1. Man o’ War didn’t win the Kentucky Derby

In fact, he didn’t take part in the “Run for the Roses” at all. As Dorothy Ours writes in her book Man o’ War: A Legend Like Lightning, owner Samuel Riddle thought that the mile-and-a-quarter distance was too long for 3-year-olds at the beginning of their season. Instead, the 1920 Derby’s blanket of roses went to a 16-1 shot named Paul Jones.

Interestingly, Man o’ War never raced in the state of his birth. Nonetheless, he lived in Kentucky for most of his life, and Kentuckians adored him. On Man o’ War’s 30th birthday, an editorial in a Louisville newspaper stated: “May the bluegrass be tender to his taste, the turf springy to his tread, the limestone soil and the wide blue sky of his kingdom welcome to his senses for the rest of his days. He has brought honor and distinction to his native Kentucky.”

2. Man o’ War’s one  loss was to a horse named Upset.

Man o’ War won 20 races, with one second place finish, out of 21 starts. His sole defeat came on August 13, 1919, in the Sanford Memorial Stakes at Saratoga Racecourse. The loss was as controversial as it was shocking.

The race started badly. Modern starting gates were not yet in use in 1919. Instead, horses lined up at a tape, and the race began when the tape was raised. But getting an entire field to stand ready was often difficult. False starts were common. In the Sanford, a horse named Golden Broom “broke through the barrier three times while Upset, which was near him, also was trying to beat the barrier,” wrote a turf writer with The New York Times on August 14, 1919. “Man o’ War acted very calmly but was on his toes.”

Reports vary—some say that Man o’ War was facing the wrong way when the starter raised the tape—but by all accounts, he left the post near the rear of the field of seven. As the frontrunners vied for the lead, Man o’ War found his stride. On the backstretch, he began to pass horses.

A close second

Turning into the homestretch, Golden Broom was in the lead, followed by Upset. Man o’ War was two lengths back in third. “A few strides down the stretch Golden Broom suddenly gave up the race, and Upset raced past him,” according to the New York Times account. “Steadily Man o’ War drew up on Upset. A hundred feet from the wire he was three-fourths of a length away. At the wire he was a scant neck out of the first position and in another twenty feet would have passed the Whitney horse.”

Though defeated, Man o’ War was not discredited. “The manner in which he ran this race stamped him, in the opinion of horsemen, as the best of his division without question….” wrote the Times reporter. “There was scarcely a witness of this race who did not believe after it was all over that Man o’ War would have walked home, with anything like a fair chance.” Man o’ War was carrying 15 pounds more than Upset.

Contrary to popular belief, the use of the word “upset,” to describe an unexpected defeat in sports was not derived from this race. It is easy to find that usage of the term going back decades earlier. But Upset, the horse, could not have been more appropriately named.

3. Man o’ War’s best friend was a show hunter.

In addition to racehorses, Samuel Riddle owned show horses, including a 16.3 hand gelding named Major Treat. After a leg injury ended the horse’s show career in 1918, Man o’ War’s trainer, Louis Feustel, made his own mount.

“Major Treat could make a useful mount for the hefty Feustel when he led his charges to the track for training,” wrote Dorothy Ours in Man o’ War: A Legend Like Lightning. “Also, his mature presence might stabilize the fretful yearling Man o’ War. It worked. Accepted by Man o’ War, Major Treat began living in a neighboring stall.” The two horses lived in adjacent stalls and traveled together throughout the colt’s racing career and well into his retirement at stud.

[For your bookshelf: Man O’War by Walter Farley]

4. Man o’ War’s first stud manager was a woman.

Elizabeth Daingerfield was a respected authority on Thoroughbred bloodlines when Samuel Riddle chose her to manage Man o’ War’s breeding career. She had worked as an assistant for her father, Maj. Foxhall Daingerfield, who was the breeding manager for Castleton Farm near Lexington, Kentucky. Elizabeth took over management of that farm in 1913 after the deaths of both Keene and her father.

By the time Man o’ War retired from racing, she owned her own operation at Haylands Farm. She also leased nearby properties including Hinata Farm, where the stallion stood during his first year at stud before moving to Faraway Farm in May 1922. Daingerfield remodeled a barn at Faraway for Man o’ War. “Man o’ War is a well-behaved animal, and no extra precautions have been taken in his stall to prevent his injuring himself,” she told reporters.

The barn would house Man o’ War, his old rival Golden Broom, and, of course, Major Treat. “Man o’ War loves equine company. He is to be kept satisfied by having his chum with him as well as another high bred animal,” wrote a reporter for the New York Times on February 2, 1921.

“An eagle of a woman”

Daingerfield was an “eagle of a woman in the aloofness of her profound knowledge and in her utter disregard of things that usually encompass a woman’s horizon,” reported Liberty magazine in 1926.

“Those who have ever seen Miss Daingerfield in the paddocks or pastures with her charges have a picture they recall with pleasure,” wrote a New York Herald reporter, as recorded in History of Kentucky. “Mares and foals crowd about her, eager for some token of affection or recognition until her progress is actually impeded. It is the same way with the yearlings which have been reared by her; they are gentle in the extreme. One of her rules is that there shall be no blows or harsh punishment. As a result few bad-tempered horses have come from her nursery.”

Daingerfield managed Man o’ War until 1930, when she left to focus on her own farm and horses.

[For your bookshelf: Man O’War by Dorothy Ours]

5. In retirement Man o’ War was a major tourist attraction.

In an era that included such legends as Babe Ruth, Jack Dempsey and Red Grange, Man o’ War was one of the most popular sport figures of his time.

Faraway Farm was open to the public. Between 1922 and 1947 around 500,000 visitors signed the guest books; many more passed through without leaving a signature. “The register in Man o’ War’s stable tells the story of his fame and his greatness,” wrote the Chicago Tribune on April 4, 1937. “From practically every country on the face of the globe his visitors have come. They represent every walk of life.” In total, an estimated 1,000,000 to 1,500,000 people came from all over the world to see the great horse.

Bluegrass legend

“His name is on all the road directions in this part of the country and on all the ‘Seeing Kentucky’ programs. Tourists ask first where they can find him and then where they can find Mammoth Cave,” Daingerfield told the New York Times in 1923. “It is remarkable how the interest in him continues. People from all over the country seem really proud of him.”

Man o’ War’s first groom in retirement was John “Buck” Buckner, who cared for the horse from 1921 until 1930. But the stallion’s best-known groom was Will Harbut. The horseman became famous for his colorful commentaries and obvious affection for his charge.

Harbut took care of Man o’ War from 1930 and May 1946, when he suffered a stroke. Harbut died in October 1947, a month before Man o’ War did.

6. Man o’ War’s funeral was broadcast nationwide by radio.

Man o’ War’s health began to decline in mid-1947. He died quietly in his stall on November 1 of that year. He was 30 years old.

The stallion was embalmed—said to be a first for a horse funeral—and placed in an oak casket lined with the black and yellow of Riddle’s racing silks. Man o’ War lay in state in his barn aisle on November 3.

A funeral was held on November 4. Photos of the event show dense crowds. Men and women in gathered around the concrete moat that surrounded the original grave on Faraway Farm.

The service, which included nine eulogies, was broadcast nationwide by radio. Race tracks across the country lowered thair flags to half-mast. At Churchill Downs, a 7,500- person crowd stood in silent tribute as “Taps” was played in the great horse’s honor.

Not forgotten

A bronze statue of Man o’ War by Herbert Haseltine was erected over the grave in October 1948. In 1977 Man o’ War’s remains and the sculpture were moved to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington. They remain there today.

“The death of Man o’ War marks the end of an era in American Thoroughbred breeding history…. Few will remember him as a foal, or a yearling, or even on the racetrack. But many thousands will remember him as they saw him and recognized in him at once the spark of greatness,” said breeder Ira Dryman during one eulogy. “Almost from the beginning he caught the imagination of men, and they saw different things in him. But one thing they all remember—that he brought an exaltation into their hearts.”

This article first appeared in the December 2017 issue of EQUUS #483

To read about the “other” Big Red, click here.