Odds On Racing - Harness Racing

Odds On Racing's

Personality of the Month
for July 2008

Asa Danforth

Asa Danforth is widely regarded as one of the top trotting breeders in the state of Illinois. Danforth got into the horse business through his father, a banker and successful businessman by trade, whose true passion was breeding Standardbreds.

The Earl, with Frank Hedrick driving, was a successful stallion in Illinois, due to the efforts of breeder Asa H. Danforth.

The senior Danforth began breeding harness horses at Danforth Farm in the latter 1870's, first in partnership with L. S. Rupert and then independently. His first stallion was Fairy Gift 2:30, a bay horse foaled in 1876 and by Hero of Thondale 549-Fairy Belle, by Belmont 64, bred by F. P. Kinkead, Midway, Ky.

Asa Danforth inherited his love for troffers and trotting horse breeding from his father, as a small boy who grew up in their atmosphere. He was deeply versed in pedigrees and breeding operations, his knowledge of blood lines was encyclopedic and he became one of the shrewdest judges of individuality to be encountered anywhere.

When Asa reached an age that qualified him to take over the farm management, he bought the stallion Sphinx 2:201/2, then one of the most prominent sons of Electioneer that had been brought east. He had been owned in Michigan where he had sired some high-class trotters; but after going to Illinois he produced many frail individuals that lacked substance and stamina. However, he worked his way into the list of "century sires," with 144 standard performers of which the majority were got at Danforth Farm.

It was the habit of Asa Danforth to attend the "Old Glory" sales in New York and there he was a shrewd buyer of highclass brood mares and often he picked up a stallion. One of the latter he acquired from a Village Farm consignment, was Heir-at-Law 2:053/4, the noted son of Mambrino King and Estabella, whose family, in the various generations of descent include not only Scotland 1:591/4, sire of the two champions, Rosalind 1:563/4 and Spencer Scott 4, 1:571/4; Highland Scott 1:591/4 and Rose Scott 1:593/4, but Guy Abbey 2:063/4, sire of Greyhound 1:551/4.

Most unfortunately Heir-at-Law had been in service at Danforth Farm only a few seasons when one day he broke a leg in his paddock and had to be destroyed. The great percentage of his get there which acquired fast records or became sires and dams of speed indicated that had he lived to a normal age he would have established a commanding position as a sire. His "ace" was the marvelous pacer Minor Heir 1:581/2; which horse Asa was largely responsible for breeding, as he persuaded the owner of his dam, Kitty Clover, by Redwald 2:231/2, a farmer of Roseville, Ill., to mate her with the black stallion during the last season before his death.

Later Asa bought Heir-at-Law's own brother, The Earl 2:17, and took him to Illinois, where he had a long and very successful career as a sire, first at Danforth Farm and then in other hands. Among his many performers was that grey pacer Earl, Jr. 2:011/2 (see photo & story below), with which Walter Cox won many battles; while another was Ben Earl 2:001/2. The blood of The Earl is now to the fore through his daughter Princess Mary 2:191/4, she the grandam of the brilliant race horse Cardinal Prince 1:583/4.

The grey pacer Earl Jr. 2:01 1/2
Earl

From the Nov. 22, 1928 Trotter & Pacer: An Idol of the Turf
"When gallant old Earl Jr. 2:011/2 died recently on an Illinois farm, the harness racing sport lost an idol, despite the fact that he had passed out of the public eye. His was a notable career, starting in 1908 as a three-year-old and continuing until 1924, thereby earning the distinction of
being an "iron horse" if any steed ever achieved such fame. Earl Jr.'s best days as a race horse were spent under the tutelage and direction of Walter Cox, who we believe today would say that he was one of the "smartest" horses he ever handled. A grey always commands attention, but when a steed of this color becomes as speedy and capable as was Earl Jr. in his heyday he naturally is a great attraction, and such was the case with the noted son of The Earl, always a favorite with all. If Earl Jr. had been retired to the stud instead of becoming the tool of tall-grass campaigners and makers of guideless wonders, he might have achieved no little success as a sire. But as it is he will cut only a small niche in the table of sires, although he always will be recalled as having been one of the 'famous greys.'"

Asa Danforth was always partial to pacers and one of the most sensational pacing colts of his younger days was the California-bred Klatawah, by Steinway 2:253/4, that made one of the biggest slashes in an important record ever accomplished, he lowering the mark for three-year-olds from 2:091/4 to 2:051/2, where it stood for eleven years (1898-1909).

Had it not been for two things, Mr. Danforth would have remained one of our leading breeders much longer than he did. One was the break-down of his health, the other the oncoming of the "motor age" which sounded the knell of the fast road horse and general use of horsedrawn vehicles, this leading to a great contraction in breeding.

Many famous stock farms were thereby driven out of the field and diverted to other uses. Eventually all the Danforth horses were sold, the senior Danforth died and Asa retired, but for an extended term maintained considerable part of the farm for breeding purposes.

One of the last extreme speed horses bred and foaled at Danforth Farm was the colt Legality 3, 2:02, that forced Hanover's Bertha to trot the first heat of the Kentucky Futurity of 1930 in 2:00—this being the first two-minute heat ever raced by a field of trotters.

On rare occasions, in his older years, Asa got to the races at the Illinois State Fair, Springfield, or to Chicago. Of all the stallions he had owned Heir-at-Law was the one he thought most of and for that reason he was intensely interested in Greyhound, for, as has been noted, the trotting king's sire, Guy Abbey, was from the Heir-at-Law's maternal family, that of Estabella.

To read the original obituary that appeared in the August 8, 1945 edition of Harness Horse magainze, click on this link: http://www.mi-harness.com/SBreds/Memor94.html