Frank Butler (jockey)

[1] Butler, whose first name was actually Francis, was born into a horse racing family; his mother, Sarah, was the daughter of jockey Samuel Chifney Sr.[2] and his father, William, was a Newmarket based training-groom who served the Duke of Richmond, Lord Lonsdale and Frederick the Duke of York.

At this age he could scale 7st 2lb (he was five feet six and a half inches tall) but in later years he struggled to make the racing weights.

[4] For several years he showed little of the promise that would eventually make him such a success, but he continued to gain experience riding trials and platers, then in the 1842 season his fortunes started to improve with 23 winners.

[7][8] Butler began to work with others in the sport including owner, Lord Orford and trainers Will Beresford and John Scott.

Less than a year later, Butler's older brother, William, married Frances Bayly's sister Anne in the same church in Boxgrove.

William Butler (1814-1874), was a Newmarket-based trainer who worked for the Duke of Bedford; he later became interested in greyhound breeding and racing.