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, i ; i i IwOODBURN IN CIVIL WAR TIMES! j i Lexington May Have Been Sent to Canada for Safety from Guerrillas. In hi- recent splendid historical article on the lending siren of the period 1800-1870 Mr. Walter S. Vosborgb makes an unintentional error, I think. He writes of the exceptional ailvanlaues that I. exinc, ton enjoyed at AVooilburn — all ipiite true but then uoc s on to say that limine,- the Civil War that farm was immune from altaek on aeeount of the fait that It. A. Alexander was a British subject and hi- property "safe- from -i-izure" by either Inion or Confederate force-. A- a matter of history Woodhain Pans was raided by Moshy"s guerrillas Confederates in the early spring of 1883 and a number of valuable lior-e-iiin off. principally, however, trotters. The stallion Kay Chief was killed in a running fight between the gIMllillaa and I nion force* that went in pursuit of them: while Alexanders Abdallah one of the greatest of all trotting progenitor* was ridden so hard that he died of fatigue ami exposure. Far from bring immune from attack, V 1- burn was subject to it throughout the civil War. anil owing to this fact Mr. Alexander seat many of hi- beat ii u -i s to the north out of harms way. lb- then had a brother Bring at Montconmry, 111., a little town only a eaomle of hours- ride from Chicago, and there, he seal several carloads. Others were seat to Ohio. Some of these were tr-itti- and some- runners. There i- -rill livinir. and a visitor to Chicago quite frequently. little Quul known as "Fieaihy" Holland, now well past seventy, who was an exercise boy at Woodbiirn before the. Civil War. and he has told me that Mr. Alexander -cut a carload of thoroughbreds n Canada in his BeUaads rare in order to place- them in safely. Whether Lexington stayed at Woodhorn right along or mil I am not certain. lie may have done so, a- Alexander tried go keep up hi- hreediag despite tin- war. and had he not done - would not have lo-i the horses referred to. That be Alexander was a British subject ai thi- time I am not entirely -tin-. He- was boru in 1818 and died in IM!" I" A!-1:- ulir ftmily eanu- ;o Keii"cl. siioilly af:c-r the revolution and sett 111] hi Woodford County. The graat of land to them from the Inited Stale-. Which includes the Wooilbui n trail, was issued in 17!C_. The property is still in the hands of the Alexander family, but no horses, either runners or trotter-, have been bn el there for about twenty years. I. A. Alexander. I have nei rl. wns entitled to call himself ••sir" after the death of one of the older members of the family in Scotland, but declined to do so. and I believe called himself an ft mi ill an citizen. He may or may not have- been American born. Dan Bwigeit, who wa- saperiuteadenl at Wood-barn for years, was his brother-in-law. Later Bwigeri established Elmeadarf and there bred Bal- vator. Pirenne and so many other celebrated ruii-ners. still biter Elmeadarf passed to .1. It. Haggia, aiel his esiate s r i : 1 owns, l believe-, the original track railed by that name, thoagh a nunibii of the parcels that were added lo it by .1. 1.. Haggifl have- since his death been sold. Salvator died almost on the -ami. spot where, he- was foaled, and 1 remember well going out to Blmeadocf when In Kentneky tin- tall before he died ami seeing him in tin- last stages "f decrepitude-. I have a superb protograna of him that one of our boy- look there When he was iii his prime. ■ SAI.VATOU.
