Frederick Baker

Frederick Baker

Article by Alan Trout

Frederick Charles Baker enjoyed a measure of success on the Flat during the first decade of the 20th century, with 14 winners in six seasons. 

Born around 1885, he was apprenticed to the powerful stable of Captain Charles Beatty (1870-1917), a leading amateur rider of the 1890s, who trained at Bedford Cottage, Newmarket. 

Frederick’s first ride in public was on an unnamed two-year-old owned by Lord Howard de Walden, finishing unplaced in the 30-runner Four Elms Selling Nursery Handicap at Lingfield Park on November 5, 1904. 

It was not until July 24, 1905 that Frederick had his first winner, when Ladie, again owned by Lord Howard de Walden and trained by Major Beatty (as he had now become), won the Appleby Plate at Leicester. According to the Sporting Life, young Frederick had been with Major Beatty for nearly five years, went to scale at 6 stone and “is sure to be heard of again”.

It was only a fortnight later that Frederick rode his second winner when Mute String, with the same owner/trainer combination, won the Snow Hill Selling Plate at Birmingham by two lengths. 

It looked as though 1906 would be less successful, for before the start of November he had not ridden a winner. But then he rode three in just over a fortnight, including two on Lord Howard de Walden’s three-year-old Peter Jackson.

Frederick’s best year was in 1907 with six wins, including two more on Peter Jackson, and his two most important successes on Marozzo in the Drayton Handicap at Goodwood and Huka, owned by Colonel Birkin, in the Great Eastern Railway Handicap at Newmarket, the latter by a neck from Paddington, the mount of former champion jockey Billy Higgs. 

Frederick’s final season as an apprentice was in 1908. He rode three winners that year, the last being on at Haydock Park on July 11, when Kilcarbry took the Paddock Three-Year-Old Maiden Plate. That was his second success of the afternoon, for he had earlier ridden Nickle Neck to victory in the Two-Year-Old Selling Plate. Both horses were owned by Lord Howard de Walden, meaning that all bar two of his 14 wins had been gained in Lord Howard’s apricot colours. 

His first season as a fully licensed jockey in 1909 was also his last. He probably found the transition difficult, as so many other apprentices have done before and since. His final ride was on an unnamed three-year-old filly by Flying Lemur out of Dainty Lady, later called Dainty Girl, in the Forest Selling Handicap at Windsor on July 21, 1909, finishing unplaced. The winner of that race was named Cecil Frail, ridden by future top National Hunt jockey George Avila. 

Frederick Baker’s winners were, in chronological order:

1. Ladie, Leicester, July 24, 1905

2. Mute String, Birmingham, August 7, 1905

3. Peter Jackson, Windsor, November 1, 1906

4. Peter Jackson, Leicester, November 12, 1906

5. Knight of Malta, Lingfield Park, November 16, 1906 

6. b.g. by Diamond Jubilee out of Capucine, Birmingham, May 22, 1907

7. Peter Jackson, Manchester, May 24, 1907

8. Peter Jackson, Nottingham, July 8, 1907

9. Long Glass, Leicester, July 23, 1907

10. Marozzo, Goodwood, August 1, 1907

11. Huka, Newmarket, October 2, 1907

12. Carbide, Wolverhampton, June 9, 1908

13. Nickle Neck, Haydock Park, July 11, 1908

14. Kilcarbry, Haydock Park, July 11, 1908