The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1901-08-15
SIRE or oREscEus.
Robert McGregor Owned by R. L
Lee Of Topeka For II Years.

The sire of Creseeus, the king of
tretters, was a Kansas horse Robert
McGregor, monarch Of the home
stretch, who was raised by a kansan
and made his hoEne in Shawnee county
for seventeen years.
r. I. Lee, Of Topeka better known to
the turfmen of the country as Bob
Lee, bought McGregor of Sam Whit
man, in Orange county, New York, in
April 1873, for $3.50. He kept him until
March, 1890 and sold him in Lexing
ton, KY. the home of fine horses, at
the age of - Years, for $33 $50.
How Bob Lee happened to buy Rob-
ert McGregor is told as follows by him:
I can show q clean bill of sale for
Robert AIcGregor as my first invest
n1ef1t in a trottihg horse. Late in the
winter Of 1873 the horse fever broke out
on me, and armed with q letter of in
PRODUCTION to Guy Miller / started for
New York with the purpose of buying
a good son of Ham beltonian. I went to
Chester and presented my letter to
Miller, and told him I hoped he would
help me buy a son Of Hambeltonian
for $1,000.
Miller said right away he did not
know where a satisfactory individual of
that breeding could be bought for that
money, but he remarked that he knew
chestnut colt that might be bought
for LOCO that he Judged would be
about as good as could be found in
Orange county. We drove to the home
OF the owner Of Robert MeGregor
Peculiar was no name for him. Sam
Whitman was a dairyman, and his COW
stable like the one-horse shay, had
gone to pieces all in one day. That en-
abled me to make the purchase. Not
finding Mr.. Whitman at home We in
spected the horse, and in driving away
met Mr.. Whitman. He would put no
price on his colt. I made him offers
from $500 to $780, We drove away and
then went back to get him to set a
price. He still refused, but / offered
III E-&~
noticing that he cast a longing glance
at some greenbacks I held In my hand,
although he said may to my offer, 1
selected a crisp $50 bill and, his coat
being buttohed up, stuffed it into one
Of his pockets and said $3.50 for the
colt, $40 paid and the balance when you
deliver him at Mr.. Miller's.' He did not
say anything and we hurriedly left
him, and in few days Robert Nc
Gregor turned up at Miller's, minus a
halter. and so Sam Whitman sold his
first horse and bought nay first
trotter."
In the fan Of 1878 McGregor was
shown at the Kansas state fair in TO-
peRa, and was defeated by Governor
Sprague, who afterwards became Ia
nous as trotter. At the Kansas City
fair in 1874 McGregor started in his
first race, and won easily over a large
field in 3:10. From then until his re-
tirement from the track in 1888 he
raced more or less, and in the heyday |
frequenters considered to have only
two superiors on the turf. STnuggler |
held the cham pion stallion record then |
at PISA Smuggler was also a Kan
sas horse, and was owned by Col ". |
F. Tough, of Wyandotte, when he made 1
his record Smuggler was trained at /
Ottawa, Kas., by the great trainer and |
rampaigner Marvin.
In the fall of '73 McGregor made |
record Of 2.1TA at Fort Worth. Tex,
and 1t was considered by good judges, |
Ed Geers. the famous trainer of East /
Aurora, n. Y, included, that under IA
Vorable circumstances that McGregor /
could make a worlds record. The trial /
was to be made at Fort Worth, but ac-
sidents happened and the trial was
abandoned.
AS an Individual McGregor was a
among fine horses. He held
the title of monarch Of the home
stretch on account of his wonderful
exhibitions in the stretch He was
bought from Lee in 1890 by John Z
Madden and William e Spiers. He
hen went to Lexington, KY, and /
alens Falls. N. Y. McGregor's service
lee was $780, Robert McGregor died in
s9s, the property of George h Ket-
eham, the millionaire owner driver and /
breeder of Cresceus. Ketcham erected
Z handsome ton bstone Over tire grave
IF McGregor at Toledo as a fitting trib-
ute to the memory of the monarch of
the home stretch