Timoleon (foaled in either 1813 or 1814, depending on source*), was an American Thoroughbred racehorse and notable sire.
Background A chestnut horse whose only marking was a small white star and standing 15 hands 3 inches high, Timoleon was bred by Benjamin Jones in Greensfield County, Virginia. He was described as "a red sorrel, with a star in his forehead, and no other mark. His limbs are clean and hoofs firm and deep. He is very stout and of great length and remarkable for the proximity of his hips to the point of his shoulder. The bridge of his nose, though bony, is too large for elegance; and his ears, when pricked, are too near a horizontal position agreeable to the notion of beauty; but a better moth, nostril, trottle or eye can't be found on any animal of the species...His form, his appearance, nay, everything about him, evince that he is genuine." He was by one of America's greatest foundation stallions and a National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame inductee, Sir Archy. Timoleon's dam was the Saltram mare (A24) (1801) by the imported British stallion, Saltram, from the Wildair mare (1795) by Syme's Wildair. In 1800, when Saltram was 20 years old he was imported to Virginia, then the heart of Thoroughbred breeding in the United States, by the Virginian "gentleman," William Lightfoot. Through this pedigree Timoleon combined the blood of the three Thoroughbred sirelines: Eclipse, Herod and Matchem.
Racing record At three, Timoleon was purchased by William Wynn of Petersburg, Virginia who seems to have regretted his purchase because Timoleon was rapidly sold on to Robert R. Johnson. Wynn then went through an immediate change of heart. Ten days after selling the horse, he offered to buy him back for a thousand dollars more than his selling price, saying he was, "...superior to any race horse that ever turned a gravel on any race course in the United States". Of his racing career at age three, it is known that he won the colt purse at Petersburg in straight heats, covering the mile in 1:47 and 1:48, distancing the field in the second heat. Earlier that same day, he had won a half mile match against a Potomac colt. Later that same year, he lost the Post Stake at Petersburg to Reality, winning the first heat in 3:46 before losing the next two "for want of strength in the rider."
Timoleon was the "Pride of Virginia." But racing so long ago, the actual statistics on his career on the track are hard to trace. It seems he might have started 15 times and that he won 13 of those starts, which were over the then-usual distances of three or four miles. It also seems he might have won all fifteen if he'd been entered in better form.Baseball Magazine Four of his wins were "walk-overs." In his day if a horse like Timoleon was scheduled to compete but no horse could be found to challenge him, then he (or she) would be allowed to canter the course, winning the purse and the race. It is certain he defeated some of the best horses of his time. He defeated the two best daughters of Sir Archy: Reality and Lady Lightfoot, who were both highly regarded. The only horses that ever beat him were the aforementioned Reality and the highly regarded mare Transport.
His final race took place in February 1818. He'd suffered with equine distemper (also called Strangles) a week before, was still entered, but had to be pulled up with respiratory problems, his second and last defeat.
Stud record Timoleon then stood briefly at stud at the farm of Johnson and Wynn's stables in North Carolina. In 1819 he was sold to Colonel David Dancy who took him first to General Hunter's plantation in Madison County, Alabama, and then, in 1829, to Nashville, Tennessee and one year later, to Charles City County, Virginia. He stood there for $50, compared to the $75 stud fee for Leviathan, then the most expensive stallion standing in America.
Timoleon proved to be a good sire, even if only by producing Boston who sired the outstanding sire Lexington. He also sired: Sally Walker, his best filly, was considered one of the best in her day Washington who defeated the great Henry Hotspur, a notable four-mile horse
He was also an influential sire in the development of the American Quarter Horse breed, as one of his descendants was American Quarter Horse foundation sire Steel Dust.
He died in 1836, at the age of 23 years.
Sire line tree
TimoleonByerley Turk LineThe Bloodlines ChartBiography: Timoleon Washington Marquis Sir John Falstaff Hotspur JacksonSteel Dust Pedigree BostonPortraits: BostonBiography: BostonHall of Fame: Boston Arlington Cost Johnson Ringgold Woodford Ringmaster Tipperary Aaron Pennington Calvin Commodore Gen Rosseau Red Eye Cracker Billy Cheatham Bruce Big Boston Jack Hawkins Odd Fellow Arrow Bob Johnson Wade Hampton LecomteBiography: LecomteLecomte: The short life but long legacy of a Louisiana racing hero Sherrod Umpire Not Out Decider Piketon Zero Judge Leonard LexingtonPortraits: LexingtonBiography: LexingtonHall of Fame: LexingtonAmerican Classic Pedigree: Lexington Daniel Boone Cottrill Goodwood Colton Monday Lightning D'Artagnan Optomist Mars Osman Uncle Vic Victory Harry Edwards Uncle Tom Bulletin Jack Malone Chickamauga Muggins Camargo Damon Bazar Lexington (Embry) Thunder Avalanche Censor Frank Boston Harper Bay Jack Jim Sherwood Dan Heaney Lexington (Hunter) Joe Johnson Judge Wickliffe War DanceBiography: War DanceAmerican Classic Pedigrees: War Dance Ramadan Wheatly St George Big Fellow Monmouth Stampede Bullion Chance Union Jack Copec Rogers Asteroid George Wilkes Harvey Villain Aerolite Artist Asteroid Astral Ballinkeel Ceylon Creedmore Beacon Chesapeake CincinnatiGrant the Equestrian Donerail KentuckyHall of Fame: Kentucky Silk Stocking Scratch Bertram Loadstone NorfolkPortraits: Norfolk Norfall Bradley Flood Duke of Norfolk Prince of Norfolk Alta Estil Emperor of NorfolkPortraits: Emperor of NorfolkHall of Fame: Emperor of Norfolk The Czar El Rio ReyLong before Chrome, El Rio Rey brought horse racing fame to N. Nevada Ulverston Keene Richards Woodburn Hardwood Ansel Bay Dick Gilroy Grinstead John M Clay Harry of the West Luther Sharpcatcher Veto Edinborough Jonesboro King Lear Lee Paul Lever Leveller ApolloAmerican Classic Pedigrees: Apollo Merrill Norway Red Dick Watson Baywood Concord Galway King Tom King George Marion Logan Newry Bayonet Crossland General Duke Bonnie Duke Hazard Paris Pat Malloy Ozark Lord MurphyAmerican Classic Pedigrees: Lord Murphy Blue Grass Bob Miles Favor Vauxhall Viator Cloverbrook Barney Willams Chillecothe Foster Jim Brown Kingfisher Turco Prince Royal Pilgrim PreaknessHall of Fame: Preakness Fiddler Creole Dance Harry BassettHall of Fame: Harry Bassett George McCullough King Nero Monarchist Longfield Storey Monarch Loftin Pimlico Wanderer Tom BowlingHall of Fame: Tom BowlingTom Bowling, The Wild Horse Black Prince General Monroe Sligo Tacoma Acrobat Breathitt Melikoff Jack Boston King Bolt Tom OchiltreeHall of Fame: Tom Ochiltree Tattler Cynosure Major Domo Sluggard Charley Howard Fiddlesticks Shirley Brown Prince Shillelagh Kilsallaghan Frederick the Great Duke of MagentaHall of Fame: Duke of Magenta Leo Young Duke Duke of Kent Eric Uncas Dunboyne Oneko Sorcerer Fake
Pedigree
See also List of leading Thoroughbred racehorses
References
“The History of Thoroughbred Racing in America,” by William H.P. Robertson, Bonanza Books, New York (*Australian Stud Book says 1814. Bloodlines says 1813.)
External links Timoleon's pedigree and stats List of Great racehorses