers reported that their horses had been seen coughing before the race. In any case, both horses were retired at the end of the year. But Parole, as a gelding, went on racing.
n breeder Aristides Welch, Lorillard took his brother George Lorillard’s horse, Duke of Magenta
(by Lexington), and his stablemate, the six-year-old Parole, as well as a number of other horses (Cherokee, Friar, Pappoose, Geraldine, Boreas, Nereid, and Uncas), to England
in a serious effort to have an American horse win an English race. Parole went as a trial horse.
On his arrival in England, the English press called Parole the “Yankee Mule.” Sam Hildreth
, in his book "The Spell of the Turf," said he was called "light-necked, rough-coated, leggy and curby knocked."
While there, the Duke of Magenta became ill with influenza, allowing Parole an opportunity to prove his worth. Within one week in April, Parole won the Newmarket Stakes (on Apr. 16th, defeating Isonomy) and the City and Suburban Handicap (on Apr. 22nd, defeating 17 horses, including Ridotto). The following day he won the Great Metropolitan which was set at two and a half miles. Only one horse opposed him, Castlereagh, because no other owner wanted to continue competing against Parole. Parole carried 124 pounds against Castlereagh's 110. The English were amazed at this performance but American horses were used to running in grueling heats.
Parole was inducted into the Hall of Fame
in 1984.
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...
race horse bred by Pierre Lorillard, a scion of the tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
family. Lorillard and his brother George were both horsemen and competed throughout their careers. Pierre founded the Rancocas Stable
Rancocas Stable
Rancocas Farm was an American thoroughbred horse racing stud farm and racing stable located on Monmouth Road in Springfield Township, Burlington County, New Jersey, Jobstown, New Jersey....
in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
named after the New Jersey town where he owned a country manor.
Parole's sire was the great Leamington
Leamington (horse)
Leamington was a Thoroughbred racehorse, and an influential sire in the United States during the second half of the nineteenth century. He was not only a fast horse, but also showed great staying ability....
who also produced Longfellow
Longfellow (horse)
Longfellow was one of America's first great Thoroughbred racehorses and the sire of great racehorses. A legend in his own time, he was out of the first crop of the outstanding imported English stallion Leamington....
, Aristides (named by his breeder for Aristides Welch who had imported Leamington into the US), winner of the first Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
, and Iroquois
Iroquois (horse)
Iroquois , was the first American-bred Thoroughbred race horse to win the prestigious Epsom Derby at Epsom Downs Racecourse, Epsom, Surrey, England. He then went on to win the St...
, first American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
bred horse to win the Epsom Derby
Epsom Derby
The Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, internationally as the Epsom Derby, and under its present sponsor as the Investec Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...
and the St. Leger Stakes
St. Leger Stakes
The St. Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 1 mile, 6 furlongs and 132 yards , and it is scheduled to take place each year in September.Established in 1776, the St. Leger...
.
According to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
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 race horses, jockeys, and trainers...
, at two Parole was considered the best juvenile racing. He was also, by many, thought the best four- and five-year-old. At four he beat the good gelding Shirley (by Lexington
Lexington (horse)
Lexington was a United States Thoroughbred race horse who won six of his seven race starts. Perhaps his greatest fame came however as the most successful sire of the second half of the nineteenth century; he was the Leading sire in North America 16 times, and of his many brood mare and racer...
) in the August Stakes. Shirley had won the Preakness Stakes
Preakness Stakes
The Preakness Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs on dirt. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds ; fillies 121 lb...
. Parole also won the Saratoga Cup
Saratoga Breeders' Cup Handicap
The Saratoga Breeders’ Cup Handicap was, until it was discontinued in 2005, a Thoroughbred race for horses three-years-old and up run at Saratoga Race Course...
, but more importantly he beat both Ten Broeck
Ten Broeck
Ten Broeck was an American U.S. Racing Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse whose 1878 match race win in Louisville against the great California mare, Mollie McCarty was immortalized in the Kentucky folk song commonly called Molly and Tenbrooks.Bred by John Harper at his farm near Midway,...
and Tom Ochiltree
Tom Ochiltree
Tom Ochiltree , was an American Thoroughbred racehorse, one of the last by the great foundation stallion, blind Lexington, still standing at what by then was A. J. Alexander's Woodburn Stud in Kentucky. Tom Ochiltree was an enormous colt, eventually reaching 16 hands 2½ inches high with a girth of...
in the Baltimore Special at Pimlico Race Course
Pimlico Race Course
Pimlico Race Course is a horse racetrack in Baltimore, Maryland, most famous for hosting the Preakness Stakes. Its name is derived from the 1660s when English settlers named the area where the facility currently stands in honor of Olde Ben Pimlico's Tavern in London...
on October 24, 1877. Both of these horses were considered the best horses in the West as well as the East. In 1877, Ten Broeck had won eight races in a row. One was a walkover since no one would enter against him, and two were races against time for the same reason. Tom Ochiltree, owned by Pierre Lorillard’s brother George, was huge, standing above sixteen hands. One of the last sons of Lexington, he, like Shirley, had won the Preakness Stakes
Preakness Stakes
The Preakness Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs on dirt. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds ; fillies 121 lb...
. Parole was younger than either of them. Earlier he’d beaten Tom Ochiltree in the Saratoga Cup, but in later races, Tom had beaten him twice. Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
adjourned for the day to attend this Baltimore, Maryland event. Throughout most of the race, Ten Broeck led and Parole trailed. But by the end Parole was coming on fast. He lapped Tom Ochiltree and then passed Ten Broeck, taking the race by four lengths.
The owners of both losers reported that their horses had been seen coughing before the race. In any case, both horses were retired at the end of the year. But Parole, as a gelding, went on racing.
In England
Although Parole was owned by the PennsylvaniaPennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
n breeder Aristides Welch, Lorillard took his brother George Lorillard’s horse, Duke of Magenta
Duke of Magenta
----Duke of Magenta was one of the most successful racehorses in the United States in the 19th century.Foaled in 1875 at the Woodburn Stud near Lexington, Kentucky, he was owned by New York City tobacco tycoon, George L. Lorillard and trained by Hall of Famer R. Wyndham Walden. "Duke of Magenta"...
(by Lexington), and his stablemate, the six-year-old Parole, as well as a number of other horses (Cherokee, Friar, Pappoose, Geraldine, Boreas, Nereid, and Uncas), to England
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in a serious effort to have an American horse win an English race. Parole went as a trial horse.
On his arrival in England, the English press called Parole the “Yankee Mule.” Sam Hildreth
Sam Hildreth
Samuel Clay Hildreth was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame trainer and owner.Born in Independence, Missouri, Sam Hildreth began his training career in 1887, competing at racetracks in the Midwestern United States with such horses as the good racemare Hurley Burley, the dam of...
, in his book "The Spell of the Turf," said he was called "light-necked, rough-coated, leggy and curby knocked."
While there, the Duke of Magenta became ill with influenza, allowing Parole an opportunity to prove his worth. Within one week in April, Parole won the Newmarket Stakes (on Apr. 16th, defeating Isonomy) and the City and Suburban Handicap (on Apr. 22nd, defeating 17 horses, including Ridotto). The following day he won the Great Metropolitan which was set at two and a half miles. Only one horse opposed him, Castlereagh, because no other owner wanted to continue competing against Parole. Parole carried 124 pounds against Castlereagh's 110. The English were amazed at this performance but American horses were used to running in grueling heats.
Back to America
Parole took four back-to-back races as soon he arrived home, and he went on racing until 1884 when he was twelve years old, winning 59 of his 138 starts and earning over $80,000. (Note: Parole's racing statistics shown here were the product of a revision in January 2010; eleven additional races (that he ran as a twelve-year-old in 1885) missing from previous compilations were discovered. The National Museum of Racing's historian confirmed the finding and revised the Museum's Hall of Fame website data to reflect it - see link in References below. The information necessarily conflicts with the abundance of the histories printed heretofore.)Retirement
When he was finished racing, Parole was America's leading money winner and the best gelding of his era. He died on January 1, 1903 at the age of 30 years.Parole was inducted into the Hall of Fame
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 race horses, jockeys, and trainers...
in 1984.