Mollie McCarty
Encyclopedia
Mollie McCarty, foaled in 1873, was an outstanding California
-based Thoroughbred
racehorse who won her first 13 race starts and was second on the two occasions when she was defeated.
), who had broken down early in his career, but when standing in Marin County, California
, he sired Mollie McCarty as well as Joe Hooker, sire of the good filly, Yo Tambien
(bred by Winters). Her dam, Hennie Farrow (1853) by Shamrock (imported in utero), was a good broodmare who also produced Mayflower (1867, by Eclipse, dam of Joe Hooker.), Shannon (grandsire of Racine, a track and national record holder), Electra (1871, a mare by Eclipse, that established a good family), and Flood (1877, a good racehorse and sire). Hennie Farrow, had been owned for years by a Californian named J. B. Chase. They were from the old American, A10 family which traced to the Harrison of Brandon Mare.
. At the end of her second season she won a $10,000 purse in a four-heat race in San Francisco, California
for females of all ages. There was a clause in that race which effectively said that if a horse was distanced (meaning they'd given up or were so far behind they might as well give up), no prize would be awarded. Mollie distanced all but one of her rivals in the first heat. By this, she saved the track the trouble of paying out third and fourth place money. She also won the California Derby
in 1876. Mollie McCarty was raced until she was four exclusively in California for Theodore Winters (called Black T because of his huge black moustache).
At age four, she started in another four-mile heat. Again she outdistanced all but one horse named Bazar. Again she saved the track money. She then went on to win four more races, although a big race (meaning a big purse) was cancelled on February 22, 1877, due to bad weather. Instead, on March 2, Mollie was entered into a two-mile match against Jake, again in Sacramento. Though they were the same age, she conceded 14 pounds to Jake. Because Jake's rider couldn't make the weight, Mollie's 14 pounds was reduced to 11 pounds, and she beat Jake in straight heats.
and Baldwin sent her to Kentucky
, the first California horse ever sent east, a long difficult journey by train. Due to public demand that the best in the west should race the best in the east (at least 30,000 people showed up on the day: July 4, 1878), Bud Doble, training for Baldwin, sent her out against Ten Broeck
. Like Mollie in the west, Ten Broeck, owned and bred by John Harper, had run out of competition in the east. John Harper had developed the Nantura Stud, breeding and owning the great Longfellow
. Ten Broeck was the eastern champion that held six records for distances ranging from one to four miles. In his last two racing seasons, Ten Broeck had recorded 16 wins and 2 seconds from his 18 race starts.
Ten Broeck and Mollie McCarty met in the four-mile match race at Louisville Jockey Club (now Churchill Downs
) in Louisville, Kentucky
. On that day, Mollie suffered her first ever defeats in the first and last heats of the three-heat four-mile race. It seems that not only was the course mostly mud due to heavy rain the night before, which did not suit Mollie, but that she could have been ridden better. It seems possible Ten Broeck had been doped. A book written by Colonel John F. Wall called Famous Running Horses records that Ten Broeck was laboring badly, did not sweat and was glassy eyed, and had to be whipped through the match. Whether this story is true or not, this was Ten Broeck's last race in an otherwise sensational career. It was also the last race of its kind, and the end of an era. American
horse racing
was now turning to the shorter English
-style "dash" races rather than long grueling match races.
Mollie McCarty was again defeated in the Minneapolis Cup
but then, in her last season, won the Garden City Cup in Chicago, Illinois and a purse race in San Francisco.
). Here she produced:
She died on March 15, 1883, soon after foaling Mollie's Last.
song: Molly and Tenbrooks
. The song has a number of other names, among them Run, Molly, Run, and it came about because Mollie had raced against the Eastern champion Ten Broeck
in an 1878 match race.
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
-based 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...
racehorse who won her first 13 race starts and was second on the two occasions when she was defeated.
Breeding
Mollie McCarty was by bred by Adolph Mallard and was by Monday (by Colton, by LexingtonLexington (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...
), who had broken down early in his career, but when standing in Marin County, California
Marin County, California
Marin County is a county located in the North San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. As of 2010, the population was 252,409. The county seat is San Rafael and the largest employer is the county government. Marin County is well...
, he sired Mollie McCarty as well as Joe Hooker, sire of the good filly, Yo Tambien
Yo Tambien
Yo Tambien was an American Thoroughbred racing filly bred in California by Theodore Winters, a breeder and major landholder from the Washoe Valley in Nevada sometimes called "Black T" due to his huge, black, T-shaped moustache....
(bred by Winters). Her dam, Hennie Farrow (1853) by Shamrock (imported in utero), was a good broodmare who also produced Mayflower (1867, by Eclipse, dam of Joe Hooker.), Shannon (grandsire of Racine, a track and national record holder), Electra (1871, a mare by Eclipse, that established a good family), and Flood (1877, a good racehorse and sire). Hennie Farrow, had been owned for years by a Californian named J. B. Chase. They were from the old American, A10 family which traced to the Harrison of Brandon Mare.
Racing career
Winning her first and only start as a two-year-old, at three Mollie won six consecutive races. Two of these wins were on the same day: September 8, 1876 at the Agricultural Park in Sacramento, CaliforniaSacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
. At the end of her second season she won a $10,000 purse in a four-heat race in San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
for females of all ages. There was a clause in that race which effectively said that if a horse was distanced (meaning they'd given up or were so far behind they might as well give up), no prize would be awarded. Mollie distanced all but one of her rivals in the first heat. By this, she saved the track the trouble of paying out third and fourth place money. She also won the California Derby
California Derby
The California Derby is a race for Thoroughbred horses held early in the year at Golden Gate Fields. An ungraded stakes, it's open to three-year-olds willing to race one and one-sixteenth miles on the dirt...
in 1876. Mollie McCarty was raced until she was four exclusively in California for Theodore Winters (called Black T because of his huge black moustache).
At age four, she started in another four-mile heat. Again she outdistanced all but one horse named Bazar. Again she saved the track money. She then went on to win four more races, although a big race (meaning a big purse) was cancelled on February 22, 1877, due to bad weather. Instead, on March 2, Mollie was entered into a two-mile match against Jake, again in Sacramento. Though they were the same age, she conceded 14 pounds to Jake. Because Jake's rider couldn't make the weight, Mollie's 14 pounds was reduced to 11 pounds, and she beat Jake in straight heats.
The match race
Mollie McCarty had run out of competition in California. Undefeated after thirteen race starts, Winters sold her to Lucky BaldwinLucky Baldwin
Elias Jackson "Lucky" Baldwin was a prominent California businessman and investor of the second half of the 19th century.-Biography:...
and Baldwin sent her to Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, the first California horse ever sent east, a long difficult journey by train. Due to public demand that the best in the west should race the best in the east (at least 30,000 people showed up on the day: July 4, 1878), Bud Doble, training for Baldwin, sent her out against 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,...
. Like Mollie in the west, Ten Broeck, owned and bred by John Harper, had run out of competition in the east. John Harper had developed the Nantura Stud, breeding and owning the great 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....
. Ten Broeck was the eastern champion that held six records for distances ranging from one to four miles. In his last two racing seasons, Ten Broeck had recorded 16 wins and 2 seconds from his 18 race starts.
Ten Broeck and Mollie McCarty met in the four-mile match race at Louisville Jockey Club (now Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs, located in Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, is a Thoroughbred racetrack most famous for hosting the Kentucky Derby annually. It officially opened in 1875, and held the first Kentucky Derby and the first Kentucky Oaks in the same year. Churchill Downs...
) in Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
. On that day, Mollie suffered her first ever defeats in the first and last heats of the three-heat four-mile race. It seems that not only was the course mostly mud due to heavy rain the night before, which did not suit Mollie, but that she could have been ridden better. It seems possible Ten Broeck had been doped. A book written by Colonel John F. Wall called Famous Running Horses records that Ten Broeck was laboring badly, did not sweat and was glassy eyed, and had to be whipped through the match. Whether this story is true or not, this was Ten Broeck's last race in an otherwise sensational career. It was also the last race of its kind, and the end of an era. American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
horse racing
Horse racing
Horse 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...
was now turning to the shorter English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
-style "dash" races rather than long grueling match races.
Mollie McCarty was again defeated in the Minneapolis Cup
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
but then, in her last season, won the Garden City Cup in Chicago, Illinois and a purse race in San Francisco.
Stud record
Mollie was retired to Baldwin's Rancho Santa Anita, (later part of Santa Anita ParkSanta Anita Park
Santa Anita Park is a thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent racing events in the United States during the winter and in spring. With its backdrop of the purple San Gabriel Mountains, it is considered by many as the world's most beautiful race...
). Here she produced:
- Fallen Leaf (1881 filly by Grinstead), a race winner whose female descendants produced winners, over several generations.
- Brandy-Wine, colt by Lexingtor (by Lexington)
- Mollie's Last, by Rutherford (by Australian) was a stakes winner in California.
She died on March 15, 1883, soon after foaling Mollie's Last.
Honors
The match race was immortalized in the bluegrass musicBluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
song: Molly and Tenbrooks
Molly and Tenbrooks
"Molly and Tenbrooks," also known as "The Racehorse Song," is a traditional song of the late 19th century. One of the first recordings of the song was the Carver Brothers' 1929 version called "Tom Brooks." The song was recorded by Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys on October 28, 1947 but not...
. The song has a number of other names, among them Run, Molly, Run, and it came about because Mollie had raced against the Eastern champion 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,...
in an 1878 match race.