Nasturtium (horse)

Nasturtium
circa 1902
Sire Watercress
Grandsire Springfield
Dam Margerique
Damsire Order
Sex Stallion
Foaled 1899
Country United States
Colour Chestnut
Breeder James B. A. Haggin
Owner 1) William A. Chanler & J. G. Follansbee
2) A. L. Aste
3) William C. Whitney
4) George J. Stoll
Trainer John E. Madden
Record not found
Earnings US$ not found
Major wins
Flatbush Stakes (1901)
Awards
American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt (1901)

Nasturtium (1899–1916) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse that was the top two-year-old colt of 1901. He was a contender for the 1902 Epsom Derby, but did not run in the race due to illness.

Pedigree

Nasturtium, a "racy-looking and powerful" chestnut horse standing 15.2 hands high[1] was bred at James Haggin's Rancho El Paso stud in California and was sired by the imported British stallion Watercress out of Margerique. Margerique was an unraced mare by the imported British stallion Order out of Margerine, who also foaled another successful racer The Commoner.

Racing career

Haggin sold Nasturtium as a yearling to Follansbee and Chanler, who in turn sold him to A.L. Aste for $4,300 at auction in 1901.[2] Nasturtium was sold to William C. Whitney on June 22, 1901 for $50,000.[3] Nasturtium won three of his five starts in 1901. He was a disappointing 9/5 favorite when finishing tenth behind[4] Yankee in the Futurity Stakes on August 31 at Belmont, but won the Flatbush Stakes in at Sheepshead Bay Race Track four days later. He took the race "cleverly, almost easily" from his stablemate Goldsmith in a track record time of 1:25.6.[5]

Whitney's target for the colt was the 1902 Epsom Derby, having won the race in 1901 with Volodyovski. In December 1901 Nasturtium was shipped to England on a steamer equipped with purpose-built stable unit.[6] His arrival at Newmarket, Suffolk was reported to have caused "considerable interest,"[1] and was offered at odds of 6/1 for the Epsom Classic.[7] Despite all Whitney's precautions however, Nasturtium fell ill shortly after his arrival[8] and was unable to run in England as intended.

Stud career

After William Whitney's death, Nasturtium was sold in the October 1904 dispersal sale for $10,000 to Col. Milton Young.[9] Nasturtium was sold to George J. Stoll. The best of his offspring was probably the filly Stamina. Nasturtium was found dead in his stall at The Meadows stud farm in Lexington on June 26, 1916. His death may have resulted from heart disease.[10]

References

  1. 1 2 "Papers Past — Otago Witness — 26 February 1902 — THE AMERICANS IN ENGLAND". Paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 1902-02-26. Retrieved 2011-11-21.
  2. ↑ "American Horse In The English Derby," The Patriot, 3-15-1902; p. 11; Harrisburg, PA.
  3. ↑ "Nasturtium sold". Daily Racing Form. June 23, 1901. Retrieved 18 December 2010.
  4. ↑ Staff (September 1, 1901). "The Futurity is Yakee's prize". Baltimore American.
  5. ↑ Staff (September 5, 1901). "Results and entries at the various tracks". Baltimore Sunday Herald.
  6. ↑ DERBY CANDIDATE SAILS: William C. Whitney's Nasturtium Aboard the Minnehaha," New York Times, Dec 29, 1901.
  7. ↑ Staff (January 12, 1902). "Whitney's Derby horse arrives". The Toledo Bee.
  8. ↑ "NASTURTIUM ILL IN ENGLAND. - Trainer Huggins Receives Bad News of the Condition of W.C. Whitney's Colt. - Article - NYTimes.com". Select.nytimes.com. January 29, 1902. Retrieved 2011-11-21.
  9. ↑ "Whitney horse sale draws crowd of 10,000" (PDF). The New York Times. October 11, 1904. Retrieved 14 March 2011.
  10. ↑ Staff (June 27, 1916). "Crack racer and good sire dies". Daily Racing Form. Retrieved 14 March 2011.
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