Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-12-22
Records Showing How 2:20 TretterS
Have Increased in Numbers
During 80 Years.
FLORA TEMPLE WAS TIE PIONEER,
And Now There are Nearly 400 Names Of
Horses That Have lqualled or
Beaten The Speedy Mark.
NAMES OF THE FLYERS OF EACH YEAR.
Manager Burnhsm Writes Very Important Lettsr-Gsn-
sTsl Sporting News Of the Day.

1t is over 81 years since a trotter first took
a record of 2:2O or better in harness, and to
rule; the heroine of the then unexampled
feat being the little bob-tailed mare, b"
Flora Temple. The performance took place
on October Is, 1862 at Kalamazoo, Mich.
James L. McMann, who drove her on that
occasion, was an old-timer of over 80 years
OF age then. He died in Brooklyn but few
davs ago, after living to see many perform
ers surpass the mark established by his
fayorite, and the best on record placed at
2:0Ss4. None could successfully compete
with Flora Temple in her day. She first
trotted in public September 9, 1850 over the
Union course, on Long Island, under the
name of Flora, and her best time was 2:49
Two years later she gained some local celebrity,
gong as fast as ESQ, and ip 1858, having trotted
as low as 2:27 over the Centerville course, she
was thought good enough to campaign, and
made quite tour through the West and South
She was almost invariably victorious in her
races. In 1856 she gained a record ot 2:2i15
which made her the Queen of the Turf" and
she wore this crown for II wears. In 1853 she
lowered her mark of 2:2413 first to Z:22 then to
2:2l15, and last, at Kalamazoo, on october 10
10 2Iss4.
Back in the Fifties.
1t is difficult for the lovers of trotters in this
generation to realize how stupendous that per-
formance appeared in its day. 1t was tile talk
OF the country. There were a few prophets
who did not hesitate to predict that 1t would
yet be surpassed; but the most able writers for
the sporting periodicals agreed that the rate of
speed was high water mark, and that the child
was not yet born who would live to see another
trotter beat 2:2O in harness. The war followed
shortly afterward and the industry of training
trotterS and the sport of racing them fell into
disuse, and for eight years the pessimists had
the best of it, But in 1867, over the Buffalo
track. Dexter upset all their calculations by
trotung in 2:l755, and it was not long before
number of others. like Goldsmith Maid. Lady
ThOrne, Lucy. American Girl and George Pal
mer. succeeded in entering the 2:2O list Year
bv year its ranks have been added to, and the
sun in presenting the complete list of
all trotters entitled to this honor, has thought
II best TO remind readers how short time ago
it was that such feats were deemed well nigh
There are no less than $50 names in the table
and IN order that students of such statistics
may realize how rapidly 1t has grown of late,
the horses are grouped under the year in
which they made their best record. The
fastest mark for a trotter is likely to remain
uneQualed for years, as has been the case with
the 2.1SSi of Maud S but the general advance
of the great body of crack flyers toward it is
continuous and irrepressible. Some member of
that band is certain to depose the relgnlng
queen.
a Remarkable Increase.
OF the $50 animals in our table, 81 made their
best records in 1890 and a large majority of
these are newcomers to the 30 list which in
creases annually at the rate of at least 25 per
cent. In ten years it bids fair to be larger than
The 2:30 listwas ten years ago, and to supersede
II as basis for registry and studboo6 pur-
poses.
The 2IO1l of Sunol in 1890 does not appear in
the table. because she gained precisely that
record a S-year-old in 1889. The fastest per-
formance OF the season. as 4 new record, is the
2:lOsl Of the stallion Nelson, which was made
at Cambridge City, Ind, over a regular oval
track. and not one Of the new-fangled, kite
shaped courses, which increases horses speed
by several seconds. This adds greatly to the
merit of the performance. Nelson holds the
fastest record fer a stallion. His sire. Young
Rolfe was bv Tom Rolfe. dam judith. by
Draco. Tom Rolte was by Pugh's Aratus, dam
the pacing mare POcahontas, who made
record Of 2:l71a to wagon, as long ago as 1855,
driven by James d. McMann, the same veteran
that piloted Flora Temple to her 2:l934 The
dam Of Nelson was Gretchen, by Gideon, a
son of Hambletonian. Gretchen is a good
brood mare, but the wonderful speed
of Nelson doubtless finds its main
spring iE old PocahOntas, whose blood breeds
on without fail. For Instance. her son, Tom
Rolfe, trotued in 2:3315 IN 1863; his son, Young
Rolfe Jrotted in 2:2lIz in 1854, and would have
made much faster record had he not fallen
dead in a race at Mystic Park. Boston; and the
latter's son. Nelson. trots in 2:l0A in 1890.
What will the get of Nelson do i'll 1900? The
next best record of the season is the 2llL of
the California stallion. StambOul. and he is
still on the warpath for Nelson's scalp. The
2:l2l4 of Juck, and the 2l21a of Margaret
come next in point OF speed.
EIectioneer in Front.
Senator Stanford's Electioneer heads the
sires of 22O or better trotters with Il of his get
in the list: George Wilkes is second with 10;
Nutwood and Princess have each; Blue Bull.
Red Wilkes and Volunteer each; Aberdeen,
Alcyone, Amont. Jr. (Hamlin's). Governor
Sprague, Guy Wilkes, Kentucky Prince,
Masterlode and Strathmore each; and AL
mont. Belmont, Dauntless Dictator. General
Knox, Hambletonian, Happy Medium. Man,
brino King and Young Jim have 3 each. OF
these sires. Guy Wilkes, who was foaled in
1873 is the youngest, and his future promises
to be very brilliant. Among these q sires of
great speed we find but who themselves have
records of 2:30 or better, which appears to sup
port as far as il goes, the theory of undeveloped
stations being the best for stock purposes, of
which argument Mr.. c. J. Hamlln, Of Buffalo,
is the founder.
Flora Temple, b. M, by One Eyed Kentucky
hunter. ,-.-......s....- .-lSS4
1867.
Dexter, br. E., by Hambletonian ............2I7Jz
1869
Lady Thorn, b. m, by Mambrino Chief .2:lsIl
George Palmer br. e., bv Palmer Bogus. ....2:l94
1s72