James M. Todd, Jr.

James M. Todd, Jr. was born and raised on his father’s farm in northern Shelby County.  The Louisville Daily Journal listed James as a judge for sheep and hogs for the Fair of the Jefferson Agricultural Society in 1842.  However, like a good Shelby County boy, his real love was horses.  Todd was well known from the time he was a young man, for his breeding talents of trotting and saddle horses.  His training stables were also well regarded.  In fact, James was appointed Government Inspector of Union horses during the Civil War, from 1863-1864.  There were two primary breeds of horses ridden during the conflict, Morgan and American Saddlebreds, (also known as Kentucky Saddlers at the time.) General Robert E. Lee’s horse, “Traveller”, and General William Tecumseh Sherman’s horse, “Duke”, were both said to be Saddlebreds.  Todd had such an eye for strong mounts, that he was also charged by the federal government with the procurement of horses for the U.S. Cavalry during the Civil War.

In later years, James Todd, Jr. continued to sell saddle horses, in addition to racehorses and carriage horses all over the South, helping to make Kentucky famous for its well-bred bloodlines. He eventually retired to Shelbyville, where he had served for twenty five years as an elder of the Presbyterian Church.