Imp (horse)
Encyclopedia
Imp was a pure black Thoroughbred
racing filly
with a white diamond shaped star between her eyes. She was sired by Wagner (GB) out of Foundling (by Fonso
) and was foaled on March 5, 1894. Owned and bred by Daniel R. Harness of Chillicothe, Ohio
, and trained by both Charles E. Brossman and Peter Wimmer (when she was seven), Imp's male line of descent was the great Eclipse
. Imp, nicknamed "My Coal Black Lady" after a popular song of the day, was a bit of a homely looking thing, the daughter of parents who each raced only once. Her sire won the Wilton Park Stakes in England
but her dam was injured in her only start.
and Kentucky
, started out inauspiciously, winning four of eleven starts as a two-year-old. But by her second season she became the talk of the racing world by making fifty starts. She won only 14 of them, but was in the money 33 times. In her fourth season she was shipped to New York
to challenge the big-name horses in the Suburban Handicap
. She lost that first time, but returned the following year, 1899, and took the race. She was the first mare to ever win the $10,000 Suburban. All in all, Imp started in a grueling 171 races, coming in the money in 126 of them. She won 62 times, placed 35 times, and came in third 29 times. A sprinter as well as a stayer, My Coal Black Lady defeated the best males of her times. She also won the Brighton Handicap
while giving nine pounds to champion Ethelbert. At six, she won the Advance Stakes by 30 lengths and set an American record for 1¾ miles.
Ridden in many of her races by future Hall of Fame jockey, Nash Turner, Imp's best races included:
When Imp returned to Chillicothe, Ohio for a visit, there was a band and a parade. The town declared it a public holiday. Of course the band placed My Coal Black Lady.
. She produced five foals under his care, among them the stakes winner Faust and the winning colt Devilkin.
Extremely popular in the Gay Nineties
, she retired at seven years of age, having set records at 1 1/16, 1¼, 1½ and 1¾ mile.
Imp won the U.S. Horse of the Year
honors in 1899, as well as the U.S. Champion Handicap Mare
, the same year Admiration (b. 1896) by Kingston
out of Hypocrite by Longfellow
was three year old filly champion. She repeated as Champion Handicap Mare in 1900. Her life earnings amounted to $70,069.
She died in 1909 and was buried at Hamburg Place, Lexington, Kentucky
. (See external links for Walmart's treatment of her burial site.)
More than five decades after her death, Imp was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
in Saratoga Springs, New York
in 1965.
In a poll among members of the American Trainers Association, conducted in 1955 by Delaware Park Racetrack, Imp was voted the tenth greatest filly in American racing history. Gallorette
was voted first.
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
racing filly
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
with a white diamond shaped star between her eyes. She was sired by Wagner (GB) out of Foundling (by Fonso
Fonso
Fonso was an American Thoroughbred racehorse and was the winner of the 1880 Kentucky Derby. Fonso was bred in Kentucky and was a chestnut colt sired by King Alfonso out of the mare Weatherwitch....
) and was foaled on March 5, 1894. Owned and bred by Daniel R. Harness of Chillicothe, Ohio
Chillicothe, Ohio
Chillicothe is a city in and the county seat of Ross County, Ohio, United States.Chillicothe was the first and third capital of Ohio and is located in southern Ohio along the Scioto River. The name comes from the Shawnee name Chalahgawtha, meaning "principal town", as it was a major settlement of...
, and trained by both Charles E. Brossman and Peter Wimmer (when she was seven), Imp's male line of descent was the great Eclipse
Eclipse (horse)
Eclipse was an outstanding, undefeated 18th-century British Thoroughbred racehorse who was later a phenomenal success as a sire.-Breeding:...
. Imp, nicknamed "My Coal Black Lady" after a popular song of the day, was a bit of a homely looking thing, the daughter of parents who each raced only once. Her sire won the Wilton Park Stakes in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
but her dam was injured in her only start.
Racing record
Imp, who began racing in OhioOhio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
and Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, started out inauspiciously, winning four of eleven starts as a two-year-old. But by her second season she became the talk of the racing world by making fifty starts. She won only 14 of them, but was in the money 33 times. In her fourth season she was shipped to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
to challenge the big-name horses in the Suburban Handicap
Suburban Handicap
The Suburban Handicap is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is run at the classic one-and-one-quarter mile distance on dirt for a $400,000 purse....
. She lost that first time, but returned the following year, 1899, and took the race. She was the first mare to ever win the $10,000 Suburban. All in all, Imp started in a grueling 171 races, coming in the money in 126 of them. She won 62 times, placed 35 times, and came in third 29 times. A sprinter as well as a stayer, My Coal Black Lady defeated the best males of her times. She also won the Brighton Handicap
Brighton Handicap
The Brighton Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually from 1895 through 1907 at the Brighton Beach Race Course in Brighton Beach, Coney Island, New York and in 1910 at Empire City Race Track...
while giving nine pounds to champion Ethelbert. At six, she won the Advance Stakes by 30 lengths and set an American record for 1¾ miles.
Ridden in many of her races by future Hall of Fame jockey, Nash Turner, Imp's best races included:
- Firsts: Memorial Day Handicap, Monadnock Stakes, Austin Stakes, Speed Stakes, Dash Stakes, Suburban HandicapSuburban HandicapThe Suburban Handicap is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is run at the classic one-and-one-quarter mile distance on dirt for a $400,000 purse....
, Brighton Handicap, Islip Cap, Ocean Handicap, Turf Handicap, Oriental Handicap, Special Cap (which she won three times), Parkway Handicap, Advance StakesAdvance StakesThe Advance Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually from 1899 through 1910 at the Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Brooklyn, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it was raced on dirt...
(by 30 lengths), and the Mahopac Handicap. - Places: New Rochelle Handicap, Coney Island Handicap, Brookdale Handicap, Long Island HandicapLong Island HandicapThe Long Island Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in November at Aqueduct Racetrack, in Ozone Park, Queens, New York...
, Brighton Cup, Municipal Handicap, Empire City HandicapEmpire City HandicapThe Empire City Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race inaugurated on October 22, 1900, as part of the opening day racecard at Empire City Race Track in Yonkers, New York...
, and the Idlewild Handicap. - Shows: Sapphire Stakes, Oakwood Handicap, Claremont HiWait Handicap, Long Island Handicap, Fall Handiap, 1st Bennings Spring Handicap, 2nd Bennings Spring Handicap, Metropolitan HandicapMetropolitan HandicapThe Metropolitan Handicap, frequently called the "Met Mile," is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held annually during the last week of May at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is contested on dirt over a distance of one mile .The Met Mile was first...
, Sheepshead Bay HandicapSheepshead Bay HandicapSheepshead Bay Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at the end of May at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. A Grade II event contested on turf at a distance of 1 3/8 miles , it is open to fillies and mares, three-years-old and up...
, Brighton Handicap, Islip Handicap, and the Saratoga CupSaratoga Breeders' Cup HandicapThe Saratoga Breeders’ Cup Handicap was, until it was discontinued in 2005, a Thoroughbred race for horses three-years-old and up run at Saratoga Race Course...
.
When Imp returned to Chillicothe, Ohio for a visit, there was a band and a parade. The town declared it a public holiday. Of course the band placed My Coal Black Lady.
Stud record
When Harness died in 1902, she was sold to John E. MaddenJohn E. Madden
John Edward Madden was a prominent AmericanThoroughbred and Standardbred owner, breeder and trainer in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. He owned Hamburg Place Stud in Lexington, Kentucky and bred five Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winners.He was inducted into the National...
. She produced five foals under his care, among them the stakes winner Faust and the winning colt Devilkin.
Extremely popular in the Gay Nineties
Gay Nineties
Gay Nineties is an American nostalgic term that refers to the decade of the 1890s. It is known in the UK as the Naughty Nineties, and refers there to the decade of supposedly decadent art by Aubrey Beardsley, the witty plays and trial of Oscar Wilde, society scandals and the beginning of the...
, she retired at seven years of age, having set records at 1 1/16, 1¼, 1½ and 1¾ mile.
Imp won the U.S. Horse of the Year
Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year
The American Award for Horse of the Year is the highest honor given in American thoroughbred horse racing. It has been awarded since 1887 to the horse, irrespective of age, whose performance during the racing year is deemed the most outstanding....
honors in 1899, as well as the U.S. Champion Handicap Mare
Eclipse Award for Outstanding Older Male Horse
The title of American Champion Older Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a stallion or gelding, four years old and up. Prior to 1971, this award was referred to as "Champion Handicap Male Horse", and was open to any horse, three years old and up...
, the same year Admiration (b. 1896) by Kingston
Kingston (horse)
Kingston was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. He won 89 races, the most in the history of the sport of Thoroughbred racing. Of his 138 starts, he was out of the money only on four occasions. He was later inducted into the United States Racing Hall of Fame.-Breeding:He was bred by James R. Keene...
out of Hypocrite by Longfellow
Longfellow (horse)
Longfellow was one of America's first great Thoroughbred racehorses and the sire of great racehorses. A legend in his own time, he was out of the first crop of the outstanding imported English stallion Leamington....
was three year old filly champion. She repeated as Champion Handicap Mare in 1900. Her life earnings amounted to $70,069.
She died in 1909 and was buried at Hamburg Place, Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
. (See external links for Walmart's treatment of her burial site.)
More than five decades after her death, Imp was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers...
in Saratoga Springs, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
in 1965.
In a poll among members of the American Trainers Association, conducted in 1955 by Delaware Park Racetrack, Imp was voted the tenth greatest filly in American racing history. Gallorette
Gallorette
Gallorette was a Maryland-bred chestnut thoroughbred filly who became a Hall of Fame race horse. Sired by Challenger II, out of Gallette, Gallorette's damsire was Sir Gallahad III. Even so, her dam, Gallette, had once exchanged hands for $250 and was used as a hack. -Breeding:Trainer Preston M...
was voted first.