Allan Herd, a young man growing up in Grovetown, Marlborough, showed in his early years to have spunk, drive and ambition. He, at times, was on the wrong side of the law with several incidents of fighting and once in 1883 for taking part in a trotting match on a public road.
Showing great aptitude with riding horses, Herd became a cross-country jockey in his teens. He had developed a reputation of being able to ride any horse given to him and was said to be fair, trustworthy, fearless and plucky.
In March of 1887, Herd rode Cribbage at a race meeting in Opaki and during a preliminary canter the horse fell, taking Herd with it. This fall left him shaken and bruised.
The following week Herd came over from Blenheim to ride in the two-day Nelson race meet at Richmond Park, beginning on the 23rd of March.
He rode Freebooter on the first day with no incidents but did comment to fellow jockeys that he did not feel right, and his neck was still sore and stiff from the fall the previous week.
The second day of racing began with excitement and promise, with all expecting to experience a great day. The first race was the hurdles in which Herd was again riding Freebooter.
All was going well until a couple of jumps from the end of the race when the horse fell, dislodging Herd. He was seen to get up immediately, caught his horse and remounted, but again came off the horse and was showing signs of confusion and disorientation.
He was quickly attended to by Dr. Cressey and Pearless and was removed to the Railway Hotel. A diagnosis of a serious brain concussion was given and unfortunately Herd never regained consciousness and died in the early hours of the evening, aged just 23 years old.
An inquest was held within a few days and the correct story shed light on what actually happened. Alfred Shearsby, a fellow jockey, related that Herd had been feeling a bit off but chose to race. Shearsby was slightly ahead of Herd and felt his horse stumble a little. Robert Knigan, who was behind Herd, saw Freebooter clip the heels of Shearsby’s horse Orient. Freebooter stumbled and Herd fell off onto the back of his head. He held on to the reins and was dragged a few yards. Albert Hoskins, whom Herd was riding for, stated that Herd was still shaken by falling off but seemed okay. Hoskins, after the accident, stated that when Herd remounted the horse he was swaying in the saddle. Hoskins stopped the horse and helped Herd down, and as soon as he touched the ground he fainted.
The verdict from the inquest was given as accidental death resulting from compression of the brain and spinal cord. It is unclear as to why Herd was not taken back to his family in Grovetown but instead was buried in Richmond Cemetery. As a mark of respect, his friends and some from the racing fraternity meet to discuss the possibility of raising funds through subscriptions for a headstone and railings for his grave.
By April they had enough to go ahead, some £26, so met again to decide the design of the headstone. A handsome headstone and railings were placed on and around his grave, ensuring that his name would forever be remembered by those who lived in Richmond.
