from the Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame

Goshen, NY — When is a horse blanket not just a horse blanket? When are a few yards of cream and red plaid wool trimmed in red stitching worth preserving for future generations? When it is the last known horse blanket from the Chester, New York, horse farm where Standardbred foundation sire Hambletonian 10, better known as Rysdyk’s Hambletonian, lived out his busy life. The blanket may have draped the great progenitor himself or perhaps a mate or more certainly one of his more than 1,300 sons and daughters.

Foaled in 1849 by Abdallah 1 out of the Charles Kent mare, Hambletonian was purchased with his dam from breeder Jonas Seely of Sugar Loaf, New York, for $125 by William Rysdyk, a Chester, New York, farmer. Raced but once, and then only against the clock, Hambletonian began his stud career at age two. A steady production of speedy offspring soon made him the top sire of what was to become known as the Standardbred horse. In 24 seasons, he sired many a champion, earning Rysdyk in excess of $200,000 in stud fees. Hambletonian lives on in almost every trotter and pacer racing on the world’s racetracks today. William Rysdyk died in 1870 and ownership of the stallion and Chester farm passed to his wife Elvira. Hambletonian died in 1876 in Chester, where according to documentation he was buried with all of his belongings. A tall granite obelisk now marks his grave. Two years later Elvira Rysdyk also passed away.

A local farmer, Henry Durland, who would help spearhead the raising of the Hambletonian monument, purchased the unassuming horse blanket at an auction of the Rysdyk estate. Henry Durland passed the blanket to Rose Cottrell Kropp in the 1920s. In 1974, Rose’s husband John Kropp donated the blanket to the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame. Today the blanket is the only known survivor of its kind from the Rysdyk farm and the blanket therefore remains an indelible link between the annals of history and the living-breathing animals it once protected.

Creased and stained with the red edging starting to fray, the time had come for the blanket to be cleaned and treated by a professional conservator. With the assistance of the Orange County Arts Council, individual donations and other fundraising proceeds that include income from the Museum’s Restoration Raffle, the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame provided the $1,450 cost of treatment. Cleaned and stabilized, the blanket is now ready for display. A new interpretive exhibition is currently in the planning stages and the Museum staff looks forward to sharing this treasured relic with visitors and friends. Donations to help support this latest initiative to protect the sport’s memories and encourage interest in its activities are tax deductible and greatly appreciated.

The Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame is located at 240 Main Street in Goshen, New York, and is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (last tour 4 p.m.) Thanks to USTA support the Museum is currently offering free admission for walk-in visitors and $4.00/person for group docent-guided tours. For information on the Museum, free traveling exhibits, educational programs, special events, and gift shop services please call 845.294.6330 or visit www.harnessmuseum.com.