FIRST FRENCH HORSES IN AMERICA 133 



bred horse got by Duke of Normandy 172 (Gray 

 Billy), imported in 1851 with Pleasant Valley Bill, 

 out of Snowdrop 607, imported into Maryland in 

 1853. 



First Direct Importation into Illinois. — It has been 

 popularly supposed that it was not until 1868 that 

 horses were imported direct from France into Illi- 

 nois, but the records show that in this year of 1866 

 Dr. A. G-. Van Hoorebeke brought the black stallion 

 Lucifer 285 to Monmouth, which advances the date 

 of direct importation into the great Prairie common- 

 wealth some two years. Indeed Dr. Van Hoorebeke 

 is to be credited with being the pioneer importer of 

 Illinois as he brought over Lucifer 285 in 1866, the 

 gray . Leon 266 in 1868, the black Norma 348 in 

 1869, and the gray Laurent 709 in 1870. Unfortu- 

 nately, Norma died the same year that he was im- 

 ported. 



Ohio Active in 1867. — Ohio importers had it all to 

 themselves in 1867, Brown, Bigelow & Co., of Co- 

 lumbus, and Wallace, Watkins & Co., and Gilmore & 

 Houser, of Marion, being the only firms recorded as 

 having engaged in the importing business that 

 season. Brown, Bigelow & Co. included in its mem- 

 bership Dr. Marcus Brown, of Circleville, importer 

 of Pleasant Valley Bill in 1851, and the late T. C. 

 Bigelow, in his time the leading team owner in the 

 Ohio capital and one of the foremost horsemen of 

 his time. It was surely the irony of fate that his 

 death should have been caused by injuries sustained 

 in an attack made upon him by one of the stallions 



