Benjamin Franklin White

Ben White (February 5, 1873 – May 20, 1958) was a Canadian-born harness racing driver and horse trainer.

Early life and education Benjamin Franklin White was born on February 5, 1873, in Whitevale, Ontario, Canada.

Village Farm White became employed as a horse groom at Cicero J. Hamlin's Village Farm in East Aurora, New York, beginning in 1893. At Village Farm, he worked under head trainer Edward Geers, serving as his assistant. He took up the sport of harness racing as his career at 21 years old.

Seymour Knox Stables When Village Farm closed, he was engaged by Seymour H. Knox to train a large portion of the string which Knox had purchased from C. J. Hamlin. As driver for the late S. H. Knox, he piloted several well-known horses of the Ideal Stock Farm, including the pacers Ess H. Kay and The Abbe, as well as Lord Oliver, Spring Maid, and Prince Ingomar. After Knox passed away in 1914, White opened his own public stable. He campaigned the filly Volga for the Pastime Stable, and guided her to win the 1915 Kentucky Futurity for two-year-old trotters. Following his campaign with the filly, the Pastime syndicate engaged him for the upcoming 1916 season when Andrews was unable to return to his regular role. The East Aurora trainer officially signed a contract to train and drive for the Pastime Stable of Cleveland in November 1915. He established his winter training base in Orlando, Florida, in 1920. White debuted his string of Florida-trained colts on the racing circuit in 1922. Jane Revere led his juvenile campaign, while Lee Axworthy was his top three-year-old.

In 1923, he campaigned Mr. McElwyn on the northern racing circuit as a two-year-old. Under his direction, the horse set world records as a two-year-old (2:04), three-year-old (1:59¾), and four-year-old (1:59½) trotter. He drove Ruth M. Chenault to her 10th-successive victory in the $8,000 May Day Stake during the Grand Circuit meeting at Lexington on October 6, 1926. Later that day, he was involved in a racing wreck with Walter Cox while driving Poppy during the second heat of the Ashland Stake. He was knocked unconscious and taken to a hospital with an injured leg. White recorded his first victory following the accident on November 20, 1926, when he drove Hurry Up to a straight-heat win in the Geer's Memorial Stake. Following Ed Geers' death in 1925, White became regarded as the dean of the Grand Circuit drivers in the 1926 season. White was among the drivers in the first ever Hambletonian Stakes in 1926, placing third with Charm behind the winning Guy McKinney. Marvin Childs handled the driving assignment after White had already been engaged to drive Ruth M. Chenault.

Reynolds Stables By the late 1920s, the horseman had become associated with William Neal Reynolds, a Winston-Salem tobacco magnate who purchased the Seminole Racing Club in Florida in 1928. He began training and racing the majority of Reynolds' horses. White also bred and sold successful young trotters, including the 2-year-old gelding Hoyle, which he sold to Reynolds in 1930.

White developed three leading two-year-olds in 1929 from Mr. McElwyn's first crop of foals, including Main McElwyn, Pola McElwyn, and Jessamine. Main McElwyn emerged as the standout, securing champion honors with a 2:02¼ mile at Lexington.

Hambletonian Stakes White captured his first Hambletonian Stakes at age 60 in 1933. He piloted the W. N. Reynolds-owned filly Mary Reynolds to victory in the seventh renewal of the event. Years later, he drove Rosalind to victory in the 1936 Hambletonian Stakes. He bred the filly by Scotland-Alma Lee and gave her to his critically ill son, Gibson, as a yearling. White won another Hambletonian in 1943 with Volo Song, achieving back-to-back titles. The 70-year-old took a winner's share of $23,263.92. His final, 19th appearance in the Hambletonian came in 1949. joining Billy Haughton and Stanley Dancer.

White's contributions to harness racing were recognized by his election to the Hall of Fame of the Trotter in 1958. His legacy was further honored with induction into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 1977.