Messenger (horse)
Encyclopedia
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...
Thoroughbred
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...
stallion
Stallion (horse)
A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded .Stallions will follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" neck, as well as a somewhat more muscular physique as compared to...
bred by a John Pratt
John Pratt, 1st Marquess Camden
John Jeffreys Pratt, 1st Marquess Camden KG, PC , styled Viscount Bayham from 1786 to 1794 and known as The Earl Camden from 1794 to 1812, was a British politician...
and imported into the newly formed United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
of America just after the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
.
Breeding
Along with three other stallions, (Medley, Sharp, and DiomedDiomed
Diomed, foaled in 1777, was an English-bred Thoroughbred race horse who won the inaugural running of the Epsom Derby and was subsequently a successful sire in the United States of America.-Bright Beginnings:...
), Messenger provided the type of foal, both filly
Filly
A filly is a young female horse too young to be called a mare. There are several specific definitions in use.*In most cases filly is a female horse under the age of four years old....
and colt
Colt (horse)
A colt is a young male horse, under the age of four. The term "colt" is often confused with foal, which refers to a horse of either sex under one year of age....
, that was needed for the era of long distance (stamina and speed) racing popular in the early days of the American sport.
Messenger was a grey by Mambrino
Mambrino (horse)
Mambrino was a grey Thoroughbred racehorse, foaled in 1768, who sired Messenger , who was exported to America, becoming a foundation sire of the Standardbred harness racing breed. Messenger was also important in the foundation of English Coach horses.-External links:**...
out of an unnamed mare (1774) by Turf. He was inbred to Cade in the third and fourth generations of his pedigree. Mambrino traced straight back to Blaze, the father of trotters. Messenger has crosses to all three of the Thoroughbred foundation sires, particularly Godolphin Arabian
Godolphin Arabian
The Godolphin Arabian , also known as the Godolphin Barb, was an Arabian horse who was one of three stallions that were the founders of the modern Thoroughbred horse racing bloodstock...
. Although his sire was a trotter, Messenger never ran a trot race. While still 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...
, he started in 16 flat races and won ten of them. Messenger's races, usually less than two and half miles, were mainly "match" races in which the side bets far exceeded the purse.
Arrival in America
In May 1788 Sir Thomas Benger imported Messenger to PennsylvaniaPennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. In 1793, Messenger was sold to Henry Astor. Messenger was once advertised in a Philadelphia newspaper as: Available for service: Inquiries to be made to a certain Alexander Clay at the sign of the Black Horse in Market Street.
Stud career
Like the other three English stallions, and as was the custom of the day, Messenger was bred throughout PennsylvaniaPennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey 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...
and New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. The mares he was bred with were not of the highest quality, but even so he proved himself a superior stallion, siring a great many successful racehorses.
Messenger's daughter, Miller's Damsel, also known as "Queen of the American Turf", gave birth to the horse his breeder named American Eclipse
American Eclipse
American Eclipse was an undefeated American Thoroughbred racehorse, who raced when three to four mile heats were common.-Breeding:...
in the belief the foal would be as great as the famous English Eclipse
Eclipse (horse)
Eclipse was an outstanding, undefeated 18th-century British Thoroughbred racehorse who was later a phenomenal success as a sire.-Breeding:...
. By Duroc, a fine son of Diomed
Diomed
Diomed, foaled in 1777, was an English-bred Thoroughbred race horse who won the inaugural running of the Epsom Derby and was subsequently a successful sire in the United States of America.-Bright Beginnings:...
, American Eclipse did indeed turn out to be a champion.
He was not only a great sire of Thoroughbreds, he was also the founding father of the harness breed, or modern-day American Standardbred through his great grandson, Rysdyk's Hambletonian 10
Hambletonian 10
Hambletonian 10, or Rysdyk's Hambletonian, was an American trotter and a founding sire of the Standardbred horse breed. The stallion was born in Sugar Loaf, NY on 5 May 1849. Hambletonian has been inducted into the Immortals category of the Harness Racing Hall of Fame.-Origin and early years...
). His genes have also contributed to the American Saddlebred
American Saddlebred
The American Saddlebred, formerly known as the American Saddle Horse, is a breed of horse that was developed in Kentucky by plantation owners. Today, in the horse show world, they are most commonly seen under saddle in Saddle seat style riding, and in various types of driving, including pleasure...
, and Tennessee Walking Horse breeds.
Messenger died on January 8, 1808 at the age of 28. He's buried on Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
.