ALEXANDER’S ABDALLAH
Bred by R. A. Alexander, this is chronologically the earliest of the successful RH sons. An important bloodline in the years just after the Civil War, today it is extinct except as represented in broodmare pedigrees. Other RH sons will be reviewed in our next installment, but this one is included here because this Abdallah family produced several famous Standardbred mares.
Robert McGregor (1871) is by Major Edsall by Alexander’s Abdallah and out of Nancy Whitman by Seely’s American Star, with tail female going to Sir Archy and the Saddlebred progenitor Brown Highlander. This stallion competed from 1874 to 1883, winning 18 races and posting a trotting record of 2:17 ½. He sired an almost equal number of trotters and pacers, many of which bred on, thus carrying his line up to the beginning of the 20th century. The image is after an original photograph by George Ford Morris.
Cresceus (1894) is by Robert McGregor out of Mabel, a granddaughter of Mambrino Chief. Cresceus is included in this group because his dam’s tail female goes to Almont by Alexander’s Abdallah and Mambrino Chief. Cresceus’ World Champion trotting record of 2:02 ½ was set as a 7 year old. In 1910 he was exported to Russia where he sired a dozen foals, several of which qualified in standard time and contributed to the development of the Russian Trotter, a cross of Orlov Trotter with American Standardbred. The choice of Cresceus by Russian officials is unsurprising given his excellent all-around conformation as well as his speed. Unfortunately Cresceus’ career in Russia was not a long one, his last foals arriving in 1913.
Alexander’s Abdallah, (1852), also known as Edsall’s Alexander. The image is a retrospective made in 1881, after a painting by Troye (although Troye probably based his rendition on an original Schreiber and Sons photograph). Sire of Goldsmith Maid, this stallion’s life was cut short; during the Civil War he was commandeered from Alexander’s Woodbridge Stud in Kentucky by soldiers on Feb. 2, 1865, and then ridden to death after crossing an icy river. He is out of Katy Darling who traces top and bottom to imported Messenger. Despite his untimely death, Alexander’s Abdallah sired many Standardbred and a few Thoroughbred offspring.
Primrose (1865) was by Alexander’s Abdallah out of Black Rose, she by Tom Teemer whose sire line descent is unknown but whose tail female goes to the Pilot-Justin Morgan line. Her tail female harks back to Sir Archy and the Quarter Horse ancestor Blackburn’s Whip. Bred by R. A. Alexander, she is considered a “great dam” of the American Standardbred, having borne 20 foals of which six posted times of 2:30 or better. Alexander retained most of her fillies for his broodmare band, breeding them back to Woodford Mambrino. All of these, along with most of Primrose’s colt foals, went on to produce standard performers—a significant measure of Alexander’s skill as a breeder.
Goldsmith Maid (1857) by Alexander’s Abdallah out of Old
Ab, a daughter of Abdallah (the sire of RH). “The Maid” was owned and campaigned all over the country by harness racing great Budd Doble. She had 121 official starts and won 92 of them, setting a world record of 2:14 at age 17. In retirement, she became very popular with the American public, attracting thousands to match races that pitted her against the nation’s top harness racers of all sexes. When finally retired, Goldsmith Maid had time to produce but two foals. The birth of the first, the brown colt Stranger, made national headlines; the report in the May 28, 1880 edition of the Montgomery County, Kentucky Sentinel-Democrat began, “Goldsmith Maid Sunday dropped a large and fine-looking colt at Fashion Stud Farm near Trenton, New Jersey.” Stranger sired many Morgans as well as many fast Standardbreds. His full sister Rosebud who came along in 1881 produced champion trotter Artus and several good broodmares. Along with most of the other mares featured in this article, Goldsmith Maid has been inducted into the Harness Racing Hall of Fame.