Thursday, August 11, 2011

James Hazen Hyde Driving a Four-In-Hand

A photo of James Hazen Hyde, owner of 'The Oaks' in Bay Shore driving one of his four-in-hands on his estate c. 1903. Click HERE for more on Hyde and 'The Oaks'. Photo from Country Life, 1903.

6 comments:

Doug Floor Plan said...

That is a great action shot; good find Zach.

My only other comment is that the guy in the second row blowing the bugle would be without his bugle in about two seconds if I were up there (I'm cranky that way).

Kellsboro Jack said...

I can only imagine just how fast that four-in-hand is utterly flying.

More than a bit scary to be that high up with a terrible center of gravity, little to hold on to, horses "braking" being poor, and jumping off a non-option. Perhaps the horn was to announce - "get out of the way, lads".

Although that sound likely just spurned on the team of horses to go faster.

An aside but mixing horses with North Shore name/personalities: today at Saratoga is the $70,000 Mrs. Ogden Phipps Stakes. It will be the first steeplechase stakes race for fillies and mares ever run at historic Saratoga Race Course.

The race is named in honor of Lillian Bostwick Phipps. Aside from being Pete Bostwick's sister she was a champion steeplechase owner 11 times, in 1950-51, 1954-57, 1965-67, and 1969-70.

HalfPuddingHalfSauce said...

Kellsboro Jack that was my first reaction in seeing the photo - that's not driving a four in hand that's racing one! Look at the dust. Question for you - have you heard of a vet that worked one of the polo clubs with a last name of Thompson? This would have been before the Great Depression. Person then was forced to migrate because of cutbacks to the sport. Any insight into this period?

wooded bliss said...

Beautiful shot..a real time capsule. Sportsmen. I bet he had a racecar too.

Anonymous said...

Amazing shot! Wish I was there. Horsemanship was alive and well on the south shore as well as the north.

Carey said...

I happened to find your blog when researching the Whitney Estate. I live right outside the estate for the last 35 years. As a kid we would walk down to the mansion on Halloween and the staff would let us in. We would get brown paper lunch bags of coins! We would often roam on the property where we couldn't be seen. There was an old abandoned house that used to scare us. There is a hill that can be seen off of Shelter Rock Rd that all the kids went sleigh riding on in the winter. No one ever told us to get off the property. In fact there were really no fences around parts of the property. There is large fences now to keep everyone off the property. I would love to see the inside pictures of the estate.Love your blog. Loved reading about all the Manhasset history.