Everyone with any knowledge of Thoroughbred pedigrees knows the names of the three stallions that jump-started the breed - the Darley Arabian, the Byerly Turk and the Godolphin Arabian. Those three, in different numbers and offspring, can be found in every Thoroughbred pedigree today. How soon we forget, though, the mares that started it all. Though some bore only the names of their sire or owner, and still others names that weren't exactly flattering, the foundation mares of the Thoroughbred breed had an incalculable influence on today's stock. While we tend to look no farther then the relationships between the first five generations of a horse's pedigree, champions are linked by their female families and the dams that started it all.
There is an immense number of female families that has been researched, from the very first mares to set their roots in England to the foundation mares of the Americas and other parts of Europe. This series of articles will focus on the first 26 female families that sprang from English mares that lived in the last part of the 17th century and into the beginning of the 18th century. Little did the breeders of that age know that they were cultivating stock whose offspring would run for multimillion dollar purses in the future. For while we might think that this sort of information is outdated and not needed, we can also find links to top horses running today, from Game On Dude to Paynter and many others.
I want to give kudos to two websites for this project; first, to Thoroughbred Heritage and their amazing database of the champions of yore. They are loaded with information about not only the Thoroughbred female families but also are chock-full of facts about foundation sires, breeders and even genetics. Their website is my first stop in this sort of research. After I go there, I always take a look Pedigree Query to trace male and female lines and look at past race results. Though it has its errors and problems - a database of that magnitude always will - it's very rare that you can't find a horse on Pedigree Query. Those two websites have kept me afloat, even if the glut of information has given me a few headaches!
So, without further adieu, let's get started! Our first female family we have to profile is Family #1.
The matriarch of Family #1 is a gray mare known as Tregonwell's Natural Barb Mare. This mare lived sometime in the late 17th century, when Charles II was King of England. Owned by a Mr. Tregonwell, she was of imported stock and had at least three foals, a colt and two fillies. The colt was named Rockwood (sire not listed in the General Stud Book), who went on to become a minor foundation sire. The two fillies were by Restive and Place's White Turk, respectively.
Her daughter by Restive's line ended fairly quickly; after producing a filly, her granddaughter, one of the many horses known as the "Bay Bolton Mare," produced two colts and failed to carry on a female line. The White Turk Mare was the banner-carrier for Family #1 - all Thoroughbreds that trace back to Family #1 trace back to her.
In the larger female families, the numbers are further divided by descendants of the original foundation mare that made a name for themselves as a producer, starting distinctive bloodlines of their own. Family #1 is the largest and is broken down into twenty-four different subsections. We won't discuss them all, but will certainly explore some of the more notable ones.
Family #1-a - Bonny Lass
The first is a bay mare named Bonny Lass, born in 1723. She and her descendants make up Family #1a, responsible for a number of champions. One of them is Melbourne, the brown stallion whose female line traces back ten generations to Bonny Lass. As a racehorse, Melbourne won nine times in seventeen starts and finished second five times. He ran so hard in his last race that he ended up going lame, retiring to stud. Melbourne's sireline traces back to the Godolphin Arabian, a rarity, considering most successful stallions traced back to the Darley Arabian instead. Other great sires with this distinction include Man O' War and Tiznow.
Melbourne's claim to fame was siring England's first Triple Crown winner, West Australian. Other successful offspring of his include Sir Tatton Sykes, who only lost the Derby because his jockey was drunk (it sounds ridiculous; the truth often is), and Australian, the tail-male ancestor of the modern sires listed above. His daughters, the full sisters Blink Bonny and Blooming Heather, had an enormous impact on the breed, particularly inside their female family, Family #10.
Family #1-b - Morel
Morel was a very good horse on the track, winning a slew of stakes races, including the Oaks Stakes in 1808. Running up to age seven, she proved her worth as a daughter of Sorcerer, a decent racehorse and an even better sire.
In the shed, Morel was just as good, if not better. She produced Mustard, who in turn gave us the classic winners Mango and Preserve. Plagued with fertility problems, her last foal came at age 21, a daughter of Derby winner Sam. It is from this daughter that Family #1b emerges. A prominent member of this branch is Princequillo, a terrific distance horse best known for siring Somethingroyal, the dam of the magnificent American Triple Crown winner Secretariat.
Family #1-h - Sunshine
This bay mare was sired by Thormanby, a Derby winner, and a bit later we'll discuss a much more important daughter of his in this family, Rouge Rose. For now, though, Sunshine will get our attention. On the racetrack, she was consistent, winning many races, including the Coronation Stakes, and finishing a game second in the Oaks. She went on to produce eight daughters and a son; one of her daughters, Sunray, was the founder of branch #1i.
Through her daughter Sundown's line came the great stayer Stymie, who was in the money in 96 of his 131 starts. Claimed for $1,500, he ended up winning nearly a million dollars, beating horses like Triple Crown winner Assault and the great filly Gallorette and winning at distances that ranged from a mile to two and a half miles. Also a part of this family - though another Sunshine daughter, Helioscope - is Kentucky Derby and Dubai World Cup winner Animal Kingdom.
Family #1-i - Sunray
Sunray, as mentioned before, was a daughter of Sunshine by stakes winner King of the Forest. King of the Forest's own sire, Scottish Chief, was notable as a racehorse by virtue of his Ascot Gold Cup win, in which he won the prestigious race after winning another stakes the same day. (They just don't make them like they used to, do they?) Scottish Chief became a very successful broodmare sire in his time; daughters of his produced ten classic winners.
This filly must have been exceptional if she formed a lineage separate from her dam's. Exceptional, indeed - Sunray is the fourth dam of the great Phalaris, whose influence on the breed cannot be understated. A great English racehorse, he was both a leading sire and broodmare sire. Phalaris sired Pharos, who gave us the Nearco and Nasrullah sirelines, which in turn gave us great sires like Northern Dancer and Natalma. Phalaris was also a tail-male ancestor of Native Dancer, Northern Dancer's broodmare sire. If Sunray's influence is felt anywhere, it is through her descendant Phalaris.
Family #1-k - Rouge Rose
I said that we would discuss Rouge Rose later, and I won't disappoint. This chestnut filly was a half-sister to Paradigm, who was just as influential as a broodmare as Rouge Rose. As previously mentioned, Rouge Rose is a daughter of Derby winner Thormanby. She changed hands at age ten, from Colonel Pearson to the Duke of Westminster. This sale worked very much in the Duke's favor, for in 1877, two years after his purchase, Rouge Rose produced a remarkable chestnut colt by his own stallion, Doncaster.
That colt was named Bend Or; his name might be familiar, if only for the distinct coloring he possessed, black and white spots scattered randomly on his copper coat. They later came to be known as "Bend Or spots" and show up on horses with Bend Or somewhere in their pedigree. He won ten races, including the Derby by a hard-fought head, and retired at four after shin troubles had plagued him his whole career. Among his sons at stud were Triple Crown winner Ormonde and Guineas winner Bona Vista. It is from Bona Vista that Bend Or is part of a strong sireline that leads to Phalaris, mentioned above. Because of that sireline, Bend Or's name is firmly etched into the majority of Thoroughbred pedigrees as a tail-male descendant.
While Bend Or is the closest notable member of Family #1k, Rouge Rose's work was not finished with him. She also produced a filly named Rose to York, who in turn produced Roxelane, the dam of French stallion Roi Herode. Roi Herode was one of the few remaining successful stallions of the Herod sireline, which traced back to the Byerly Turk. Today, that male line is virtually non-existent. Roi Herode sired The Tetrarch, whose greatest legacy lies in his daughter, the fabulous Mumtaz Mahal, granddam of Mahmoud and Nasrullah. Also a member of the Roxelane branch of this family is Riva Ridge, the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winner of 1972, and Bold Reasoning, sire of Triple Crown champion Seattle Slew.
While these names and achievements sound outdated, in Thoroughbred racing, there is always a link from the past to the present. Roxelane's older sister, a filly named Red Rag, was the progenitor of a female line that would, more than a century later, produce the great 21st century champion Frankel.
Family #1-l - Paraffin
Paraffin was out of Paradigm, the previously-mentioned sister to Rouge Rose. Her sire, Blair Athol, was lauded as one of the greatest racehorses of his time, winning the Derby by open lengths. After a few wins and a few
clunkers, he closed out his short-lived career with a win in the St.
Leger over a good field. As a stallion, he changed hands twice and
became a terrific sire, as well. Paraffin was his most influential
daughter, producing Illuminata, a mare who will come into play in this
story sooner or later.
One of the most famous members
of this family is Azeri, 2002's Horse of the Year and Breeders' Cup
Distaff winner. She won a whopping eleven Grade 1 races and earned just
over $4 million. After an unplaced run in the Breeders' Cup Classic in
2004, she was retired and has since produced three winners, including
Grade 3-accomplished Wine Princess, who won the Monmouth Oaks last
year.
Family #1-n - Chelandry
Paraffin
was the dam of Illuminata, who is the dam of this filly, Chelandry.
Chelandry was a decent racehorse, winning the 1000 Guineas in 1897 and
finishing a strong second in the St. Leger against males that same
year. During her career as a broodmare, she produced sixteen foals
without hesitation. Among these was the colt Neil Gow, who won the 2000
Guineas, among other races. Ten of those sixteen were fillies, and it
was they who cemented Chelandry's importance to the breed.
One
champion whose female line led back to Chelandry - through her
daughter, Samphire - was Genuine Risk, one of only three fillies to win
the Kentucky Derby. Voted 1980's American champion three year-old
filly, she also won the Grade 1 Ruffian and finished second in both the
Preakness and Belmont Stakes. Unfortunately, her female line died with
her; after a lifetime of problems regarding conception and birth, she
only produced two live foals, both of them colts.
Also
tracing their female lines back to Chelandry are High Chaparral and
Forty Niner. High Chaparral, twice a winner of the Breeders' Cup Turf,
was quite successful on the track, also winning both the English and
Irish Derbies and finishing third in the Arc de Triomphe two times. The
bay stallion, whose female family goes back to the Chelandry daughter
Popinjay, has become a successful stallion. Forty Niner (out of a mare
whose lines go back to Skyscraper) was 1987's American champion two
year-old male who went on to win the Travers Stakes the next year, among
other races. Standing in Japan, he is best known as the sire of
leading stallion Distorted Humor.
Family #1-o - Penelope
Penelope is a name that cannot be easily forgotten. Only one of twelve mares who produced not one, but two,
English Derby winners, the daughter of Trumpator had an enormous impact
on her breed. She is best known for 1810 Derby winner Whalebone, one
of her many foals by the great stallion Waxy. Whalebone became part of a
male line, starting from the Darley Arabian and going through stallions
like Bartlett's Childers and Eclipse, that is the most notable in the
world. Penelope also gave us Whisker, another Derby winner and
Whalebone's full brother. While she is best known for her Derby-winning
sons, her daughters are no less important; her second foal, Web, formed
another branch of their female family herself.
The
great Sword Dancer is just one of many whose female family was
influenced by Penelope. A Belmont Stakes winner, he set two track
records and won eleven stakes races. A good sire, his most important
offspring was Damascus, who is considered one of the greatest of his
generation, if not of all time. Through Penelope's daughter Wire (also
by Waxy) came the line that gave us Rachel Alexandra, 2009's racing
hero. The three year-old filly put together an incredible season that
included victories against males in the Preakness Stakes, the Haskell
Invitational and the Woodward Stakes, plus 20+ length victories in the
Kentucky Oaks and the Mother Goose Stakes. She was unquestionably that
year's Horse of the Year, showing brilliance and class that had been
bred into her family for centuries.
Family #1-s - Web
The
aforementioned Web, Penelope's second daughter, ended up starting a
branch of her own (she was the first of many of Penelope's descendants
to do so). She produced two colts and two fillies. One of her colts,
Middleton, went on to win the Derby of 1825. Her two daughters were as
important to the breed as Penelope herself - Trampoline and Filagree.
Filagree, born first, produced three classic winners, including the
outstanding filly Cobweb. Trampoline gave us the great sire Glencoe and
his sister Glencairne, a producer in her own right. Descending from
Filagree, however, was La Troienne, who is the greatest banner-carrier
of Web's female line in the stud book.
Family #1-x - La Troienne
There
are not many names in the Thoroughbred stud book as notable as La
Troienne's. Through her influence, champions have been born.
Ironically enough, La Troienne was no champion. The tiny, delicate mare
was winless on the racetrack, failing to live up to the expectations of
her connections. Sold at Tattersalls to the successful American
breeder Colonel Bradley, she was sent to the best American sires and
emerged as one of the greatest broodmares of all time. Of her 15 foals,
ten of them won races on the track and five of those were stakes
winners. Her greatest offspring was Preakness and Belmont Stakes winner
Bimelich, who later became an important sire. Another champion of hers
was Black Helen; both Black Helen and Bimelich were later inducted into
the Hall of Fame.
Black Helen had two highly influential
daughters - Be Like Mom and Hula Hula. Be Like Mom served as fifth dam
to Breeders' Cup champion Princess Rooney. That gray filly won five
Grade 1 races and earned over a million dollars on the track, later
earning an induction into the Hall of Fame. Hula Hula did even better
as the third dam of champion Pleasant Tap and Kentucky Derby winner Go
for Gin.
It wasn't long before Black Helen's half
sister, Baby League, stole the show. Her daughter Busher, a member of
the Hall of Fame, was a brilliant filly by War Admiral who earned Horse
of the Year honors as a three year-old. Another daughter of Baby
League's, Striker, was the ancestress of Kentucky Derby winner Super
Saver as well as St. Leger victor Boucher, among many other successful
horses (the likes of which include Private Account, Woodman and Dance
Number). Striker's daughter, So Chic, was a direct female relative of
2003 Horse of the Year Mineshaft. Finally, Bases Full, a sister to So
Chic, served as fourth dam to my favorite horse of all time, Smarty
Jones.
If the accomplishments of Black Helen and Baby
League weren't enough, Big Hurry added more sparkle to La Troienne's
already perfect resume as a matriarch. The most successful horse from
her family was certainly Easy Goer, the Belmont Stakes winner of 1988
and Sunday Silence's greatest rival. Other great horses from this
family include classic winner and Horse of the Year Personality,
Kentucky Derby winner Sea Hero, and Kentucky Oaks winner Pike Place
Dancer.
The last great daughter-producer of La
Troienne's was Businesslike. Her daughter Busanda, a multiple stakes
winning daughter of War Admiral, gave us Horse of the Year Buckpasser,
who later became a brilliant broodmare sire. Also from Busanda's line
came Bernstein, a European-raced stallion that was fairly productive
during his years at stud. Busanda's sister, His Duchess, was fourth dam
of Preakness Stakes winner Prairie Bayou, who unfortunately suffered a
fatal breakdown during the running of the 1993 Belmont Stakes. He was
posthumously awarded the three year-old male championship, making him
just one of many champions from the illustrious female family of La
Troienne.
Classic winners
The grouping
of female families was a concept thought up by pedigree analyst Bruce
Lowe, whose book on his research was published after his death. He
grouped the English classic winners into female families and numbered
the families based on the number of classic winners each one contained.
Therefore, by that logic, Family #1 had more classic winners than any
other female family at that time. I'm not sure how it is now, but I'm
sure it's still among the most productive lineages in the Thoroughbred
breed. According to Pedigree Query, this is the number of classic
winners from Female Family #1. (I added American classic winners as
well, just out of curiosity's sake. It should be noted that the English
classics are each about a hundred years older than the American
classics; hence, the larger numbers.)
2000 Guineas - 37
English Derby - 32
English St. Leger - 33
English Oaks - 41
Kentucky Derby - 15
Preakness Stakes - 11
Belmont Stakes - 14
Kentucky Oaks - 10
If
you think this sort of information is outdated, think again! The
influence of Thoroughbred matriarchs is all around us, even to this
day. A present-day star flying the flag of Family #1 is Game On Dude,
the recent star of Hollywood Park's last edition of their Gold Cup.
Game On Dude, who is undoubtedly the front-runner in the older male
division this year, is seeking a win in the Pacific Classic after being
run down late by Dullahan last year. The bay Awesome Again gelding is
from the #1-l branch of the family, headed by Paraffin.
With
that, we can conclude the first edition of this series. Coming next,
we will look at Female Family #2, whose members are among the most
notable in turf history, including a Triple Crown winner and two
Australian champions. It is a family that is just as successful as the
family we have just discussed.
If you know of any
other nice racehorses from Family #1, tell me about it in the comments
so my knowledge on this subject can continue to grow and expand. This is a large and ambitious project, so I'm sure in my research I've left a couple of famous names off the list.
That being said, thank you for taking the time to read this post! I
hope I've been able to teach you something new about the bloodlines of
the Thoroughbreds you so love and admire.
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