Photo: Snowman (left picture, left horse) and deLeyer as a child (right)
(Credit – Celebrate St. James Facebook)
There is a somewhat common misconception that local history is an insular representation of an insular community. However, local history often has more reach than would ordinarily meet the eye. The Messenger recently had a unique opportunity to learn of the worldwide recognition that generated from a farm in St. James.
The world of show horses is one that has been extant for hundreds of years. Jumping, racing, and other forms of agility are frequently on display, courtesy of faithful steeds and prized companions, that generate international interest and prestige.
Snowman was a world-renowned show horse whose chance encounter with a St. James immigrant saved him from a trip to the slaughterhouse, resulting in the distinction of U.S. Equestrian Federation Horse of the Year in 1958, the 1958 Professional Horseman’s Association Champion, the 1958 Champion of Madison Square Garden’s Diamond Jubilee, and the 1958, 1959 United States Open Jumper Champion.
“My parents got Snowman at an auction in New Holland, Pennsylvania,” Anna Marie deLeyer told The Messenger. deLeyer is the daughter of the late Harry deLeyer, who purchased Snowman in February 1956.
“On the way to the auction, they got a flat tire, and by the time they got there, the auction was mostly over and the rest of the horses were on their way to the glue factory,” said deLeyer. “After being late from the flat tire and paying for repairs, my parents had about $80. One horse caught my father’s eye and there was almost an immediate connection. My father noticed he looked like an Amish plow horse with strong legs. My parents asked if the auctioneers could drop him off in St. James.” deLeyer says that when the horse arrived home, her siblings remarked on his sterling white color and called him “Snowman.”
“My parents were immigrants from Holland and had come to St. James to work at the Knox School,” said deLeyer. “They would pass the farm up on Moriches Road and Edgewood Avenue near Route 347 and always wanted to buy, and one day, they did.”
deLeyer fondly remembers accompanying Snowman and her father to races and cheering them on.
“He was a real family horse. We used to take him swimming at Long Beach,” said deLeyer, mentioning that water is good for a horse’s legs. “We would swim from one side to the other and my father would whistle and we would all run back in, including Snowman.”
The deLeyer farm is now owned by a corporation, but the farm is called Hollandia. deLeyer still lives near the property and overlooks her old family farm in the mornings with her cup of coffee.
Snowman would appear in numerous news publications, including The New York Times, and even on television, including the game show “To Tell the Truth” and “The Tonight Show,” where Johnny Carson sat on Snowman’s back. Snowman even had a book written about him, the 2011 New York Times best-seller, The Eighty-Dollar Champion.
Snowman passed away in the fall of 1974 at the age twenty-six.
A chance encounter that almost didn’t occur because of the inconvenience of a flat tire ended up spawning a world-renown horse, a beloved family pet, and a story that makes our Town’s history as sentimental as it gets.