CHAPTER IX 



LELAND STANFORD AND PALO ALTO 



Leland Stanford was bom m Albany County, 

 N. Y., In March, 1824, and more than once Charles 

 Backman, who was born and reared In the same 

 locality, told me of his first meeting with that gentle- 

 man. As a young man he attended a local trotting 

 meeting, and purchased his admission ticket from 

 Stanford, who was keeping close tab on the entrance 

 gate. Later both of these men became distinguished 

 breeders of the trotting horse. In California Leland 

 Stanford accumulated a fortune, was elected Gov- 

 ernor of the State, and represented the Common- 

 wealth In the United States Senate at Washington. 

 He started a breeding farm In Santa Clara County, 

 32 miles south of San Francisco, but did not achieve 

 much success until after he had paid a visit to Stony 

 Ford In 1876, and there purchased from Charles 

 Backman the bay stallion Electioneer, by Rysdyk's 

 Hambletonlan, dam Green Mountain Maid. The 

 stallion was then eight years old, and, although with- 

 out record, never having been track developed, could 

 show a 2.20 gait at the trot. He was bred to Beau- 

 tiful Bells in 1879, ^^d ^h^ produce February 27, 

 1880, was the brown filly HInda Rose. At Palo 

 Alto farm, an estate of 11,000 acres, Governor Stan- 



79 



