Dan Patch was a brown standardbred horse by Joe Patchen out of Zelica, and the outstanding pacer of his day. He was foaled in 1896 and died on July 11, 1916. He was purchased by a resident of then Hamilton, MN (renamed Savage, MN) named Marion Willis Savage in 1902. He repeatedly broke the record for the fastest mile by a harness horse, finally lowering it to 1:55¼ in a time trial in 1906 (the last year in which pacers and trotters were allowed to follow the pacemakers in time trials). This record stood until 1938. His fastest race mile was 1:58. Standardbred harness racing horses are so called because in the early years of the Trotting Registry, the standardbred stud book established in the United States in 1879 by the National Association of Trotting Horse Breeders, only horses who could race a mile in a standard time or better, or whose... Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 The horse (Equus caballus, sometimes seen as a subspecies of the Wild Horse, Equus ferus caballus) is a large odd-toed ungulate mammal, one of ten modern species of the genus Equus. ... A trotter training at Vincennes hippodrome Harness racing is a form of horse-racing in which the horses race in a specified gait. ... Savage is a city located in Scott County, Minnesota. ... 1906 (MCMVI) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Dan Patch was a sports superstar with extensive endorsements (including washing machines and cigars). Much of his career was spent barnstorming. He retired undefeated in 1909 as the holder of nine world records. Dan Patch Avenue at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds is named for him and he was the subject of the 1949 motion picture, The Great Dan Patch starring Dennis O'Keefe and Gail Russell. Tim Brady from Elroy WI has written a book The Great Dan Patch and the Remarkable Mr. Savage Tim now lives in St. Paul MN. Front-loading washing machine. ... Four cigars of different brands (from top: H. Upmann, Montecristo, Macanudo, Romeo y Julieta) An airtight cigar storage tube and a guillotine-style cutter A cigar is a tightly rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco, one end of which is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into... Barnstorming was a popular form of entertainment in the 1920s in which stunt pilots would perform tricks with airplanes, often in groups as a flying circus. ... 1909 (MCMIX) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... The Minnesota State Fair Grandstand in August 2003 The Minnesota State Fair, marketed for generations as The Great Minnesota Get-Together, is one of the largest state fairs in the United States. ... For other uses see film (disambiguation) Film refers to the celluliod media on which movies are printed Film — also called movies, the cinema, the silver screen, moving pictures, photoplays, picture shows, flicks, or motion pictures, — is a field that encompasses motion pictures as an art form or as... Dennis OKeefe (March 29, 1908 - August 31, 1968) was an American actor. ... Gail Russell (21 September 1924 - 27 August 1961) was an American actor. ...

Early days

Dan Patch was foaled on April 29, 1896. The barn in which he was born is located in Oxford, Indiana and is still standing today. He was named after his owner Dan Messner and his sire Joe Patchen. The horse showed little promise in his first year. However, a local trainer named Johnny Wattles saw something that Dan Messner did not. Johnny received permission from Mr. Messner to train Dan Patch. He did a great job with the horse, training him until he was sold to M.E. Sturgis in 1900. Joe Patchen was a successful racing horse. ...

Trivia

Dan Patch was a pacer who broke world records at least 14 times in the early 1900's. He lived in Minnesota from the time when M. W. Savage bought him in 1902 until his death in 1916. poster in the public domain This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ...

Dan Patch only lost two heats in his career and never lost a race. At the top of the poster, you can see the words "NEVER BEATEN" over his name. He was so good that other owners eventually refused to race their horses against him. He spent most of his active career running against the clock.

Dan Patch's official record of 1:55¼ for the pacing mile was set in 1905 in Lexington, Kentucky. His 1:55 unofficial record for the pacing mile (set in 1906 at the Minnesota State Fair but not officially recognized because of the use of a prompter with a windshield) was tied 32 years later in 1938 when Billy Direct became the official 1:55 world record holder. Savage was so indignant about Dan Patch's 1:55 mark not being recognized (the rules had recently been changed) that he renamed the International Stock Food Farm to the International 1:55 Stock Food Farm. The 1:55 mark was equaled again but it was not finally broken until 54 years after Dan Patch's run, when in 1960, Adios Butler paced the first sub-1:55 mile in 1:54:3.

The City of Savage, once called Hamilton, was renamed for Dan Patch's owner, Marion Willis Savage in 1904. Dan Patch Avenue in Falcon Heights, Minnesota (on the State Fairgrounds) is named for the horse, the only road in the entire state that is named for a quarterhorse. Savage is a city located in Scott County, Minnesota. ... Falcon Heights is a city in Ramsey County, Minnesota, United States. ...

100 years later, the land in Savage where the famous "Taj Mahal" stables and racetracks once stood is still all but vacant. The outline of the racetracks can still reportedly be seen from the air [1]. You can still see some of the grade of the ½ mile track on the ground, too, if you look for it. The land is ringed with "No Trespassing" signs. There is no historical marker or anything at the site that would indicate that anything of significance once stood there.

See also

Harness Racing page on Dan Patch

Dan Patch Historical Database

Harness racing A trotter training at Vincennes hippodrome Harness racing is a form of horse-racing in which the horses race in a specified gait. ...

References

History of Savage [2] Dan Patch Historical Society [3] Dan Patch Days [4]