Maximilian J. "Max" Hirsch (July 12, 1880 - April 3, 1969) was an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Hall of FameThe 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...
ThoroughbredThe 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...
racehorseHorse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
trainerIn horse racing, a trainer prepares a horse for races, with responsibility for exercising it, getting it race-ready and determining which races it should enter...
.
Born in
Fredericksburg, TexasFredericksburg is the seat of Gillespie County, in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 Census estimate, the city had a population of 10, 530...
, Hirsch became one of the most successful trainers in
Thoroughbred horse racingThoroughbred horse racing is a worldwide sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport: Flat racing and National Hunt racing...
history. He spent part of his formative years working as a groom and jockey at
Morris RanchMorris Ranch is a ghost town, located southwest of Fredericksburg in Gillespie County, in the U.S. state of Texas. The area was begun as a thoroughbred horse ranch by New Yorker Francis Morris in 1856, and the town grew up around it. In 1962, the school district was merged with Fredericksburg...
in
Gillespie County, TexasGillespie County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2010, its population was 24,837. It is located in the heart of the Texas Hill Country. Gillespie is named for Robert Addison Gillespie, who came to Texas in 1837. He was a Texas Ranger, an Indian fighter, a...
. Hirsch conditioned horses for various owners including
George W. LoftGeorge William Loft was an American businessman, politician, real estate developer, and owner/breeder of Thoroughbred racehorses....
,
Arthur B. HancockArthur Boyd Hancock was an American breeder of Thoroughbred racehorses who established the renowned Claiborne Farm in Paris, Kentucky....
, Morton L. Schwartz,
Jane GreerJane Greer was a film and television actress who was perhaps best known for her role as femme fatale Kathie Moffat in the 1947 film noir Out of the Past.-Career:...
, and
Virginia Fair VanderbiltVirginia Fair Vanderbilt was an American socialite, hotel builder/owner, philanthropist, owner of Fair Stable, a Thoroughbred racehorse operation, and a member of the prominent Vanderbilt family.-Biography:...
but is best known for his work with the
King Ranch StableKing Ranch, located in south Texas between Corpus Christi and Brownsville, is one of the world's largest ranches. The ranch, founded in 1853 by Captain Richard King and Gideon K. Lewis, includes portions of six Texas counties, including most of Kleberg County and much of Kenedy County, with...
whom he joined in the 1930s and for whom he trained until his death in 1969.
SarazenSarazen was an American Hall of Fame Champion Thoroughbred racehorse. Owned by Colonel Phil T. Chinn's Himyar Stud, Sarazen won his first three starts in impressive fashion...
was the first Champion Max Hirsch trained and said his win over the
FrenchThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Champion
EpinardÉpinard was a French Thoroughbred racehorse who was given the French name for spinach. He is considered a racing legend by French racing authority France Galop....
in the third race of the 1924
International SpecialThe International Specials of 1924 were a series of three Thoroughbred horse races held in September and October at three different race tracks in the United States...
s was his greatest thrill in racing. A Hall of Fame inductee, Sarazen was the American Horse of the Year in 1924 and 1925.
Max Hirsch won the first of his four
Belmont StakesThe Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes Thoroughbred horse race held every June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is a 1.5-mile horse race, open to three year old Thoroughbreds. Colts and geldings carry a weight of 126 pounds ; fillies carry 121 pounds...
in 1928 with Vito. In 1936, he won the
Kentucky DerbyThe 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
Preakness StakesThe 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...
with
Bold VentureBold Venture , was an American Thoroughbred racehorse that won the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.He was sired by the multiple British stakes winner, St Germans, who, after his importation to stand at Greentree Stud in Lexington, Ky., became the leading sire of 1931 when his son Twenty Grand...
and in 1946 captured the
U.S. Triple CrownIn the United States, the "Triple Crown" is usually the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, a series of three Thoroughbred horse races for three-year-old horses run in May and early June of each year consisting of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes.While Daily Racing Form...
with Bold Venture's son
AssaultAssault was an American Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse who won the U.S. Triple Crown in 1946.-Early life:...
. In 1950, Hirsch won his third Kentucky Derby with another son of Bold Venture,
MiddlegroundMiddleground was an American Thoroughbred racehorse.Ridden by 16-year-old apprentice jockey Bill Boland, and trained by Max Hirsch, both future U.S...
who also won the Belmont Stakes.
Max Hirsch was inducted into the
National Museum of Racing and Hall of FameThe 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 1959. His son, Buddy, followed in his footsteps and too was voted into the U.S. Racing Hall of Fame.
Additional sources