Accomplished horseman, steeplechase jockey and Thoroughbred trainer and breeder William Raymond Smith died Oct. 22 at his home in Dillsburg, Pa. He was 76.
Dr. Smith was born in Bowling Green, Ky., and was the son of William Raymond and Rosevelta Biggerstaff Smith. An intellectual historian, he received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English literature along with a PhD in history of culture from the University of Chicago.
Dr. Smith was a professor emeritus of history and philosophy at the University of Pittsburgh (Pa.), where he taught for 27 years, as well as Fulbright professor at the University of Utrecht (the Netherlands). He published two books and more than 100 articles in his academic career.
Dr. Smith served in the U.S. Army as a radio operator stationed in Germany from 1955 to 1957.
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A passionate horseman, Dr. Smith rode the winner of the 1983 Genesee Valley Hunt Cup (N.Y.) and trained the 1985 winner of the Middleburg Hunt Cup (Va.) and the Genesee Valley Hunt Cup. He also spent time breeding and training flat track horses. He was an honorary whipper-in for the Rolling Rock Hunt (Pa.) for seven seasons and was a member of the Hidden Meadows Beagles Club in Gettysburg, Pa.
Dr. Smith is survived by two daughters, Dana Henning and Lauren Imgrund, four grandchildren, and his sister, Velta Rose Smith.
Memorial contributions may be made to The Masters of Foxhounds Educational Foundation, C. Martin Wood, Chairman, P.O. Box 363, Millwood, VA 22646 or The American Farmland Trust, 1200 18th St., NW, Suite 800, Washington, DC 20036.
