William Blackler

[1] Blackler was in March 1851 barman at the Old Spot Hotel in Gawler, and that same year joined the gold rush for Bendigo, where he was fortunate, returning to Adelaide a wealthy man.

As a young man, Blackler developed a love of steeplechase riding, taking great delight in tackling fences and water jumps.

In 1869 he imported the first pack of hounds into the Colony, purchased in England by his brother Richard,[1] signalling the formation of the Adelaide Hunt Club.

The Council had the right, by Act of Parliament, to specify in the lease under what conditions persons could be admitted, but had failed to do so, and this was the point that brought Blackler and Ferry undone.

[6] In April 1874 Blackler left by the steamship Nubia for England, where he purchased the noted stallions Countryman, Winterlake, and Sir Edmund, and the brood mare Bridal Wreath,[7] the foundation of his Fulham Stud.

He made another trip in 1876 and brought back a dozen fine brood mares, among them Instep, whose progeny won practically every major race in Australia.

Countryman, sire of 1882 Melbourne Cup winner The Assyrian, died in September 1882 while still young, and Winterlake had to be destroyed after a serious accident, two serious blows to his ambitions.

Blackler sold him as a two-year-old to Gabriel Bennett, who passed him on to Ferry, and later did stud duty for H. B. Hughes at Booyoolee Station, near Gladstone.

[10] With the death of Countryman, Blackler looked around for a replacement and settled on Eli Jellett's Richmond, paying for the stallion 1,000[1] or 1,200[11] guineas, and the pick of his first batch of foals.

A year later, at his instigation, an Adelaide Tattersalls Club was formed, with H. Cohen appointed secretary, and he provided rooms at "The Globe" for their activities, open 7–11pm.

He had, for no obvious reasons apart from grandiosity and the desire to upstage the S.A.J.C., invested twice as much on improvements as the Council conditions had stipulated, notably on the grandstand, which was better appointed than that at Flemington.

Ferry turned to a nearby sportsman, and gave him specific instructions as to how White's Rooms should be secured for the prize fight: Blackler stormed off, fuming.

to form a renewed Adelaide Racing Club with an additional 250 members, with the Victuallers' committee augmented by W. Robertson, John Pile, S. R. Wilson, and R. C.

His remains were buried at the West Terrace Cemetery, attended by a great number of mourners and well-wishers from the racing fraternity,[1] in stark contrast to that accorded his almost exact contemporary, Dr. Robert Peel.