ABSTRACT
The Dawson brothers, Thomas (1809-80), Mathew (1820-98), Joseph (1825-80) and John (1827-1903) were the most successful training family in British racing. Between them they won 42 Classics, including 9 Derby victories. According to one contemporary journal, their judgement of a yearling was held in as high repute as their irreproachable taste for whisky. The brothers were four of the 17 children of racehorse trainer George Dawson and his wife Jean. All were brought up around their father’s training stable at Stamford Hall, Gullane, in East Lothian where he had moved from Bogside in Ayrshire.
