Elizabeth Williams Berry
Mother Berry | |
---|---|
Melbourne, Australia | |
Died | Helena, Montana, US | March 26, 1969 (aged 114 years, 275 days)
Nationality |
|
Spouse |
J.B. Berry
(m. 1903; died 1927) |
Children | 1 (adopted) |
Height | 5 ft 2 in (1.57 m) |
Weight | Rode at 96 lb (44 kg) |
Career wins | c. 4200 |
Honors | |
Mother Berry Memorial Handicap, Helena Montana racetrack 1968–1976 |
Elizabeth Williams Berry (June 21, 1854 – March 26, 1969), who became known as Mother Berry some time after 1900, was an Australian-born jockey who rode in multiple nations disguised as a man, using the name Jack Williams. After moving to the United States about 1900, she married, and gained the nickname "Mother" after being granted custody of a runaway boy. She retired from jockeying to become a horse trainer. Berry and her husband settled in Helena, Montana, where, at age 111, she was declared the oldest person in Montana at the time. She lived to see women ride as licensed jockeys in 1969 and died at age 114.
Biography
Berry's family were Welsh and had settled in Australia.[1] She was born in Melbourne on 21 June 1854.[1] Berry started racing horses at age six.[2] Her father provided tutors to come to her home twice a week to provide for Berry's education.[2] Her first racing win was at age 10, when she placed first on the Moonee Valley Racecourse.[1] She started racing professionally under the name of Jack Williams when she was 13 years old.[3] In order to look the part of a boy, she wore traditional racing silks on the track, and off the track donned a Bowler derby and smoked cigars.[4] She went on to race, disguised as a man, for more than 24 years as a jockey in Australia, England, France, Italy, New Zealand and South Africa.[1][5][6] During her jockeying career, she was 5 ft 2 in (1.57 m) and weighed 96 pounds (44 kg).[5] She told the Independent-Record that she won around 4,200 races during her career.[4]
American career
Berry arrived in the United States about 1900, and initially rode races in
The Berrys moved to Helena, Montana, in 1913 and made the town their permanent residence.[1] Berry raced horses on the Montana racing circuit and named several of them after her husband.[8] Doc Berry died in 1927.[1] In Helena, Mother Berry lived in a house at the Montana State Fairgrounds until 27 April 1937, when her home was destroyed by a fire.[2] After the fire, she lived in a house on the local cemetery grounds for a few years.[2] In 1956, she moved into the Stewart Homes project in Helena, where she lived for the remainder of her life, remaining independent well after her 100th birthday.[8] In 1965, at age 111, she was declared the oldest person in Montana.[6] In 1966, she was made an honorary member of the Capital City Horse Racing Association.[9]
In February 1969, a few days before the groundbreaking ride of
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Mother Berry, Queen of the Turf, Makes First Plane Trip at 92". Montana Standard. June 25, 1946. Archived from the original on July 6, 2019. Retrieved July 6, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d "Mother Berry Who Raced Horses Across the Globe, Celebrates 97th Birthday Down at Race Track". The Independent-Record. July 1, 1951. Archived from the original on July 6, 2019. Retrieved July 6, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Olds, Virginia (June 21, 1964). "'Mother' Berry Is 110 Years Old Today, Recalls Native Australia". The Independent-Record. Archived from the original on July 8, 2019. Retrieved July 8, 2019 – via Newspapers.com. and "'Mother' Berry Will Mark 110th Birthday Today". The Independent-Record. June 21, 1964. p. 8. Archived from the original on July 8, 2019. Retrieved July 8, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Hansen, Ben (June 21, 1967). "Happy Birthday". The Independent-Record. p. 1. Archived from the original on July 8, 2019. Retrieved July 8, 2019 – via Newspapers.com. and "Happy". The Independent-Record. June 21, 1967. p. 8. Retrieved July 8, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Mother Berry, World Jockey, Celebrates 100th Birthday". Great Falls Tribune. June 22, 1954. Archived from the original on July 8, 2019. Retrieved July 8, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c Olds, Virginia (June 20, 1965). "Mother Berry Will Mark 111th Birthday Monday". The Independent-Record. Archived from the original on July 9, 2019. Retrieved July 9, 2019 – via Newspapers.com. and "Mother Berry Will Observe 111th Birthday". The Independent-Record. June 20, 1965. p. 3. Archived from the original on July 9, 2019. Retrieved July 9, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Mother Berry Dies at 114". The Independent-Record. March 26, 1969. Retrieved July 9, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Mother Berry Will Be Honored with Reception on Her 105th Birthday". The Independent-Record. June 21, 1959. Archived from the original on July 8, 2019. Retrieved July 8, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Ready for the Races". The Independent-Record. September 29, 1966. Archived from the original on July 8, 2019. Retrieved July 8, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Wall, Maryjean (February 2, 1969). "Women Raced in England as Long Ago as 1804". Lexington Herald-Leader. Archived from the original on June 12, 2019. Retrieved July 12, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Mother Berry Dies at 114". The Billings Gazette. March 27, 1969. Archived from the original on July 6, 2019. Retrieved July 6, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Services Set Friday for Mother Berry". The Independent-Record. March 27, 1969. Retrieved July 9, 2019 – via Newspapers.com. and "Services". The Independent-Record. March 27, 1969. p. 2. Retrieved July 9, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Three Feature Races This Evening". The Independent-Record. July 5, 1974. Retrieved July 12, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.