Walking On Volume 2, Issue 2, February 2015 | Page 12

As

walking horse shows began
to blossom during the 1930s,
a number of great mares
were produced. First among these was
Lynnie Gray. A daughter of the legendary
broodmare Maude Gray, Lynnie Gray
was by Neal’s Allen who was by Brown
Allen by the great Hunter’s Allen. This
fine, chestnut mare was undefeated as a
three-year-old, winning at both Nashville
and Louisville. Under the direction of
T. Martin Goodrich, she was practically
unbeatable. At the Louisville show, five
thousand people thundered their approval
as she was presented the Challenge Trophy
by bandleader Paul Whiteman. The event
attracted nation-wide publicity and Lynnie
Gray’s place was secured in the history of
our breed.
Another daughter of Maude Gray,
Nellie Gray is considered by some to
be one of the greatest mares in walking
horse history. She was sired by Wilson’s
Allen and trained by Floyd Carothers.
Although her life was cut short before she
was able to prove herself as an aged mare,
her record speaks of itself. The summer of
her two-year-old year, Nellie Gray competed at 17 shows winning 17 blue ribbons.
That summer she was shown in five stake
classes, placing first each time. In October

12 • Walking On

of the same year she was entered in seven
shows in seven days, making seven victory
passes. Had she lived, there is no doubt
that Nellie Gray would have gone on to
challenge the great champions of the
1940s.
Also foaled in the 1930s, Lilly White
proved to be another outstanding contender.
This solid white mare by Roan Allen, Jr.
won blue ribbons throughout the eastern part of the country. She claimed the
championship at Baton Rouge in 1939
by defeating Maude Gray’s Bugaboo,
Haynes Haven’s You’ll Remember, and
Sir MacAlvanni. She was also one of the
few successful show horses of the 1930s
to make the transition to the Celebration
where she was consistently in the ribbons
through 1942.
Finally, Lem Motlow’s Fairy Queen
was a consistent winner throughout Middle
Tennessee and the South. A Chief-bred
mare, she was ridden in Middle Tennessee by both Clarence Haynes and Felix
Evans. Her most prestigious win, which
was under the direction of Haynes, was
the Mare Championship at Baton Rouge
in 1938.
–Sarah Gee