Windfields Farm
Encyclopedia
Windfields Farm is a six square kilometre (1,500 acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...

) thoroughbred
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...

 horse breeding farm
Stud farm
A stud farm or stud in animal husbandry, is an establishment for selective breeding of livestock. The word "stud" comes from the Old English stod meaning "herd of horses, place where horses are kept for breeding" Historically, documentation of the breedings that occur on a stud farm leads to the...

 founded by businessman E. P. Taylor
E. P. Taylor
Edward Plunket Taylor was a Canadian business tycoon and famous breeder of thoroughbred race horses. Known to his friends as "Eddie", he is universally recorded as "E. P...

 in Oshawa, Ontario
Oshawa, Ontario
Oshawa is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario approximately 60 kilometres east of downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of both the Greater Toronto Area and the Golden Horseshoe. It is now commonly referred to as the most...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. The first stable and breeding operation of E. P. Taylor originated with a property near the city of Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

 known as Parkwood Stable
Parkwood Stable
Parkwood Stable was a thoroughbred racing stable founded in the early 1930s and expanded to include a breeding farm near Toronto, Ontario in 1937. Owned by the wealthy automobile maker Col...

 when it was owned by Colonel Sam McLaughlin of McLaughlin Automobile
McLaughlin automobile
The McLaughlin automobile company began life in 1876 as the McLaughlin Carriage Company, a blacksmith's shop in the village of Enniskillen, located north east of Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. The company began making horse-drawn carriages in the mid 19th Century, moving to Oshawa, Ontario in 1876...

 fame. The property was purchased by Taylor and became known as The National Stud of Canada until he sold it and bought a new property in Oshawa he called Windfields Farm in honor of his first great champion. As population growth overtook the operation, it eventually expanded to include a second farm in Chesapeake City, Maryland
Chesapeake City, Maryland
Chesapeake City is a town in Cecil County, Maryland, United States. The population was 787 at the 2000 census.The town was originally named by Bohemian colonist Augustine Herman the Village of Bohemia , but the name was changed in 1839 when the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal was built...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

The Northern Dancer legacy

Windfields Farm in Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

 is the birthplace of racing great and champion sire
Sire
Sire may refer to:* Father, the counterpart of a dam, particularly in animal breeding. See also stallion* James W. Sire, author on worldviews* Sire Records, a record label* Sire Advertising, an advertising agency...

 Northern Dancer
Northern Dancer
Northern Dancer was a Canadian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and the most successful sire of the 20th Century. The National Thoroughbred Racing Association calls him "one of the most influential sires in Thoroughbred history"....

, winner of the 1964 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...

, in stakes record time, 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...

, and the Queen's Plate
Queen's Plate
The Queen's Plate is Canada's oldest thoroughbred horse race. It is run at a distance of 1¼ miles for 3-year-old thoroughbred horses foaled in Canada. The race takes place each summer in June or July at Woodbine Racetrack, Etobicoke , Ontario...

. Retired from racing after the 1964 racing season, he went on to an even more brillant career at stud
Stud (animal)
A stud animal is a registered animal retained for breeding. The terms for the male of a given animal species usually imply that the animal is entire—that is, not castrated—and therefore capable of siring offspring...

. The National Thoroughbred Racing Association
National Thoroughbred Racing Association
The National Thoroughbred Racing Association is a broad-based coalition of horse racing interests consisting of leading thoroughbred racetracks, owners, breeders, trainers and affiliated horse racing associations, charged with increasing the popularity of horse racing and improving economic...

 states that Northern Dancer is "one of the most influential sires in Thoroughbred history," and he is also regarded as the 20th century's best sire of sires.

Led by Northern Dancer, in the 1960s Windfields Farm earned more prize money than any other stable in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

n Thoroughbred racing. Windfields bred Northern Dancer's sons Nijinsky
Nijinsky II
The racehorse Nijinsky was one of the greatest horses in Thoroughbred horse-racing history. He won the U.K. Triple Crown of racing. Retired to stud he became the Leading sire in Great Britain & Ireland and the Leading broodmare sire in North America.He was bred at E. P...

, Secreto
Secreto
Secreto was a Maryland bred Thoroughbred racehorse who raced in the United Kingdom and Ireland.A son of Northern Dancer, Secretro's damsire was the U.S. Triple Crown champion, Secretariat. He was bred by E. P. Taylor at the Maryland branch of his Windfields Farm...

, and The Minstrel
The Minstrel
The Minstrel was a champion Thoroughbred racehorse in Great Britain and Ireland. His performances led to him becoming the Horse of the Year in the United Kingdom, Horse of the Year in Ireland and being inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.Foaled at E.P...

, all of whom won England's most prestigious race, 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...

.

In 1968 a barn fire at the Maryland division resulted in the death of thirteen horses who had just arrived from the Canadian farm. Included in the horses that died were twelve mares, three of which were in foal to Northern Dancer and one to Nearctic
Nearctic (horse)
Nearctic was an Canadian-bred Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred by E. P. Taylor, he was out of the Irish mare Lady Angela, a daughter of the British Champion sire Hyperion...

.

Northern Dancer spent most of his years at stud at the Maryland division which also became home to other sires such as Dancer's Image
Dancer's Image
Dancer's Image was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the only winner in the history of the Kentucky Derby to have been disqualified. Owned and bred by businessman Peter Fuller, the son of former Massachusetts Governor Alvan T. Fuller, the colt was trained by Lou Cavalaris, Jr...

 and Assert
Assert (horse)
Assert was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse who won four Group One races. Impeccably bred by Walter Haefner's Moyglare Stud, he was purchased and raced by Britain's then leading owner, Robert Sangster....

. A national icon in Canada, Northern Dancer died in 1990 at Windfields' Maryland farm but was returned to his birthplace in Oshawa for burial.

$1 million stud fee and world record offspring prices

Between 1974 and 1988, twelve times Northern Dancer yearlings
Yearling (horse)
A yearling is a young horse of either sex that is between one and two years old. Yearlings are comparable in development to a very early adolescent, they are not fully mature physically, and while they may be in the earliest stages of sexual maturity, they are considered too young to be breeding...

 led the Keeneland July Selected Yearling Sale
Keeneland Sales
The Keeneland Sales is an American Thoroughbred auction house in Lexington, Kentucky founded in 1935 as a nonprofit racing/auction entity on 147 acres of farmland west of Lexington, which had been owned by Jack O. Keene...

 by average price. In the 1983 Keeneland Sales
Keeneland Sales
The Keeneland Sales is an American Thoroughbred auction house in Lexington, Kentucky founded in 1935 as a nonprofit racing/auction entity on 147 acres of farmland west of Lexington, which had been owned by Jack O. Keene...

 horse auction
Auction
An auction is a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bid, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder...

, one of Windfields' colts, that would eventually be named Snaafi Dancer
Snaafi Dancer
Snaafi Dancer is an Thoroughbred racehorse who was the first yearling to sell for more than $10 million. Bred by Donald T...

, became the first $10 million yearling
Yearling
Yearling may refer to:*Yearling , an animal in its second year of life.**Yearling , a horse between one and two years of age.in titles or proper names:*Yearling Books, an imprint of the publishing company Random House....

. In 1984 his twelve yearlings sold for an unrivalled sale-record average of price of US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....

3,446.666.

In the 1980s, Northern Dancer's stud fee reached US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....

1 million, an amount four to five times his rivals and a record amount that as at 2009 has not been equalled.

Horses owned by Windfields Farm have won eleven Queen's Plate
Queen's Plate
The Queen's Plate is Canada's oldest thoroughbred horse race. It is run at a distance of 1¼ miles for 3-year-old thoroughbred horses foaled in Canada. The race takes place each summer in June or July at Woodbine Racetrack, Etobicoke , Ontario...

 races, as well as the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes. Their horses have won the Canadian Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
Canadian Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
The Canadian Triple Crown is a series of three Thoroughbred horse races run annually in Canada which is open to three-year-old horses foaled in Canada...

 twice, in 1959 and 1963. Windfields Farm and/or E. P. Taylor bred a world-record 48 champions and 360 stakes winners.

Operations: 1980-2009

In 1980 E. P. Taylor was incapacitated by a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...

 and his son Charles
Charles P. B. Taylor
Charles Plunket Bourchier Taylor was a Canadian journalist, author, essayist, and thoroughbred racehorse owner and breeder....

 took over management of Winfields Farm. E.P. Taylor died in 1989 but Charles died in 1997 after which his widow Noreen and sister Judith Taylor Mappin
Judith Mappin
Judith Mappin BSc is a Canadian bookseller and philanthropist.She was born in Toronto and remained there during her youth. She studied at McGill University in Montreal, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in 1950. She has continued to live in Montreal with her husband John N...

 took charge of the business. The Maryland division was sold in 1988 and Rowland Farm and the Northern Stallion Station occupy the land.

The downsizing that began following the death of E. P. Taylor resulted in large portions of Windfields Farm being sold to the University of Ontario Institute of Technology and Durham College, which erected sports fields and parking lots on the farm's southeast corner. Farmlands on the east side of Simcoe Street are now housing developments. By 2008, the once vast estate that at its peak was home to more than 600 Thoroughbreds, had evolved to just a small private farm. In November 2009 the Windfields Farm breeding operations were wound up. Its broodmares and weanling
Weanling
A weanling is an animal that has just been weaned. The term is usually used to refer to a type of young horse, a foal that has been weaned, usually between the ages of 6 months and a year. Once a year old, the horse is referred to as a yearling.-References:...

s were sent to be auctioned at the Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society
Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society
The Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society is an organization headquartered in Toronto, Canada that was founded in 1906 to assist Thoroughbred horse breeders. Since 1982, there have been provincial divisions in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and Saskatchewan.-References:*...

 Winter Mixed Sale and its remaining bloodstock was sold at the Keeneland Sales
Keeneland Sales
The Keeneland Sales is an American Thoroughbred auction house in Lexington, Kentucky founded in 1935 as a nonprofit racing/auction entity on 147 acres of farmland west of Lexington, which had been owned by Jack O. Keene...

 in Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...

. Already engulfed by urban sprawl, Windfields has partnered with real estate developers to build residential homes on the bulk of property. Some of the farm's historic barns, the grave of Northern Dancer, plus a trillium forest where fifteen horses are interred, will be preserved as a commemorative park.

Thoroughbred burials at Windfields Farm in Oshawa include:
  • Archers Bay
    Archers Bay
    Archers Bay was a Canadian Thoroughbred racehorse known for winning the first two legs of the 1998 Canadian Triple Crown. He was sired by Silver Deputy and out of the stakes-winning mare, Adorned, a daughter of the 1975 French Derby winner, Val de l'Orne.In the 1998 Canadian Triple Crown series,...

     (1995–2002)
  • Canadiana
    Canadiana (horse)
    Canadiana was the first Canadian-bred racehorse to earn more than $100,000 Canadian. She was bred by E. P. Taylor at his National Stud near Oshawa, Ontario. Sired by Taylor's stallion, Chop Chop who would go on to sire three more Queen's Plate winners, her dam Iribelle was also owned by Taylor...

     (1950–1971)
  • New Providence
    New Providence (horse)
    New Providence is a Thoroughbred racehorse who in 1959 became the first official winner of the Canadian Triple Crown.Retired to stud duty at owner E. P...

     (1956–1981)
  • Northern Dancer
    Northern Dancer
    Northern Dancer was a Canadian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and the most successful sire of the 20th Century. The National Thoroughbred Racing Association calls him "one of the most influential sires in Thoroughbred history"....

     (1961–1990)
  • South Ocean (1967–1989)
  • Vice Regent (1967–1995)
  • Victoria Park
    Victoria Park (horse)
    Victoria Park was a Canadian Thoroughbred racehorse. A grandson of American Triple Crown champion Gallant Fox, he was the first Canadian-bred horse to place in an American Triple Crown race...

     (1957–1985)
  • Windfields
    Windfields
    Windfields was a Canadian Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse who was the first stakes race winner bred by E. P. Taylor and for whom he would name his world famous Windfields Farm....

     (1943–1969)

Windfields Estate

Windfields Estate was the home of E. P. Taylor
E. P. Taylor
Edward Plunket Taylor was a Canadian business tycoon and famous breeder of thoroughbred race horses. Known to his friends as "Eddie", he is universally recorded as "E. P...

 and was situated at 2489 Bayview Avenue in North York, Ontario
North York, Ontario
North York is a dissolved municipality within the current city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Geographically, it comprises the central part of the northern section of Toronto. As of the 2006 Census, it has a population of 635,370. The official 2001 census count was 608,288...

, a suburb of Toronto. It now houses the Canadian Film Centre
Canadian Film Centre
The Canadian Film Centre is an advanced training institution for film, television and new media. Based in Toronto, Canada, CFC offers residents education, industry partnerships and production experience...

, founded by filmmaker, Norman Jewison
Norman Jewison
Norman Frederick Jewison, CC, O.Ont is a Canadian film director, producer, actor and founder of the Canadian Film Centre. Highlights of his directing career include In the Heat of the Night , The Thomas Crown Affair , Fiddler on the Roof , Jesus Christ Superstar , Moonstruck , The Hurricane and The...

. The 10 hectare (25 acre) estate has been preserved as a heritage site.

External links

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