Gay Dalton

One of history's finest horses and the "Champion of all Mexico."

Seabiscuit is great but Grandpa Burt owned a piece of a horse-racing legend too! Named for Grandpa Gaylord Burt and his friend, Dalton Denton, this horse made a lot of history. You can read about him in a rare book by CW Anderson called "Twenty Gallant Horses." Mom and Dad have this book and I have been looking for a copy but prices range from $50 to $150. In the book you will find Gay Dalton included with Seabiscuit, Man O' War, War Admiral and others.

You will find that Gay Dalton placed 3rd in the prestigious Santa Anita Handicap in 1945 (see historical results here). The horse was still owned by Gaylord Burt and Dalton Denton at that time (see Owner Page from Santa Anita Handicap Media Guide). At that time, Gay Dalton was trained by M. E. (Buster) Millerick, who also trained Native Diver (see Trainer Page from Santa Anita Handicap Media Guide) and Seabiscuit (click here or here). You will even find reference to current races called "Handicap Gay Dalton" although I've not figured that out yet.

Note: Joan gave this book to Tom for his 50th birthday so now there are two of these collector items in the family!