A soldier’s service, sacrifice and trotting excellence

ON ANZAC Day www.nationaltrotguide.com.au shares the story of Joseph Hillier, a Shepparton farmer who would serve Australia in the Boer War and pay a heavy price with the loss of a limb.

Despite his sacrifice that, like many of those who served beside him, would dramatically alter the course of his life, Hillier returned to Australia and would leave an extraordinary impact on Victorian trotting.

Courtesy of Noel Ridge, of Bendigo’s Victorian Harness Racing Heritage Collection, we share Hillier’s story and honour all Australians and New Zealanders who served and died in wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations.

Lest We Forget.

A SON of a pioneering farming family from Kialla East near Shepparton, Joseph Hillier enlisted for the Boer War in January 1900 aged 21.

After taking his horses to Melbourne and training at Langwarrin, Hillier joined the Third Victorian (Bushmans) Contingent destined for South East Africa. The contingent left Melbourne in March 1900 on the transport ship Euryalis.

In September 1900, Hillier was severely injured at the siege of Elands River, resulting in his losing an arm and having one leg severely stiffen.

The Siege of Elands River (250 kilometres west of Pretoria, now South Africa) was a significant military action, a 12-day siege of a supply depot on a low, unprotected hill, defended by soldiers from five of the six Australian colonies.

The following Ietter from Private Hillier to his sister published in the Euroa Standard.

Kimberley, Nov. 6th, 1900.

I am just going to try and write you a few lines. I thought you would get a letter from me, and also Captain Ham. I had a letter from him; he said he had written twice to dad, so he would give you all the facts; but if I remember rightly I told you in my first letter that it was my right arm that was injured and taken off above the elbow. The bullet went through just below the elbow. My leg is a bit stiff yet. I have only had the splints off about eight days; it is alright except for being stiff.

When expatriated to Australia after many months recuperating in England, Hillier resumed life as a farmer, using horses to work his farm and for transport into Shepparton, managing all the tasks associated with horses, including shoeing and harnessing with his one arm and stiff leg.

Hillier’s first trotting winner was Akeley (named after the family property), which won the Diamond Bracelet at Richmond in Melbourne on November 3, 1919.

Many more were to follow: Meadow Lark, Ash Ribbon, Tommy Ash, Dauntless Peter, Peters Heir and Wongas Heir among them.

Hillier was an associate of Armidale breeder Robert Simpson and Ballarat’s Eric Cochran and bred trotting stock at his property on the Broken River at Kialla East using the Simpson-bred stallion Peerless Peter and imported Simpson stallions Louis Direct and Roy Redmond.

Simpson gave Direct Heir (Louis Direct/The Heiress, 2:09.0, NZ earnings only £3,380) to Hillier as a yearling for caring for several Simpson’s mares during a drought.

Hillier educated Direct Heir and started him at several local shows before selling him to Sydney and consequently New Zealand.

The Shepparton Advertiser Sporting Supplement of Friday 2 May 1949 reported:

“Over many years the Goulburn Valley has been well to the fore with many noted trotters, but it is safe to say that this brilliant free-legged pacer Direct Heir is indeed the fastest horse ever produced in the Goulburn Valley.”

Dauntless Peter trained by Hillier, commenced as a three-year-old at the 1946 Shepparton Show Trots when successful.

Other wins included:

• Melbourne Showgrounds, 25 September 1947, 2.25 class heat,
•  Geelong 14 June 1948 Novice Hcp, 10f,
• Melbourne Showgrounds Sat 2 October 1948 Ball and Welsh Hcp heat,
• Geelong Monday 23 May 1949 , first division of Barwon Hcp (36 yds), and three races later won Corio Stakes.

New Zealand horseman Lester Maidens then leased Dauntless Peter from Hillier at the commencement of his six-year-old career (1949/50 season) on the recommendation of Vic Dullard, editor of the Trotting Record.

Dauntless Peter became the first horse in Melbourne night racing to progress from the lowest (Showgrounds maiden) to metropolitan top class in the same season.

In a period of 12 weeks, Dauntless Peter started on 11 occasions for eight consecutive wins, a second and a third for stakes of £2174.

These wins included the Durham Free-For-All on 21 January 1950, when Dauntless Peter led throughout, easily defeating some of best pacers in Australia including Miraculous, Tivoli Star, Silver Peak and Recovered.

He dragged a buckled wheel most of the way. After a furlong, the off-wheel of Maidens’ sulky was struck by Miraculous’s hoof, with the tyre blowing out. Maidens sat for 10 furlongs with his weight over the near side wheel to prevent the sulky overturning.

These performances made Dauntless Peter a leading local hope for the Inter Dominion at Ascot Vale Showgrounds in February 1950.

The 1950 Melbourne Inter Dominion series followed with Dauntless Peter entering it on the back of an eight-win sequence. He finished third in a heat on opening night, but became sore and was scratched from the remainder of the series.

Hillier was a director of the Shepparton Butter Factory from 1924-51, and was chairman of directors from 1933-51.

He was a long-serving committee member of the Goulburn Valley Trotting Club, and President in the late 1940s.

He was heavily involved in the political battles, and one of those involved in establishment of the M&CTA, which pressured the Victorian Government into passing the bill to introduce night trotting.

Hillier passed away at the residence of his sister at Grahamvale near Shepparton in 1957, aged 78.