Johnny Longden

Who was Johnny Longden?

John Eric Longden was an American Hall of Fame jockey who was born in Wakefield, Yorkshire, England. His father emigrated to Canada in 1909, settling in Taber, Alberta. By 1912, Longden Sr. had saved enough money to send for his wife and young son to join him in Canada. However, the Longdens' train was late getting to the port of Southampton, and they missed their scheduled voyage to New York City on the Titanic.

As a young man, Johnny Longden worked in the mining industry. His love of horses and horse-racing led him to leave Canada in 1927 to seek opportunities as a jockey in California's burgeoning racing scene. Based at Santa Anita Park, by 1956 he had become thoroughbred racing's winningest rider, breaking the record of 4,870 wins by British jockey Sir Gordon Richards. During his illustrious career, Longden, who was called "The Pumper" by his fellow jockeys because of his riding style, rode many of the great thoroughbreds of the day. In 1943, he captured the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing winning the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes aboard Count Fleet. A sculptured bust of Longden, along with busts of fellow jockeys William Shoemaker and Laffit Pincay, has been placed in the paddock area at Santa Anita Racetrack in Arcadia, California.