The Lost Trotting Parks Heritage Center -- Storyboard Archives

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Pierce Brothers from Biddeford and East Baldwin, Maine -- Owners of the Santa Rosa Stock Farm -- Most Prized Foal -- Lou Dillon -- First Trotter to Trot the Mile under 2 minutes

A premium book for the Maine State Fair at Lewiston led me to explore the ad for Saddleback Farm in East Baldwin, Maine. This exploration led me to the Pierce family. Henry Pierce left Maine searching for his destiny during the California gold rush. Upon his arrival in San Francisco, Henry obtained an unused biscuit making machine and through his industry and hard work accumulated a fortune that allowed him to invest in land and other profitable ventures. His brothers joined him and a nephew, Orestes. Henry purchased an old trotting park and founded the Santa Rosa Stock Farm, the farm whose prized foal was Lou Dillon.

It seems that all of the Pierce men journeyed to California leaving their sister on the farm. When she died the instructions in her will required that the buildings of Saddleback Farm be torn down and that her car be buried in the well. Her chauffeur drove off with the car, but all the buildings were taken down. Today only the remnants of foundations give the hint of a farm that once raised prized Jersey cows for butter production.

To read this article open each page with text

in a separate window or tab.

Saturday, January 5, 2013

Images of Central Maine Park -- Waterville, Maine -- 1905 through 1912

Horsemen at Central Maine Park

Waterville, Maine -- 1905

W.F. Cool, Pittsfield

R.W. Burrill, Bangor

L.A. Bartlett, Belgrade

F.N. Vining, St. Albans

L.H. Ryder, Bangor

Walter F. Webb, Augusta

J.W. Pottle, Portland

P.B. Gilman, Waterville

E.R. Hayden, Lewiston

F.M. Bowman, Augusta

H.B. Rallston, Brighton, Mass.

C.H. Simpson, Waterville

Charles Dustin, Pittsfield

W.W. Hisler, Weeks Mills

E. Kennedy, Lewiston
Pearl Brook Farm, North Belfast
Calais Stock Farm, Calais
Henry L. Titer, Readville, Mass.
Allie Merryfield, Saugus, Mass.

Morrison Stock Farm, East Livermore

Ira Mitchell, Waterville

H.B. Small, Topsham

E.L. Fisher, Pittsfield

H.B. Small, Waterville

C.H. Davison, Waterville

S.A. Fowler, St. Johns, N.B.

J.R. Sederquest, St. Stephens, N.B.

Frank Mahue, Waterville

C.H. Nelson, Waterville

William Cummings, Bangor

A. Merrifield, Baltimore, MD

G.W. Gerow, Yarmouthville

L.L. Gentner, Belfast

E.J. Kirby, Rockland

E.W. Gahan, Boston, Mass.

G.E. Whitney, Enfield, N.H.

W.F. Bisbee, Camden

R.L. Bean, Camden

E.J. Kirby, Rockland

J.H. Goddard, Lewiston

Frank Chase, Waterville

H.A. Dodge, Dark Harbor

W.J. Furbush, West Newton, Mass.

A.L. Sawyer & Son, Sabattus

Percy B. Gilman, Waterville

George B. Allen, Camden

Bert McCoomb, Skowhegan

R.D. Waite, Lewiston

F.B. Fogg, South Paris

Famous Bloodlines

Mambrino Wilkes
Bingen
Wilkes
Son of Onward
Star Pointer
Nelson
Young Gideon
Hambletonian Wilkes
Kremlin

Friday, January 4, 2013

Excerpt from the April 1902 Issue of the Horseman

Tommy Britton -- featured insert in the April 1902 Issue of The Horseman

Open in new window or tab to control size for readability.

The Horseman -- April 1902 -- Santa Rosa Stock Farm -- Owned by the Pierce Brothers -- Originally from East Baldwin, Maine

The post on the April 1902 issue of The Horseman presents a page sampler from the issue. The second storyboard includes a short article on the Santa Rosa Stock Farm. This farm was owned by the Pierce brothers of Biddeford and East Baldwin, Maine. Henry Pierce traveled to California during the gold rush. In San Francisco, he purchased an unused biscuit making machine and started accumulating his fortune. Henry was a lover of trotting horses and founded the Santa Rosa Stock Farm. Lou Dillon was foaled on this farm. His nephew, Orestes Pierce, who operated Saddleback Farm in East Baldwin joined his uncle in California. Henry Pierce died in 1902.

The following storyboard contains a short article on
the Santa Rosa Stock Farm.

The following storyboard contains short statements under the headline of Current Items. Currently, many of Maine's harness racing industry organizations and supports use social media as a communications tool. It would be wonderful if more horseman used social media as a means to tell their stories, promote their stables and horses, and the industry.

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Harness Racing in New York State -- A Great Read for Harness Racing Fans by Dean A. Hoffman

The first chapter, A Messenger Shows the Way, tells the story of
Imported Messenger and his get.

To Purchase A Copy of Harness Racing in New York State -- Following this link!

Thursday, December 13, 2012

United States Agricultural Fair -- 1855

View the 1855 Engraving of the United States Agricultural Fair

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Lou Dillon bred by Henry Pierce at the Santa Rosa Stock Farm. Pierce ventured from East Baldwin, Maine to San Francisco during the Gold Rush!

Monday, November 26, 2012

Wesserunsett Valley Fair -- 1940 -- Athens, Maine

Bragging Rights

Can anyone identify this postcard and its location?

Strolling Along the Midway at the Readfield Fair, Readfield, Maine

Circa 1908

Harness Racing at the Acton Fair October 3, 1906

1878 -- A Grand Match Race at the Knox Trotting Park

Two inches by three inches, this promotional card to the match race at the Knox Trotting Park may be one of the few pieces of memorabilia left of harness racing in Thomaston and Rockland. Called the Knox Trotting Park, the principal owners of the park were from Rockland. However, the park was actually located in Thomaston. The park was also the site of a small airport and today the land is taken up by a movie theater.

Saturday, November 10, 2012

The Obituary of Henry Pierce, Entrepreneur and Celebrated Califorian Horseman -- Uncle to Orestes Pierce, Proprietor of Saddleback Farm, East Baldwin, Maine

Monday, November 5, 2012

The 1929 Premium Book of the Farmington Fair

The Franklin County Agricultural Society

Images of Saddleback Farm -- East Baldwin, Maine -- Proprietor: Orestes Pierce -- 1884

-- Saddleback Farm --

The Horse may have been King, but

the Jersey Cow was Queen of Butter Production!

Curiosity led me to finding out more about Saddleback Farm in East Baldwin, Maine. Today perhaps a foundation or a well cover may be the only evidence that this farm ever existed. I initially called the East Baldwin Town Office. -- No Answer -- I then thought perhaps locate a local realtor with knowledge of East Baldwin. That worked! The realtor led me to Josiah Pierce who led me to Peter Cyr, one of the local historian. Joe Pierce told me an interesting story. When the last Pierce to own the farm died her will stated that all was to be torn down. The car was to be driven into the well and buried. However, lucky for the car, the chauffeur drove off with it.

Henry Pierce may have been the original owner of the farm, but he ventured out to California. Eventually, Orestes moved West. Orestes obituary presents tells the story of an accomplished man who made worthy contributions to the world.

More to this story will unfold in future Lost Trotting Parks Posts!

Mission of Lost Trotting Parks

The mission of the Lost Trotting Parks Heritage Center is to preserve the stories and images of the 19th century to present day that illustrate the history of Maine's harness racing, lost trotting parks, fairs, agricultural societies, Granges, and the significance of the of the horse in society.

Our plan is to reach our mission is through Preservation, Education, Promotion and Partnerships.

Through the Center's website and educational outreach to Maine school students, community organizations, agricultural fairs, and businesses, the Center will retell the once told stories of a slice of Maine history that is quickly being forgotten. Most Mainers have lost their connection to the horse and the horse's contribution to a past way of life. Maine people who work in the harness racing industry are today's living history of the age when the horse was king. Through your financial support of the Lost Trotting Parks Heritage Center, you will help to tell the stories of Maine Harness Racing and horse breeding throughout the ages.

FOR BETTER VIEWING

Lost Trotting Parks storyboards are typically 12 by 18 inches. To view storyboards, click on the storyboard and it will automatically open as a larger image. If there are multiple storyboards in a post, click on the first image. This will create a slideshow that you control by clicking on the next image icon that you will see at the bottom of your screen.

If the storyboards are still too small to view text, open individual storyboards in a separate window. This allows you to enlarge the storyboards to read text and view images in greater detail. To open a storyboard in a new window, place your cursor over the image, right click on your mouse, and select open in a new window. This will allow you to use Ctrl + and Ctrl - to control the size of the storyboard. When you are finished viewing the storyboard, close the window and you will return to the LTP blog.

Trotting Horse Art Detectives

In the 1891, Colorado artist, C.B. Fish, produced an oil painting of the famous trotting stallion Nelson. The Lewiston Sun Journal reported that Fish had completed the painting and would ship it to Sunnyside Farm. Fish also painted a trotter from Skowhegan named All-So. We do not know if the painting of Nelson still exists. The two paintings below are examples of Fish's work. If you have knowledge of the oil painting of Nelson, please e-mail Stephen Thompson at lifework50@gmail.com or call 207-623-3076.

The Fish pictures were made available by Gallery 44.

To inquire about the Fish paintings contact:

http://www.gallery44llc.com

Maine's Trotting Horse Heritage Trail

Published in 2009, Maine’s Trotting Horse Heritage Trail, guides readers through the golden age of the trotting horse. Covering the period between 1820 and 1892, the author, Clark P. Thompson of Bangor, Maine, introduces us to the horses, the people, and places that established the trotting industry in the State of Maine. Thompson’s well researched publication highlights twenty key moments in Maine’s evolvement in trotting. The Heritage Trail begins in Old Orchard Beach and ends in Dover-Foxcroft. This book is your guide to historical markers that have been inscribed and placed in designated Maine communities.

Journey with us and return to the Golden Age of Trotting.

In the book’s foreword, Michael, D. Andrew, President of the Maine Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association, states, “With this book, Clark Thompson has done us a great service by memorializing some of the great progenitors of the Maine trotter, the owners who supported breeding and racing, and the tracks where these horses pleased thousands of Mainers in the 1800s.”

For more information about this book and how to obtain a copy, contact Clark P. Thompson by e-mailing

clarkprice@msn.com.

Maine's Lost Trotting Parks --- OUR MISSION

The trotting industry flourished from the 1820s through the early 1900s. There are a number of reasons that for many the excitement and interest in trotting has diminished. However, the trotting industry still exists. Its history is still rich. Our mission is to conduct research that will reveal to us the history of Maine's forgotten Trotting Tracks and bring back the images and people of another age. Our posts of the Belfast Trotting Track are examples of what we are attempting to find. We will partner with local historical societies, work with local government, and individuals interested in this endeavor. Contact us and help us to fulfill our mission.

NOTE: News articles and other text displayed on this web site are existing texts given to me for use on The Lost Trotting Parks Blog. There has been no additional research on my part to ensure that these accounts are accurate.

Stephen D. Thompson

P.O. Box 263

Hallowell, Maine 04347

E-Mail: lifework50@gmail.com

Cell Phone: 207-623-3076

Nelson Memorabilia

Nelson, the champion trotter, was owned by C.H. Nelson of Waterville, Maine. C.H. (Hod) Nelson owned and operated Sunnyside Horse Farm. The farm's location is where the JFK Mall is now located. At one time, Nelson owned the fairgrounds of the North Kennebec Agricultural and Horticultural Society. We are seeking individuals or organizations that may have Nelson memorabilia, photographs, equipment, and trophies. In addition, we are looking for photographs of the fairgrounds and trotting track that was once located behind the Pine Grove Cemetery. If you have information regarding Nelson or the fairgrounds, please e-mail Stephen Thompson (lifework50@gmail.com) or call 207-623-3076.

Citizens of Bethel Form Riverside Park Trotting Association

5-8-1891 Oxford County Advertiser:

Bethel: The citizens of Bethel met Tuesday and formed an organization known as The Riverside Park Trotting Association and chose the following officers: C.M. Wormell, president; J.A. Twaddle, vice president; E.M. Walker, secretary; E.S. Kilborn, treasurer; trustees, G.P. Bean, chairman; J.M. Philbrook, H.M. Hastings, Moses A. Mason, O.P. Farrington, E.C. Rowe. The trustees have leased the land for ten years and intend to have one of the best tracks in the state. The location and land are all that could be asked for the trustees mean business and will spare no pains or money.

Text from work of Donald Bennett, Bethel, Maine

Check out The Bethel Journals!

The Bethel Historical Society

Maine's Turf, Farm and Home

The newspaper, Turf, Farm, and Home was first published in Auburn, Maine around 1890. This newspaper was considered the horseman's periodical. In 1897, the paper merged with Maine's Horse Breeders' Monthly and J.W. Thompson of Canton became the editor. About 1912, the Turf, Farm and Home merged with the Maine Press and continued publication until 1920. The Fogler Library has issues from 1912 on. However, there are only 24 documented issues of the paper between 1890 and 1912.

This is a call for issues of the Turf, Farm, and Home.

Contact Stephen Thompson at 207-623-3076, if you know where there are existing issues of this newspaper.

Issues from 1890 to 1910 will tell the stories of Maine Horsemen

during the age of 'When the Horse was King.'

The Lost Trotting Parks Storyboard Archives