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Founded near Lexington, Kentucky, in 1880--and refounded in 1926--the Iroquois Hunt Club is a small club at the heart of the Bluegrass. Its history, however, is populated by vivid characters with strong links to some of America's most influential figures and most important movements of the last 120 years. Members participated in the Black Hills Gold Rush of the 1870s, the fight for women's right to vote in the early 1900s, Theodore Roosevelt's creation of national parks and the building of the Grand Coulee Dam. At home in the Bluegrass, they also contributed mightily to the development of modern Lexington and were key figures in founding the iconic Keeneland Racecourse and in a number of historic Thoroughbred nurseries, including Calumet and the Whitney farm. Authors Christopher and Glenye Oakford retrace the storied past of an influential group.
About the author
Christopher Oakford is a freelance writer with special interest in social history, nature, politics and sport. He grew up in England, where he worked for the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defense. A trained historian, he was responsible for helping identify the remains of fallen British soldiers from World War I and other past wars. Since moving to the U.S. in 2006, he's been a regular contributor to Covertside magazine. During her twenty-year journalism career, Glenye Oakford has covered a variety of horse sports, and her work has appeared in such publications as Daily Racing Form, the Blood-Horse, ESPN.com and the Chronicle of the Horse. She's also the author of The Home Run Horse, " an entertaining history of the quest for a life-changing champion racehorse."
