Autographs
1830 Racing Autograph Letter Signed WILLIAM RANSOM JOHNSON Racehorse Breeder "The Napoleon of the Turf"
WILLIAM RANSOM JOHNSON (1782-1849). Leading Racehorse Breeder and Race Manager of the early 1800's, known as "The Napoleon of the Turf", he started the publication of "The American Turf Register and Sporting Magazine," was inducted into the National Racing Hall of Fame in 1955.
August 28, 1830-Dated, Autograph Letter Signed, "W.R. Johnson", 7.75" x 9.5", 1 page, Petersburg, Va., Very Fine. Written from William Ransom Johnson to John S. Skinner, at Baltimore, Md. Stampless folded letter has red PETERS. VA. postmark, addressed to J.S. Skinner as Postmaster of Baltimore. Great Racehorse related content, in which Johnson provides a list of horses which he wishes Skinner to enter in the Baltimore Sweepstakes from the Fall of 1830 through the Spring of 1833, the horses belonging to him and to Francis P. Corbin, providing the pedigree of each. Letter reads:
"I will thank Mr. Skinner to make the following entries for me & Mr. Francis P. Corbin in the Baltimore Sweepstakes -
Fall 1830, opposite my name, gr. filly, by Sir Charles out of Reality
Spring 1831 - opposite Francis P. Corbin, Eclipse, Colt out of Sir Harry, mare the dame of Star.
Fall 1831 - the same entry as Spring 1831.
Spring 1832 - opposite my name, cold by Monsieur Touson out of Betsey Robinson
Spring 1833 - opposite Francis P. Corbin's name, grey filly by Medley out of Havoc's dam." The letter, below the list of horses, reads; "Petersburg, 28th Augt. 1830 / My dear Sir, / I must trouble you to make the above entries for Mr. Corbin & myself, as I observe by the Turf Register you are the person with whom the entries are to be made. I will get & forward you the pedigree of Coalition as requested in your letter just rec'd, and remain / Most truly, (Signed) W. R. Johnson".
WILLIAM RANSOM JOHNSON, (1782-1849) - the leading racehorse breeder and race manager of the early 1800's, known as "the Napoleon of the Turf". Born in Warren County, NC, he served in the NC General Assembly 1807-1814; Between 1803 and 1813, he raced the noted horses "Sir Archy" and "Pacolet", winning $30,000; Soon afterwards, he moved to Virginia & began raising racehorses; Member of the Virginia House of Delegates for Petersburg, 1818-1820, & from Chesterfield Co., 1821-1823; In the Virginia State Senate, 1823-1826 & again in the House of Delegates, 1826-1830 and 1833-1837.
By common consent, he was the manager for the South in the South-North Races held in Washington, D.C. in 1823, and from then until 1834, he managed nearly thirty other races, of which the South won seventeen. For a generation, Johnson was regarded as the leading American turfman and he came to be known a the "Napoleon of the Turf". He operated the largest & most prestigious racing stable in the country up until his death. Noted as the breeder of the American foundation Sires & racing legends "Sir Archy" and "Boston". Inducted into the National Racing Hall of Fame in 1955.
John Stewart Skinner, (1788-1851) at Baltimore, Md. He was with Francis Scott Key during the attack on Ft. McHenry in Baltimore Harbor, and arranged for the first printing on handbills of Key's poem, "Defence of Fort McHenry", which when later set to music, became "The Star Spangled Banner"; He entertained Lafayette at his home in Baltimore during his visit to the U.S.
A personal friend of Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, James Monroe and James Madison. President Madison appointed him Postmaster of Baltimore in 1816, a position he held for 20 years. He published the periodical "American Farmer" from 1819 to 1829, the first continuous agricultural periodical in the U.S., and in 1829, he started the publication of "The American Turf Register and Sporting Magazine", as an authority on the bred horse, and the leading American magazine for horse racing enthusiasts.