Lexington (USA)
March 17, 1850 – July 1, 1875
Boston (USA) x Alice Carneal (USA), by Sarpedon (GB)
Family 12-b
March 17, 1850 – July 1, 1875
Boston (USA) x Alice Carneal (USA), by Sarpedon (GB)
Family 12-b
Lexington was arguably the best racehorse of his day, but his prowess as a racer was as nothing compared to his impact as a sire. His career straddled both the American Civil War and the transition between the highly stamina-oriented heat racing commonplace before the war and the much more speed-oriented “dash” racing that became the norm afterward. Lexington's progeny proved ideally suited to the new realities of racing, and Lexington became the most dominant sire ever seen in North America, leading the general sire list 16 times. While no records were kept of broodmare sire statistics until much later, Lexington was equally valuable as a broodmare sire, with the result that by the end of the 19th century, a heavy majority of Thoroughbreds produced in North American carried his blood, often through multiple crosses. His male line is now extinct, but his influence lives on in pedigrees around the world.
Race record
7 starts, 6 wins, 1 second, 0 thirds, US$56,600
1853:
1854:
1855:
Honors
National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame (inducted in the inaugural class of 1955)
As an individual
A bay horse, Lexington stood 15.3 hands and was considered extremely well conformed, with powerful shoulders and hindquarters. He suffered from defective vision and had lost most of his eyesight by the time he retired from racing as a 5-year-old; he became completely blind during his stud career. His head had a distinctive shape with a slightly bulging forehead, a slight dish at mid-profile and a convex nose, and he regularly transmitted this “moose head” profile to his descendants. During his stud career, his disposition was said to rival his sire Boston's for willfulness and viciousness; as his dam Alice Carneal was also said to be quite high-strung, he was not bred for a placid temperament. Nonetheless, other sources state that while Lexington was a dominant horse and inclined to demand attention, he was generally calm and intelligent.
As a stallion
Lexington led the American general sire list in 1861-1874, 1876 and 1878. His daughters were highly prized as broodmares and formed effective crosses with the important sires Leamington (a four-time American champion sire) and Australian. Lexington's record as a sire of winners is all the more remarkable when it is considered that many of his offspring never raced due to the disruptions caused by the American Civil War.
Notable progeny
Acrobat (USA), Aerolite (USA), Asteroid (USA), Chesapeake (USA), Duke of Magenta (USA), General Duke (USA), Harry Bassett (USA), Idlewild (USA), Kentucky (USA), Kingfisher (USA), Maiden (USA), Merrill (USA), Necy Hale (USA), Norfolk (USA), Preakness (USA), Shirley (USA), Sultana (USA), The Banshee (USA), Tom Bowling (USA), Tom Ochiltree (USA), Vauxhall (USA), War Dance (USA)
Notable progeny of daughters
Aristides (USA), Ascension (USA), Ben Ali (USA), Day Star (USA), Eurus (USA), George Kinney (USA), Glidelia (USA), Grenada (USA), Hindoo (USA), Katie Creel (USA), Lizzie Dwyer (USA), Los Angeles (USA), Lucy May (USA), Memento (USA), Miss Hawkins (USA), Olitipa (USA), Pure Rye (USA), Salvator (USA), Saunterer (USA), Spendthrift (USA), Springbok (USA), Survivor (USA), Susquehanna (USA), Thora (USA), Vanguard (USA), Vera (USA), Wanda (USA), Zoo-Zoo (USA)
Connections
Foaled in Kentucky, Lexington was bred and owned by Dr. Elisha Warfield. The colt was technically under lease to his trainer, Henry Brown, for his first two starts but raced in Dr. Warfield's colors as Brown, an ex-slave, could not enter horses at Lexington's Kentucky Association Race Track in his own right. Lexington was then sold to a partnership consisting of Richard Ten Broeck, Captain Willa Viley, General Abe Buford II and Junius R. Ward for US$2,500. Ten Broeck bought out his partners for an undisclosed price after the Great Post Stake, and Lexington raced in his colors for the remainder of his racing career.
Lexington entered stud late in the 1855 breeding season at Nantura Stud near Midway, Kentucky. Following the 1856 breeding season, he moved to Robert A. Alexander's Woodburn Farm after Alexander purchased the horse from Ten Broeck for US$15,000. The stallion died at Woodburn in July 1875 of what was described as a “nasal catarrh,” possibly indicating a respiratory infection. Examination of his skull after his death revealed a mass of masticated food that had seeped inside the stallion’s cranial cavity through an opening created by a lost tooth, possibly setting up his fatal illness.
Pedigree notes
Lexington is inbred 3x4 to the great American sire Sir Archy and 4x4x5 to Sir Archy's sire Diomed, winner of the first Derby Stakes (1880) in England and a great stallion in the early years of the United States. His dam Alice Carneal was a winning daughter of the English import Sarpedon, a good racing son of 1823 Derby Stakes winner Emilius. She was produced from Rowena, a daughter of the Sir Archy horse Sumpter and the Robin Grey mare Lady Grey.
Although Lexington's own class was undeniable, his pedigree included animals that could not be traced back to horses registered in the General Stud Book in England and imported to the United States. Given the haphazard nature of records of import and export and the losses of both records and livestock incurred during the American Revolution and the Civil War, this is hardly surprising, but it had major repercussions later when the American bloodstock industry entered a major depression caused by antigambling legislation and associated racetrack shutdowns that culminated in the New York racing blackout of 1911-1912. American horses threatened to flood the English market, and the keepers of the General Stud Book acted to protect the English breeding industry by enacting the notorious Jersey Act of 1913.
Under the Jersey Act, no horse could be registered in the General Stud Book unless its pedigree traced without flaw to animals already registered therein. As the vast majority of good American horses of that period were descendants of Lexington, they were at the stroke of a pen demoted to “half-breds,” greatly decreasing their value as breeding stock in Europe. This situation continued until 1949, when the General Stud Book amended its rules for registration to permit the entry of previously inadmissible American and French lines that had been making major inroads on English racing. Today, all the world's major Thoroughbred stud books honor one another's entries reciprocally, ending the rift inadvertently brought about by a combination of economic circumstances and one great stallion of imperfect bloodlines.
Books and media
Lexington: The Extraordinary Life and Turbulent Times of America’s Legendary Racehorse is the first full-length treatment of Lexington’s life. Written by Kin Wickens, it was published in 2023 by Ballantine Books.
Fun facts
Last updated: September 5, 2023
Race record
7 starts, 6 wins, 1 second, 0 thirds, US$56,600
1853:
- Won Association Stakes (USA, 1-mile heats, Lexington)
- Won Citizens' Stakes (USA, 2-mile heats, Lexington)
- Won match race with Sallie Waters (USA, 3-mile heats, Metairie)
1854:
- Won Great State Post Stakes (USA, 4-mile heats, Metairie)
- 2nd Jockey Club Purse (USA, 4-mile heats, Metarie)
1855:
- Won match race with Lecomte (USA, 4-mile heats, Metairie)
- Also set a new world record of 7:19 for 4 miles in a time trial at Metairie
Honors
National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame (inducted in the inaugural class of 1955)
As an individual
A bay horse, Lexington stood 15.3 hands and was considered extremely well conformed, with powerful shoulders and hindquarters. He suffered from defective vision and had lost most of his eyesight by the time he retired from racing as a 5-year-old; he became completely blind during his stud career. His head had a distinctive shape with a slightly bulging forehead, a slight dish at mid-profile and a convex nose, and he regularly transmitted this “moose head” profile to his descendants. During his stud career, his disposition was said to rival his sire Boston's for willfulness and viciousness; as his dam Alice Carneal was also said to be quite high-strung, he was not bred for a placid temperament. Nonetheless, other sources state that while Lexington was a dominant horse and inclined to demand attention, he was generally calm and intelligent.
As a stallion
Lexington led the American general sire list in 1861-1874, 1876 and 1878. His daughters were highly prized as broodmares and formed effective crosses with the important sires Leamington (a four-time American champion sire) and Australian. Lexington's record as a sire of winners is all the more remarkable when it is considered that many of his offspring never raced due to the disruptions caused by the American Civil War.
Notable progeny
Acrobat (USA), Aerolite (USA), Asteroid (USA), Chesapeake (USA), Duke of Magenta (USA), General Duke (USA), Harry Bassett (USA), Idlewild (USA), Kentucky (USA), Kingfisher (USA), Maiden (USA), Merrill (USA), Necy Hale (USA), Norfolk (USA), Preakness (USA), Shirley (USA), Sultana (USA), The Banshee (USA), Tom Bowling (USA), Tom Ochiltree (USA), Vauxhall (USA), War Dance (USA)
Notable progeny of daughters
Aristides (USA), Ascension (USA), Ben Ali (USA), Day Star (USA), Eurus (USA), George Kinney (USA), Glidelia (USA), Grenada (USA), Hindoo (USA), Katie Creel (USA), Lizzie Dwyer (USA), Los Angeles (USA), Lucy May (USA), Memento (USA), Miss Hawkins (USA), Olitipa (USA), Pure Rye (USA), Salvator (USA), Saunterer (USA), Spendthrift (USA), Springbok (USA), Survivor (USA), Susquehanna (USA), Thora (USA), Vanguard (USA), Vera (USA), Wanda (USA), Zoo-Zoo (USA)
Connections
Foaled in Kentucky, Lexington was bred and owned by Dr. Elisha Warfield. The colt was technically under lease to his trainer, Henry Brown, for his first two starts but raced in Dr. Warfield's colors as Brown, an ex-slave, could not enter horses at Lexington's Kentucky Association Race Track in his own right. Lexington was then sold to a partnership consisting of Richard Ten Broeck, Captain Willa Viley, General Abe Buford II and Junius R. Ward for US$2,500. Ten Broeck bought out his partners for an undisclosed price after the Great Post Stake, and Lexington raced in his colors for the remainder of his racing career.
Lexington entered stud late in the 1855 breeding season at Nantura Stud near Midway, Kentucky. Following the 1856 breeding season, he moved to Robert A. Alexander's Woodburn Farm after Alexander purchased the horse from Ten Broeck for US$15,000. The stallion died at Woodburn in July 1875 of what was described as a “nasal catarrh,” possibly indicating a respiratory infection. Examination of his skull after his death revealed a mass of masticated food that had seeped inside the stallion’s cranial cavity through an opening created by a lost tooth, possibly setting up his fatal illness.
Pedigree notes
Lexington is inbred 3x4 to the great American sire Sir Archy and 4x4x5 to Sir Archy's sire Diomed, winner of the first Derby Stakes (1880) in England and a great stallion in the early years of the United States. His dam Alice Carneal was a winning daughter of the English import Sarpedon, a good racing son of 1823 Derby Stakes winner Emilius. She was produced from Rowena, a daughter of the Sir Archy horse Sumpter and the Robin Grey mare Lady Grey.
Although Lexington's own class was undeniable, his pedigree included animals that could not be traced back to horses registered in the General Stud Book in England and imported to the United States. Given the haphazard nature of records of import and export and the losses of both records and livestock incurred during the American Revolution and the Civil War, this is hardly surprising, but it had major repercussions later when the American bloodstock industry entered a major depression caused by antigambling legislation and associated racetrack shutdowns that culminated in the New York racing blackout of 1911-1912. American horses threatened to flood the English market, and the keepers of the General Stud Book acted to protect the English breeding industry by enacting the notorious Jersey Act of 1913.
Under the Jersey Act, no horse could be registered in the General Stud Book unless its pedigree traced without flaw to animals already registered therein. As the vast majority of good American horses of that period were descendants of Lexington, they were at the stroke of a pen demoted to “half-breds,” greatly decreasing their value as breeding stock in Europe. This situation continued until 1949, when the General Stud Book amended its rules for registration to permit the entry of previously inadmissible American and French lines that had been making major inroads on English racing. Today, all the world's major Thoroughbred stud books honor one another's entries reciprocally, ending the rift inadvertently brought about by a combination of economic circumstances and one great stallion of imperfect bloodlines.
Books and media
Lexington: The Extraordinary Life and Turbulent Times of America’s Legendary Racehorse is the first full-length treatment of Lexington’s life. Written by Kin Wickens, it was published in 2023 by Ballantine Books.
Fun facts
- Lexington was originally named “Darley” because his breeder, Dr. Warfield, fancied he saw a resemblance between his colt and a portrait of the Darley Arabian. Following the colt's sale to Richard Ten Broeck and partners, the colt was renamed “Lexington” in honor of the native city of Ten Broeck's three Kentuckian partners.
- Both Lexington and his great rival Lecomte were members of Boston's final crop, foaled after the death of the three-time American champion sire.
- During his stallion career, Lexington became known as the “Blind Hero of Woodburn” because of his prowess as a sire and his blindness. To Woodburn's staff, he was known as "Jack."
- During a February 1865 raid on Woodburn Farm, guerrillas seized 15 of Woodburn's horses, including two prized trotting stallions and a full brother to Lexington's undefeated son Asteroid (who had previously been stolen and repurchased). Lexington (who would have been valuable as a target for ransom) and Asteroid were both hidden and remained safe, but after that incident, Alexander sent the bulk of his breeding stock (Lexington included) to safety in Illinois until the conclusion of the Civil War.
- Lexington's son Cincinnati was the favorite mount of Union General Ulysses S. Grant during the Civil War.
- Lexington sired four winners of the Belmont Stakes in General Duke (1868), Kingfisher (1870), Harry Bassett (1871) and Duke of Magenta (1878), still a Belmont Stakes record. Lexington's record was tied in 2022 when Tapit's son Essential Quality won the race, joining Tapit's previous Belmont winners Tonalist (2014), Creator (2016), and Tapwrit (2017).
- Lexington sired a record nine winners of America's oldest race for 3-year-olds, the Travers Stakes. His winners were Kentucky (1864), Maiden (1865), Merrill (1866), The Banshee (1868), Kingfisher (1870), Harry Bassett (1871), Tom Bowling (1873), Sultana (1876) and Duke of Magenta (1878).
- Lexington's portrait by Edward Troye graces the cover of The Blood-Horse's annual Stallion Register.
- Lexington is the model for the horse at the top of the Woodlawn Vase, which is presented annually to the winner of the Preakness Stakes.
- Lexington's skeleton is on display as the centerpiece of the permanent Thoroughbred in Kentucky exhibit at the International Museum of the Horse. The skeleton had previously been on display at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia and at the Smithsonian Institution. Legally the owner of Lexington's remains, the Smithsonian permitted them to be transferred to the International Museum of the Horse for display after the IMH became a Smithsonian affiliate. While at the Smithsonian, Lexington's bones had been part of exhibits in the National Museum of Natural History in 1877-1956 and 1974-1998 and in the On Time study of clocks, calendars, and timing devices sponsored by Timex in 1999-2006.
Last updated: September 5, 2023