Alfred White

1862 - 1933

Alfred ‘Tiny’ White was born at Chertsey, Surrey on August 22, 1862, and became apprenticed to Mr J. Edwards at Epsom. His first mount for the stable was in 1876 on Queenio in the Denham Selling Handicap at Egham. The filly was unplaced behind Quebrada.

In 1877, Alfred was transferred to Russley trainer Robert Peck, with whom he finished his apprenticeship. However, it wasn't until the Newmarket Second October Meeting in 1881 that he rode his first winner: Lord Alington’s Gladstone in the Cesarewitch Trial Plate. Carrying 6st 3lb, the son of Lecturer won cleverly.

His second win was achieved on The Frisky Matron in the Walsall Stakes at Four Oaks Park (near Birmingham) on November 25, 1881. The race had originally resulted in a dead-heated but Alfred won the run-off.

He rode four winners in 1882. They were gained on Ramsbury in the Philips Handicap at Manchester on May 30; Miss Wardle in the Chesterfield Nursery Plate at Derby on November 16; and a double on Lord Brudenell in the Walsall Selling Plate and Salvia in the Hamilton Nursery Plate at Four Oaks Park on November 24.

For no obvious reason, his career took off in 1883 when, from 245 rides, he won a total of twenty-eight races. The Irish mare The Jilt gave him his biggest win (Liverpool Spring Cup). The Jilt carried 6st 4lb, which Alfred could then easily scale. Despite having several fancied rides, Alfred failed to score at Windsor the following week. He was also out of luck on Lord Ellesmere's Abbotsford behind Don Juan in the Cesarewitch. In the Cambridgeshire, he wore Mr Peck's jacket on Primrose - carrying 7st 12 lb the four-year-old was unbacked and unplaced behind Bendigo. Mild compensation came in the very next race, the Criterion Nursery Stakes, which Alfred won on Light Heart.

He did fairly well at the Manchester November Meeting. Riding for fellow professional jockey Charles Wood, he finished second on Trot in a large field for the Lancaster Nursery Handicap but made amends later in the week when Trot won the Copeland Nursery Handicap.

Alfred was in much demand throughout 1884. Luckless at Lincoln, his first win came at Liverpool when he piloted Pillory to victory in the Hylton Cup. Planet gave him his next victory in Nottingham’s Spring Handicap. At the Alexandra Park Second Spring Meeting he rode three winners and two seconds. He was unplaced in both the Cesarewitch (Xema) and the Cambridgeshire (The Sailor Prince). Having recorded 42 wins from 311 rides, it had been a satisfactory year.

1885 brought more rides (364) but fewer winners (39), none of which were of any particular importance.

Alfred scored his first big race victory in 1886 when riding a most artistic finish on The Sailor Prince in the Cambridgeshire to beat the formidable Fred Archer on St. Mirin by a head after being slowly away. That was the last big race Archer rode in, having starved himself to make the weight. A fortnight later he was dead, having shot himself while in a fit of depression.

Alfred came ninth in the 1886 jockeys’ table with 46 wins from 321 mounts. In 1887 he rode 33 winners from 298 rides, including Quilp in the Queen’s Vase.

The best horse he rode was Ladas which he rode as a two-year-old in 1893, winning the Coventry Stakes, the Champagne Stakes and the Middle Park Stakes on him.

After retiring from riding, he briefly trained at Bourton-on-the-Hill and later bought a small farm in Compton, Berkshire. However, reputed to be one of the richest jockeys in England when he retired, ‘Tiny’ White ran through a fortune fairly quickly and died a pauper at his home in Rous Road, Newmarket at 7 a.m. on Sunday, July 30, 1933, aged 70. He was buried at Exning, near Newmarket on August 2, 1933. He had been confined to his bed for over a week as the result of a stroke.

He had been blind for several years before his death and had racing results read to him. Apart from racing, his main interests had been billiards, pigeon-shooting and cards.

Alfred was married twice and left a grown-up family (two sons and two daughters) by his first wife. His second wife survived him.