Collection of Man o' War Photographs

Man o' War (1917-1947) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who competed from 1919 to 1920. Samuel D. Riddle, a Philadelphia sportsman, purchased the horse as a yearling from Major August Belmont. Although he raced for only two years, Man o' War achieved a remarkable record of 20 wins in 21 starts. His only loss was a second-place finish to Upset in the Sanford Memorial in 1919. His impressive showing on the race track was enough to revive a sport that had been reeling during the war years of the 1910s, making him one of the major sports stars of the era. After his racing career ended, he was retired to stud and sired a number of other racing champions. Among his offspring were such horses as Clyde Van Dusen, Battleship, Crusader, and War Admiral (1937 Triple Crown winner who lost to Seabiscuit, a grandson of Man o’ War, in a legendary match race). In all, 61 of his progeny won a total of 172 stakes races, for total winnings of over $1.7 million. Man o' War died of a heart attack in 1947, just one month after his longtime groom, Will Harbut, had himself succumbed to a heart attack.