Walter Edwards
Mr. Edwards began working at the age of twelve learning the skills of a horsemen who could perform all tasks. As a groom he not only kept the horse clean but also became aware of the signs that let him know when a horse was not well. Was the horse eating as he should, getting enough exercise, was he resting, was he injured or suffering joint pain?
In 1970 Edwards became a trainer. Conditioning horses for races at tracks in Indiana, Ohio, New Jersey, Chicago, Canada and Kentucky.
He purchased and bred horses of his own. Some of his favorites were Wolf Ganga, Raw Power Patty and Mahalia.
His wife, Jo Carolyn, of fifty plus years works right with him, going out to the Lexington Training Center stable. They have a two-year-old, three-year-old, a broodmare that is due to foal any day and Antwan, the stallion. Caring for the horses is a 24/7 responsibility. They have hired a younger man to help with the day-to-day tasks.
These days, Edwards is moving a little slower due to old injuries, but he is still very much involved with horses.
Oliver Lewis (1856 - 1924)
Mr. Lewis was born in Fayette County, Kentucky and had at least four siblings. He married Lucy Wright at Mt. Gilead Baptist Church in Lexington, Kentucky in 1881. They lived on Ballard Street and had eleven children, six of whom survived to adulthood.
H. P. McGrath employed Lewis at his McGrathiana Stables which was located where the University of Kentucky’s Coldstream Research Farm is currently.
Lewis became a successful jockey and rode Aaron Pennington to first and second place in heat races at the Kentucky Association Track. Lewis also rode Calvin to second place in the Clark Sweepstakes at Churchill Downs. These early successes prepared him for the biggest season of his career.
In 1875, at nineteen years old, Lewis rode in the very first Kentucky Derby aboard Aristides. The African American trainer Ansel Williamson trained Aristides. Aristides won by two lengths and set a new American record time for a mile-and-a-half race. Later that season, Lewis and Aristides took second place in the Belmont Stakes. Lewis never rode in the Kentucky Derby again.
Lewis died in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was survived by his siblings, wife, and children. His funeral was held in Lexington and he was buried in his family’s plot in African Cemetery Number 2.
In 2010, the city of Lexington, Kentucky built an extension to Newtown Pike and named it Oliver Lewis Way.