George D. Widener Jr. | |
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| Born | (1889-03-11)March 11, 1889 Philadelphia,Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | December 8, 1971(1971-12-08) (aged 82) |
| Resting place | Laurel Hill Cemetery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Businessman, philanthropist, racehorse owner/breeder |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 stepdaughter |
| Parent(s) | George Dunton Widener & Eleanor Elkins Widener |
| Honors | |
George Dunton Widener Jr. (March 11, 1889 – December 8, 1971) was an Americanthoroughbred racing owner andbreeder. He raised 102stakes winners, won theTravers Stakes a record-tying five times, and was the first person designated an "Exemplar of Racing" by theNational Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame.
Widener was born on March 11, 1889, inPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, into the wealthyWidener family.[1] He was the younger son ofGeorge Dunton Widener andEleanor Elkins Widener, and brother toHarry Elkins Widener andEleanor Widener Dixon.[2]
His grandfathers, thestreetcar magnatePeter A. B. Widener and the oil and steel financierWilliam Lukens Elkins, were long-time friends and business partners. His father and brother both died in thesinking of the Titanic.[3]
He managed the family finances and was a director of theElectric Storage Battery Company and theProvident National Bank in Philadelphia.[4]
Greatly influenced by his uncleJoseph E. Widener, he became involved in thoroughbred horse racing.[2] In 1916, he was elected to theJockey Club[1] and began raising thoroughbreds atErdenheim Farm inWhitemarsh Township, Pennsylvania.[5] He purchased a portion ofElmendorf Farm inLexington, Kentucky, which became known as Old Kenney Farm. He bred horses and raised 102 stakes winners including seven champions. He won theTravers Stakes five times, tying him for the record of most wins. He was the owner ofEight Thirty who was entered into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1994. His stakes winners included Evening Out, High Fleet,Jaipur,Jamestown,Platter, Stefanita, andWhat a Treat.[1] In 1962, he sold the Old Kenney Farm.[2]
Horses owned by Widener won 1,243 races and more than $9 million in winnings. His horses won theFlash Stakes nine times; theFuturity Stakes andSanford Stakes five times; theMetropolitan Handicap,Hopeful Stakes, andSaratoga Special Stakes four times; theCoaching Club American Oaks two times; and theAlabama Stakes,Suburban Stakes, andWhitney Stakes one time. Horses that were bred by Widener won 4,524 races and over $16 million in winnings.[1]
Widener served on the leadership committee for the Jockey Club from 1950 to 1963 and he led the Greater New York Association which became theNew York Racing Association.[1] From 1960 to 1968, Widener served as president of theNational Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame.[2][6][7] In 1971, he was the first to be named an "Exemplar of Racing" by the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame.[1]
He served as chairman of thePhiladelphia Museum of Art. In 1954, he built the 80-room Widener Memorial School for handicapped children which is now a part of theSchool District of Philadelphia.[2]
In 1917, he married divorcée Jessie (née Sloane) Dodge,[8] daughter ofHenry T. Sloane and Jessie Robbins, and became stepfather to Diana Dodge.[3]
He was the first Widener accepted into thePhiladelphia Club.[9]
Widener died on December 8, 1971[1] at Erdenheim Farm,[2] and was interred atLaurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia.[10] He left the farm and his personal fortune to his nephew,Fitz Eugene Dixon Jr.
In 1980, an addition to theNew Bolton Center veterinary hospital was renamed the George D. Widener Hospital for Large Animals.[11]
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