Samuel D. Riddle
1861 - 1951
"Lots of men might have a million dollars, but only one man can have Man o' war," said Will Harbut, the faithful groom of the great stallion. The one man who had Man o' War was Samuel D. Riddle, who once handed back the check of a wealthy Texan who had urged him to name his price for the horse. Riddle had purchased Man o' War as a yearling for $5,000 and raced him to legendary status. "Big Red" won 20 of 21 races in 1919 and 1920 and thereafter stood at stud for many years at Faraway farm outside Lexington. He was such a public idol that after his death at the age of 30, his funeral was broadcast nationally on radio. Owner Riddle, a dashing sportsman of the Pennsylvania hunt fields, ran the Glen Riddle textile company founded by his grandfather. He later bred and raced Man o' War's best son, Triple Crown winner War Admiral.
Man o' War had been offered for sale by his breeder, August Belmont II, because of Belmont's acceptance at 65 of a commission to go abroad as part of the World War I effort. Belmont left another mark on American culture as chief financier of the original New York subway system.
Marker can be reached from the intersection of East Main Street (U.S. 60) and Midland Avenue (U.S. 60), on the right when traveling west.
Courtesy hmdb.org
