A magical combination

 

The Melbourne Cup has been raced and won. For many - lost! Great Trip who had only won one other race in over 12 months took it out in style. Well done to the owners, trainers, mucker-outers, the Jockey and of course the horse.

Today's post is about the Jockey who not only rode the mighty Archer to victory in the first Melbourne Cup but backed up for the victory again on the same horse the following year!

JOHN CUTTS DILLON

John was born @ 1829 to Tom Dillon, a clerk, and his wife Ann nee Butler. Tragically his father died before he was born, and his mother was merely 17 years old. Ann married again in 1837 to Robert Cutts who had been sentenced to death for horse -stealing in 1825 but commuted to life originally being sent to Moreton Bay. Robert's father, William Cutts, also arrived on these shores as a convict in 1829 sentenced to 14 years for receiving stolen goods, William Cutts went on to be the licensee of the Homebush Inn and died in 1858.

John was given the second name of "Cutts" by his stepfather in honour of his father William. Besides being a Publican, William Cutts was also a horse trainer and John learnt how to work in unison with a horse at his step grandfather's instructions.

Dillon showed his horsemanship early on as he won the Queen's Plate at Flemington Racecourse in 1851 and 1852 on Cossack trained by John Tait. Tait sold his horses in 1855 and visited England to get breeding stock and then operated out of western Sydney.

John married the widow of William Cutts in 1859. Mary Bradbury had been born in Norfolk Island in 1839 and before she was 14 had married the much older William. After their marriage in Sydney, John and Mary moved to Hartly and over the years went on to have five children.

In the meantime, Etienne Livingstone De Mestre, horse breeder and trainer, went into partnership with his brother Andre and leased a section of land in the Shoalhaven area from their mother and established a horse stud, stable and racecourse. The brothers inherited the land and aimed to make it the best training and breeding establishment outside of Sydney.

Archer was bought by de Mestre and began his training near Nowra in May 1860. He was considered a large three-year old and nicknamed “The Bull”. His large frame told on his legs, and he was frequently lame. Archer was disregarded in his first races in May 1860 but later that year and in autumn 1861 he was undefeated in seven NSW races. For all his races during this time (except once), he was ridden by John Cutts.

John Cutts Dillon and Archer - Wikipedia

Frederick Standish, the Chief Commissioner of Police in Victoria and member of the Victorian Turf Club was credited with forming the idea to hold a horse race and calling it the "Melbourne Cup

The First Melbourne Cup held on Thursday 7 November 1861, consisted of a field of 17 horses, racing for the modest prize of 710 (£710) cash and a hand-beaten gold watch, winner takes all. A large crowd of 4,000 men and women watched the race.

The Cup race was eventful when one horse bolted before the start, and three of the starters fell during the race, two of which died. Archer, a Sydney "outsider" defeated the favourite, and Victorian champion, Mormon, by six lengths. Archer had been dismissed by the bookies and took money away from Melbourne, 'refuelling interstate rivalry'. The next day, Archer was raced again and won another 2-mile long-distance race, the Melbourne Town Plate.

Archer travelled to Melbourne by steamboat again the following year (1862) to run in the second Melbourne Cup, ridden once again by John Cutts. This time he won 810 gold sovereigns (£810) cash and a gold watch before a crowd of 7,000, nearly twice the size of the previous year's large crowd. He defeated a field of 20 starters by eight lengths, a record that has never been beaten, and that was not matched for over 100 years, Mormon again running second. Winning the Melbourne Cup twice in a row was not repeated until Rain Lover won in 1968 and 1969.

 Archer and John Cutts continued their winning partnership until late 1863 when Archer was injured, and subsequently scratched from the 1863 Melbourne Cup, not because of the injury he was carrying, but from the fact that due to a Public Holiday in Melbourne, his acceptance from was received too late and he was scratched on a technicality. Many owners boycotted the Cup due to the decision and the Cup that year ran with only 7 starters, the smallest number in the history of the Cup. Archer was retired to stud.

Etienne Livingstone De Mestre - Wikipedia

John Cutts retired from racing at the end of 1863 but continued to enjoy close contacts with the racing fraternity through the Half Way Hotel that he and his wife managed on Sydney Road, near Randwick Racecourse.

John 'Cutts' Dillon died, after an illness of more than 12 months, on 6 September 1872 at the age of 43. The illness had dwindled his savings leaving Mary, his wife, and five children destitute. A subscription was raised for the benefit of his family, and £130 was collected in just the first few days.

John Cutts Dillon headstone - findagrave with thanks

Archer, the horse, Cutts will forever be linked with, died at the age of 16 on 22 December 1872 after wandering into a field of green barley and feasting on the grain that gave him a fatal inflammation of the lungs.

Mary with five young children married again in 1875 to George Donnelly and bore him two children. She once again outlived a husband when George died in 1897. Mary died in 1903 and is buried in the plot next to John Cutts Dillon under the name of Mary Donnelly.

Mary Donnelly - Rookwood General Cemetery (Everlast) with thanks

They are buried in the old Anglican area of the Cemetery in Zone B Section C, plots 221 and 222 respectively.

 I have drawn on number of sources for this blog but most can be found under a Google or Trove search under the various names listed here.

As an aside, 

This blog, during its composition, became more than a two-dimensional tale and if you have any comments don’t hesitate to add them below or at the group Facebook pages which you can find from a search at

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