John Albert Morris

John Albert Morris (July 29, 1836 – May 25, 1895) was an American businessman widely known as the "Lottery King" and a prominent figure in the sport of thoroughbred horse racing. A native of New Jersey, he benefited from a large inheritance and added substantially to his fortune through a majority interest in the Louisiana State Lottery Company.

Early life Morris was born in Jersey City, New Jersey, on July 29, 1836. He was the son of Francis Morris and Mary Elizabeth Valentine. As a boy, he traveled to England, under the charge of Richard Ten Broeck, when he put Prior and other horses on the English turf. Morris inherited his father's ranch in Gillespie County, Texas, from the town of Kerrville, where he established a horse breeding operation.

John Morris owned a large racing stable in the United States and another in Europe. With Leonard W. Jerome as his minority partner, in 1889 he opened Morris Park Racecourse in what was then Westchester County, New York. The racetrack hosted the Belmont Stakes from 1890 through 1904 as well as the Preakness Stakes in 1890. A few days before he died in May 1895, he leased the racecourse, with an option to purchase, to the Westchester Racing Association.

Properties At one point in time, Morris owned nine "superbly equipped establishments in America and Europe," including in New Orleans, Louisiana, Throggs Neck, New York, three properties in Boston, Massachusetts, Bar Harbor, Maine, Gillespie County, Texas, and in Hanover, Germany.

John Albert Morris suffered a stroke and died, at age 59, in 1895 while at his Texas Ranch.

At the time of his death, his wealth was estimated at between $25,000,000 and $30,000,000.

Legacy The neighborhood of Morris Park in the Bronx, New York, a large part of which covers the site of Morris Park Racecourse, is named in his memory.