Copied from PA-2844-29. John Eric Longden (February 14, 1907 - February 14, 2003) was an American Hall of Fame jockey. He was born in Wakefield, Yorkshire, England but his father wanted to build a better life for his family so in 1909 emigrated to Canada, settling in Taber, Alberta. John (Johnny) left Canada in 1927 to seek opportunities as a jockey in California's burgeoning racing scene. Based at Santa Anita Park, by 1956 he had become thoroughbred racing's winningest rider, breaking the record of 4,870 wins set by British jockey Sir Gordon Richards (1904-1988). During his illustrious career, Longden, who was called 'The Pumper' by his fellow jockeys because of his riding style, rode many of the great thoroughbreds of the day and in 1943 he captured the elusive United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing winning the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes aboard Count Fleet. In 1958, Longden was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame and retired the following year as the jockey with the most wins in racing history with 6,032 victories from his 32,413 mounts. Johnny Longden operated a racing stable under the name Alberta Ranches Ltd. in partnership with longtime friend, Max Bell. Longden was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame on its formation in 1976.