William H. Cane

William H. Cane (August 5, 1874 – March 27, 1956) was an American harness racing executive, owner, and promoter. He was inducted into the United States Harness Racing Hall of Fame in 1958.

Early life and education William Henry Cane was born on August 5, 1874, in Jersey City, New Jersey, United States. He was the son of Catherine A. and Frederick W. Cane, who was born in Brooklyn, New York, and later settled in the construction business in New Jersey. During the 1890s, he gained his first experience in racing at the Gutenberg track in Union County.

He attended the public schools of Jersey City, later completing his education at Hasbrouck Institute. He moved with his family to Bogota, New Jersey in 1893, where his father became the first mayor of Bogota that year, serving for 15 years.

Career Business & political career Upon graduating, he entered the family construction business managed by his father and grandfather. With business offices located at 21 Park Row, it became one of the largest construction companies in New York City.

Hackensack Arena Cane took over a mortgaged garage on First Street in Hackensack, New Jersey during the early 1930s and put it into operation. The sports promoter conceived the idea from watching skaters in Central Park. He purchased the private barn established by the late J. Howard Ford at Goshen's Historic Track in December 1919. The facility, costing about $35,000, featured 10 stalls, an office, a carriage room, and staff quarters. By then, he had acquired six to eight trotters for the stable. Under the name "Good Time Stable of Goshen," he raced trotters and pacers and employed trainers. He hired C. E. Pitman to train his horses for the 1920 Grand Circuit season. In December 1921, the stable owner secured Walter R. Cox, then the highest-paid trainer in the country, to train and drive for his Good Time Stable heading into 1922. The venture developed into a successful racing and breeding enterprise for two decades.

Representing the Goshen Driving Club as an amateur, he competed at Weequahic Park in 1921, setting a 2:10 mile record with Norman Dillon and driving Northern Direct to a world record pace. At the 1923 Orange County Circuit races in Monroe, New York, he was thrown from the sulky and broke both ankles. He returned to driving 18 months later before stopping at his wife's insistence. He later bred Walter Dear, which won the 1929 Hambletonian Stakes with Walter Cox as driver. His expertise centered on the business side of horse racing and the management of racetracks. As a director of the Michigan Racing Association Inc., he helped develop a new harness racing venture in the Detroit area in 1949 and became president of the Wolverine Harness Raceway at Detroit Race Course.

Yonkers Raceway In late 1949, he relinquished his Goshen Mile Track Association license and became president of the newly formed Yonkers Trotting Association, Inc., which was granted a 62-night racing permit. Cane presided over the establishment of New York's Yonkers Raceway in 1950.

Harness racing museum Cane was among the industry leaders who organized a harness racing museum in July 1949 and was appointed one of its original trustees. His Good Time Stable building later became the Hall of Fame of the Trotter in 1951, now known as the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame.

He married Lillian Cooper of New Brighton. Lillian was the daughter of the distinguished Cooper family of Staten Island. He was interred at Brookside Cemetery in Englewood, New Jersey. At his Goshen home, he kept a room solely for the trophies won by Good Time.

He became a recipient of the United States Harness Writers Association Proximity Award in 1953.

The William H. Cane Futurity, now known as the Cane Pace, was named in his honor at Yonkers Raceway in 1955. He was posthumously elected to the Hall of Fame of the Trotter in 1958.