~ AQHA HALL OF FAME ~
54
~ AQHA HALL OF FAME ~
WE WOULD LIKE TO TAKE A LOOK BACK ON THE HISTORY OF THE AUSTRALIAN QUARTER HORSE ASSOCIATION HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES
1999 HALL OF FAME INDUCTEE
PETER L. BAILLIEU
The Australian Quarter Horse Association honours PETER L. BAILLIEU with induction into the Hall of Fame.
Peter Baillieu’ s involvement with Quarter Horses stemmed from his position at King Ranch as General Manager. Always having a great appreciation for top class horseflesh( which he never lost), he saw the benefits of this new breed of horse in Australia. King Ranch imported the first Quarter Horses to Australia and had a major influence on the breed for many years.
A small number of enthusiastic Quarter Horse devotees met at various times, with Peter Baillieu as chairman, forming the Australian Quarter Horse Association in 1964. Peter Baillieu, along with Sir Rupert Clarke, Mr. Sam Hordern, Mr. Martin Lemann, Mr. Jack Reilly and Mr. and Mrs Baillieu & Sarah Myer became the six permanent Council Members on 31st December, 1967.
Peter Baillieu stood as President of the AQHA from 1964 to 1968, and, although he was not actively involved with the breed in his later years, his interest in the Association never waned. In his earlier years, Peter rode quite a lot. One of his favourite mounts was King Ranch Elect, a gelding that was the High Point Horse at the first AQHA National Championships.
Peter Baillieu was a man of great foresight and possessed extraordinary management skills which he imparted to the AQHA in its creation. The solid foundation laid down in the Constitution and the creation of the Stud Book and Registry would be in no small part due to his expertise and involvement.
When he opened the new AQHA owned office building in Tamworth in 1995, Peter Baillieu expressed his pleasure at the growth of this Association and its influence on the horse scene in this country.
Peter’ s life became more hectic later on as he sat on the Boards of many large businesses which included Westpac, Prudential, Stanbroke Pastoral Co. and Incitec.
Peter was married to Edwina Hordern and had a son Peter, and two daughters, Anna Jane and Marina. His untimely death on 22nd October, 1998 was unexpected and sudden.
The AQHA owes a lot to the creative ability of a man like Peter L. Baillieu, one of the founders of the AQHA and our first President.
Australian Quarter Horse Association- www. aqha. com. au