Leslie Combs II

Leslie Combs II (1901–1990) was an American equestrian. He was the founder and owner of the Spendthrift Farm in Lexington, Kentucky.

Biography

Early life

He was born in 1901.[1] His father Daniel committed suicide when he was only fourteen years old.[1] He attended Centre College in Danville, Kentucky, where he roomed with George Swinebroad.[1]

He spent a year in Guatemala working for Herbert F. Schlubach at the South American Plantation Company and contracted malaria there.[1] Mr. Schlubach was married to his aunt , Annette Combs Schlubach. He returned to Kentucky and worked for the American Rolling Mill Company in Ashland.[1] He moved to Huntington, West Virginia and started his own business, the Combs-Ritter Insurance Company.

Horsebreeding

In 1937, he bought 127 acres in Lexington from Daniel Swigert and called it Spendthrift Farm in honor of Spendthift.[1] Together with his uncle Brownwell Combs, he owned Myrtle Charm and Myrtlewood.[1] He was also the breeder of Majestic Prince, later owned by Frank M. McMahon.[2] Later, he advised Elizabeth Arden (1884-1966) of Maine Chance Farm about which horses to purchase, including Star Pilot, Beaugay, Jet Pilot, etc.[1] He also revitalized the syndication of racehorses, buying Nashua through a syndication for US$1.25 million.[3]

Personal life

He married Dorothy Enslow, daughter of the founder of the Columbia Gas and Electric Company, in 1924.[1] He died in 1990.[4]

Bibliography

Secondary sources
  • Mary Marshall, Great Breeders and Their Methods: Leslie Combs II and Spendthrift Farm (Neenah, Wisconsin: Russell Meerdink Co., 2008, 178 pages).[5]
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References
  1. Edward L. Bowen, Legacies Of The Turf: A Century Of Great Thoroughbred Breeders, Eclipse Press, 2004, Volume 2, p. 129
  2. Thoroughbred Champions: Top 100 Racehorses of the 20th Century, Eclipse Press, 1999, p. 140
  3. Horse Racing's Top 100 Moments, Eclipse Press, 2006, p. 97
  4. NYT obituary
  5. Google Books
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