John Shepherd (jockey)

Last updated

John Shepherd
Occupation Jockey
Born9 October 1765
Malton, North Yorkshire
Died1848
Malton, North Yorkshire
Major racing wins
Major races
Epsom Derby (1806)
St Leger (1797, 1801, 1814)
Significant horses
Lounger, Paris, Quiz, William

John Shepherd (9 October 1765 - 1848) was a four times British Classic-winning jockey and trainer. He was a pioneering Northern jockey, one of the few of his time to move south to Newmarket, the home of British horse racing and gain a reputation there.

Contents

Career

Shepherd was born at Cockhill, near York on 9 October 1765. [1] He had an ideal build for a jockey and became an apprentice at the stables of John Tesseyman at Moor Monkton near his home aged only 12. [2] [1] According to some sources he would ride his first race four years later. [2] In others his first race is said to be on a horse called Dusty Miller in an "ever-to-be-remembered race" between Pacolet and Partington in 1784. [1]

Quiz, on which Shepherd won the 1801 St Leger, engraving by Ben Marshall Quiz (horse).jpg
Quiz , on which Shepherd won the 1801 St Leger, engraving by Ben Marshall

Having established his reputation as a jockey, he was hired to ride the horses of Richard Savile, the future Earl of Scarbrough, and later to train them as well, at stables at Langton Wold in Malton. [2] [1] He would also ride for the Reverend Mr Goodriche.

After several years in Malton, he moved south to Newmarket to ride and train for Lord Foley, for which he was paid an annual retainer of £200. [2] [3] It was for Foley that he would have his single success in the Derby, on Paris in 1806, winning by a head from a field of twelve. [4]

A further move would see him ride for Sir M M Sykes. [2] [1] He would also ride for Henry Peirse and Sir Frank Standish. [1] He would twice win the St Leger for Gilbert Crompton - on Lounger in 1797 and Quiz in 1801 - and once, aged nearly 50, for the Duke of Hamilton on William in 1814. Other horses on which he made his name included Cammillus, Magistrate, Prime Minister, Sir Malagigi, Rosetta, Rosanne, Reveller, Lisette, Scancalaldi, Epperston, Cambyses and Consul. [1]

The Duke of Hamilton, one of Shepherd's patrons 9thDukeOfHamilton.jpg
The Duke of Hamilton, one of Shepherd's patrons

Riding style and character

His specialism was four mile heats, and he was regarded as the best of his generation at judging pace in these races. [5] [6] His skill was such that it dispelled the prejudice normally shown by the Newmarket establishment to jockeys from the north. [2] Indeed, with other Yorkshire jockeys John Mangle and John Jackson, it is said he "shone". [3] He was also regarded as an honest and dependable jockey. [2]

Personal life

In his later years, in the late 1830s, Shepherd ran a pub in Malton. [5] [6] He received a pension from the Bentinck Benevolent Fund (the first person to do so) as a result of the years spent in the employ of the Earl of Scarbrough. [1] Despite this, he died in 1848 [1] in poverty, with a large family having swallowed up his savings. [2]

Major wins

Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Great Britain

Related Research Articles

Fred Archer (jockey)

Frederick James Archer, also known by the nickname The Tin Man, was an English flat race jockey of the Victorian era, described as "the best all-round jockey that the turf has ever seen".

Francis Buckle

Francis Buckle (1766–1832), also known as Frank Buckle and known to the British horse racing public as "The Governor", was an English jockey, who has been described as "the jockey non-pareil" of the opening quarter of the 19th century, and the man who "brought respectability to race-riding". He won at least 27 British Classic Races during his career, a record which would not be beaten for over 150 years.

Robert Robson (c.1765–1838) was a horse trainer, known as the Emperor of Trainers who ran "the outstandingly successful stable of the first quarter of the 19th century."The leading racehorse trainer of his time, he raised their status from glorified groom to professional.

Samuel Chifney

Samuel "Sam" Chifney, also known as Sam Chifney Sr., Sam Chifney the Elder or Old Sam Chifney to distinguish him from his son, was an English jockey. He was a pioneer of professional race-riding, developing a trademark late finishing style, known as the 'Chifney rush' and was the retained jockey of the Prince of Wales. He became the leading horseman of his day, winning four runnings of the Oaks and one of the Derby, but his career ended in ignominy after a scandal around a ride on the Prince of Wales's horse, Escape. Despite inventing a bit for horses that is still in use today, he died in debtors' prison in London.

Sam Arnull was a British flat racing jockey of the 18th century. He won the inaugural running of Britain's foremost flat race, The Derby, on Diomed, one of the most influential horses in Thoroughbred history, and won again on a further three occasions.

John Arnull (1753-1815) was an English flat racing jockey. He was the first man to ride five Epsom Derby winners and a member of the dominant race riding family in England in the late 18th and early 19th Centuries.

John Singleton, was an English horse racing jockey of the late 18th and early 19th century. He was actually the third John Singleton from the same family to achieve prominence in racing circles, following his father John and his great uncle John.

Joe Childs

Joseph Childs (1884–1958) was a French-born, British-based flat racing jockey. He won fifteen British Classics in a 35-year career, the last ten years of which were spent as jockey to King George V. He was known for riding a slow, waiting race, and also for having a short temper which regularly saw him at odds with his trainers and owners.

Bill Clift

William Clift (1762–1840), born Wentworth, South Yorkshire, was a British jockey. He won the first runnings of both the 1,000 Guineas and 2,000 Guineas and was the first jockey to win all five of the British Classics.

Samuel Chifney Jr.

Samuel Chifney Jr. was an English jockey. He was the younger son of a prominent 18th century jockey, also called Samuel Chifney. In terms of talent, he reportedly outshone all his peers, but "he owned a self-destruct button and had a fatal tendency to press it". This failing meant "his talent was not converted into the kind of concrete achievement that stands the test of time".

Dennis Fitzpatrick

Dennis Fitzpatrick (1764–1806) was an Irish, five-times British Classic winning jockey. He was the first Irish professional jockey to ride in England and competed in some of the most notable match races of the 19th century versus fellow jockey Frank Buckle.

Sim Templeman British jockey

Simeon "Sim" Templeman (1805-1884) was a British classic-winning jockey. He won seven classic races in total, including the Epsom classic double twice.

Job Marson

Job Marson (1817–1857) was an English classic-winning jockey, whose most famous partnership was with Voltigeur, winner of the 1850 Derby and St Leger.

John Parsons was a British jockey and the youngest jockey ever to win The Derby, reportedly aged 16.

Tom French (jockey)

Thomas French (1844–1873), born in Liverpool, was a Derby winning English jockey.

Fred Webb

Frederic E. Webb was a British Classic winning jockey.

John Reiff

John "Knickerbocker" Reiff, often called Johnny, was an American flat racing jockey, whose greatest successes came in Great Britain where he won three Classics.

Michael Beary (jockey) Irish flat racing jockey

Michael Beary was an Irish flat racing jockey, who won four British Classics and eight Irish Classics in a career that spanned from the 1910s to the 1950s. He was Irish Champion Jockey in 1920.

John Mangle was an English flat racing jockey and trainer, who was five time winning rider in the St Leger Stakes.

Sam Wragg English flat racing jockey

Sam Wragg was an English flat racing jockey, who won all of the British Classic Races except the St Leger Stakes in a successful career that straddled World War II.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Carleton, John William, ed. (November 1848). "State of the Odds &c". The Sporting Review: 381–382. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Mortimer, Onslow & Willett 1978, p. 556.
  3. 1 2 Tanner & Cranham 1992, p. 19.
  4. ↑ "John Shepherd". Jockeypedia. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  5. 1 2 Nimrod 1843, p. 156.
  6. 1 2 Darvill, R (1833). "A Treatise on the Care, Treatment, and Training of the English Race-horse". Quarterly Review. Vol. XLIX. London: John Murray. p. 401. Retrieved 29 January 2022.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.