Richard Rowett

Richard Rowett (November 17, 1830 – July 13, 1887) was a leading political figure of nineteenth-century Illinois, a famous animal breeder and an officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War.

Richard was the eighth child in a family of ten (five boys and five girls) and was christened in the Anglican parish of Saint Martin, Looe, on March 24, 1831.

He arrived in New York in July of that year, and first settled in Johnson County, Indiana but by 1854 he had moved to Carlinville, Illinois.

[2] After the war, Rowett returned to his adopted home of Carlinville, Illinois and established himself as a nationally recognized breeder of thoroughbred horses at his farm, The Meadows, one mile north of town.

The Rowett colors of orange jacket and blue cap were known across Western and Southern tracks, but his outstanding production at The Meadows was Spokane, the winner of the 1889 Kentucky Derby.