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Hiram Woodruff
Sport: Horse Racing
Born: February 22, 1817
Died: March 15, 1867
Town: Birmingham
Hiram Washington Woodruff was born February 22, 1817 in Birmingham. The son of Colonel Ogden Woodruff, a noted horseman, Hiram grew up around the family stables in Burlington County and developed a special rapport with horses. He began his career exercising the trotter Topgallant in the 1820s and won his first race at the age of 14 at Hunting Park in Philadelphia.
Hiram earned a reputation as a fine standardbred jockey and trainer. He piloted world champions Tacony, Lady Suffolk and Flora Temple, as well as Dexter—one of the legendary trotting horses of the antebellum era. This was a time of rough play and rough characters in American horseracing. Hiram was the exception to the rule, known for his good nature, honesty and fair play.
This no doubt helped him become a success in business, as he operated the Union Saloon near Long Island’s two elite racing venues, the Fashion Course and Union Course. He also authored the first great book on American racing,The Trotting Horse in America. When he died in 1867 in present-day Queens, it was said that only Ulysses S. Grant was more admired among Americans.
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