( Continued from Page 20) owned and ridden by Gus Blanchard of Gunnison, Miss. This fine horse is a son of BROWN ALLEN and out of MAUD GRAY, and is a top-flight animal in any ring.
GLORIOUS NIGHT, famous daughter of PRINCE ALLEN and out of BESS GLASSCOCK, reserve champion for walking mares, stallion or gelding at the Tennessee State Fair, 1938, owned by L. D. Rouse of Montgomery and ridden by Dick West, was fourth in the awards; while the fifth place went to BLACK PEPPER, a great horse which is owned and was ridden by W. H. Davis of Wartrace.
Other rings of the eight classes shown on the final night of the three-day walking horse celebration were outstanding, and the evening’ s program moved with speed and precision under the direction of Jess Talley of Nashville as ringmaster and judging by Earl Pemberton of Bowling Green, Ky., Clyde Westbrook of Greenville, Miss., the Rev. N. B. Hardeman of Henderson, and Charles Ramsey of Viola, who served as an alternate. Dr. A. C. Topmiller was qualified as an expert to settle questions of blemish, if any, and W. H. Davis was chairman of the horse show.
SENATOR ROBERTS, a horse from the Blanchard Stables at Gunnison, Miss., won the three-year-old stallion top award; and HAYNES ALLEN of Haynes Haven Farms at Spring Hill was first in the champion walking stallion any-age class. The champion two-year-old walking stallion, mare or gelding was STROLLING MARY, property of Steve Hill of Beech Grove and ridden by Urban Small.
In the plantation walking pony class for any age, but fifty-eight inches and under with the rider not over sixteen years old, TEN NESSEE TRAVELER, owned and ridden by Billy Tune of Shelbyville placed first, while YANKEE DOODLE carried away the high award for three-gaited ponies under fifty-eight inches with the owner, Irma Jean Brooks of Madison up.
STROLLING JIM— 1939 World’ s Grand Champion Walking Horse— Owned by Col. C. B. Bacon of Louden, Tennessee and ridden by Floyd Caruthers of Wartrace, Tennessee. Floyd Caruthers— Up.
Photo courtesy of Floyd ' s Walking Horse Hotel. Wartrace. Tennessee.
KENTUCKY STAR, a fine fivegaited horse owned and ridden by Jo S. Crawford of Estill Springs, won first money in the five-gaited stallion, mare or gelding class for any age; and PRINCESS WAR CLOUD, owned and driven by Crawford, won in the fine harness class at the third and final night of Shelbyville’ s big celebration to the Tennessee Walking Horse.
But it was the walking horse that stole the show held in the captital of Bedford County, and it was the grandchampionship ring, the final event of three days that made walking horse history here, that took the spotlight and was towering in the tall tops of a mammoth event.
Top Horses Shown
Well known breeders and competent judges and exacting critics, many of whom were gathered here for the celebration, were of one opinion as the end came on Saturday night. This opinion was that the greatest living walking horses of the world had been assembled here, and that no walking horse show had ever eclipsed that of Shelbyville in fine flesh or in magnitude of excellence from the standpoint of the best in the breed.
Jimmy Joe Murray of Lewisburg said,“ Never before in the history of the walking breed has there ever been assembled the high classes of the walking horse, including top mares, geldings and stallions in the championship contest declaring finally the grandchampion of them all. This is the opinion of breeders and critical judges, and it eclipsed all records of the past for true performance and confirmation.”
Mr. Hardeman said,“ The celebration has had more to do with an inspiration for better breeding than any similar event ever held, and it has brought together the best lot of walking horses in the world. Bedford County and Shelbyville should be proud of their achievement.”
The Twin Queens of the Celebration, Misses Mary and Margaret Wallheiser, who rode two snowwhite horses into the arena after STROLLING JIM had won the grandchampionship award of $ 250 which was handed his rider, Floyd Carruthers, by the State’ s Chief Executive, Prentice Cooper, who acted as ring master in this final event, and who took the huge horseshoe of roses from the twelve visiting queens and after dismounting, placed it about the neck of the new king as the vast audience roared their acclaim, said,“ We don’ t know anything about con-
22 VOICE of The Tennessee Walking Horse