Walnut Hall--A Vision of Success

Meg and Allen Leavitt are visionaries. Married just eight years ago, they joined together and have created one of the strongest breeding operations in place today in North America. With that early vision now a reality, Walnut Hall is the breeder on two of this season's standouts-the top freshman trotter Broadway Hall and the standout sophomore filly trotter Cameron Hall.

Both Meg and Allen were bred to be in the harness business. Allen grew up riding and showing American Saddlebreds and went on to establish the New Jersey-based highly-successful Lana Lobell Farm in the 1960s. During his tenure, Lana Lobell expanded its operation, standing some 18 stallions in three different states-including such notables as Speedy Crown, Speedy Somoli, No Nukes, and Overtrick.

Meg grew up in a harness racing family, with her mother Katherine setting the world record of 1:59.9 for a trotter and a lady amateur driver, when she guided Margaret Castleton to that historical clocking. Meg's father-Colonel H.W. Nichols-was Chairman of the Board of Tattersalls and The Red Mile, and he served on the Board of Directors of the Grand Circuit. Her great grandfather, L.V Harkness originally purchased the 400 acres of Walnut Hall way back in 1892-which later became a top breeding operation of Standardbreds-standing such notables as Peter Volo and Scotland. Her grandfather was Dr. O. F. Edwards-who purchased Guy Axworthy as a 14-year-old, and developed him into a top stallion, as he sired 12 of the first 14 Hambletonian winners.

Today, Walnut Hall manages ten stallions, playing host to five at their home base in Lexington. Those five are Cambest ($7,500 fee), Garland Lobell ($10,000 fee), Like A Prayer ($6,000), Valley Victory (private), and Victory Dream (private). Blissfull Hall stands at Nandi Farm in Pennsylvania for a fee of $6,000; while Royal Troubador stands at Indiana's Genesis Trotters for $5,000; and Striking Sahbra calls Westwind Farm home in Ontario, for a $10,000 fee. Pro Bono Best ($4,000 fee) and Conway Hall both stand at New York's Morrisville Equine Institute.

Walnut Hall has been fortunate to capitalize on the strong bloodlines it carries and holds in their over 100-year-old barns. Garland Lobell-the striking black stallion with the small star and the lone white hind ankle-has sired the winners of over $3.5 million in 2002. His sophomore son Andover Hall won the World Trotting Derby this year, while his three-year-old daughter Cameron Hall brought home a Breeders Crown Championship. Other top progeny include Angus Hall, a winner of over $830,000 and Conway Hall, voted 1997 freshman trotting colt of the year, and sire of freshmen sensations Pizza Dolce and Broadway Hall. To date his get have earned over $38 million.

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