Austin Curtis was one of the most successful jockeys in the early history of the United States. He was born enslaved in Virginia, and was owned by slaver Willie Jones of Halifax, NC.

Image: There are no known verified images of Austin Curtis. This image is an artist depiction of horse racing at the Hampton Plantation in Maryland. Source: NPS/Harpers Ferry Center
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One of the most successful jockeys in the early history of our country lived in Halifax, Austin Curtis, a renowned jockey and horse trainer born into slavery in Virginia in 1760.

Horse racing was the most popular sport in early North Carolina, and prior to 1850, the Roanoke Valley was the premier location of horse breeding in the United States. Willie Jones, Austin Curtis’ enslaver, had his own horse track built behind his home in Halifax.

Curtis trained racehorses for Jones and competed as a jockey, thereby contributing significantly to Jones’s wealth. Jones profited heavily from Curtis’s equestrian skills, not only from purses, but from side bets.

Gambling land, horses, and property such as cash crops were common in early America.

The following quote is from “The Great Black Jockeys“ by Edward Hotaling: “Their relationship may have been imbalanced -- to put it mildly -- but Willie Jones, in his early thirties, and Austin Curtis, in his early teens, were the first famous manager-athlete combination in America.”
Austin Curtis’ most famous win came in 1773 in nearby Brunswick County, Virginia.

He raced Willie Jones’ horse “Paoli” against “Big Filly” to win 147,000 pounds of tobacco. Curtis won by taking his foot out of a stirrup and wiggling it, tricking the other jockey into believing he was not ready. While there is no record of what Curtis’ cut of the prize money was, it was customary to reward a winning enslaved jockey with a share of the prizes or other perks.

Curtis was a veteran of the American Revolution, though we have little details of his service. When the British occupied Halifax in May 1781 on their march to Yorktown, they stole livestock, especially horses, from Halifax citizens. Lord Cornwallis stayed at the home of Willie Jones, but he did not confiscate the horses because Curtis successfully hid and protected all horses under his care.

He married a woman named Nancy and they had eleven children. Researchers are seeking more information about Curtis’ childhood and personal life.

Willie Jones filed a petition to the NC General Assembly to emancipate Curtis on December 5, 1791, writing of Curtis, “by his attachment to his Country during the War by his fidelity to his Master (the said Willie Jones) and by his Honesty and good Behavior on all Occasions, has demonstrated that he deserves to be free."

The Assembly granted the petition and changed Curtis’ last name to “Jones.” His family later reversed their surname to Curtis.

After being emancipated, Curtis accumulated wealth and notoriety as a free man of color. He became nationally renowned as a horse breeder and trainer.

In 1832, Judge William Williams, secretary of the Nashville Jockey Club, wrote, “. . . Austin Curtis, a man of color indeed but one of judgment, skill and courteous manners.

He knew how 'to get the length into them,' or to bring out their game. Under his auspices the fame of Collector grew, and the powers of Snap Dragon were developed.”
(Collector and Snap Dragon were both racehorses bred and trained by Curtis.)

Curtis purchased freedom for several of his children before he died in 1808, and left the family well provided for. His obituary was featured in the January 5, 1809 edition of “The Raleigh Minerva" which was rare for a person of color: “DIED, On the 10th ult., at Halifax (n.c.) AUSTIN JONES, a colored man, aged about so years- well known for many years past, as keeper of race horses; in the management of which useful animals, he particularly excelled. His character was unblemished; his disposition mild and obliging- his deportment uniformly correct and complaisant- he possessed the esteem of many—the respect and confidence of all who knew him.”
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Another version of Austin Curtis's life:
Austin Curtis
Halifax, North Carolina
AUTHOR: Emily Libecap, Graduate Student Intern

Unusual Jockey Career
Willie Jones, a founding father of North Carolina and prominent stable owner, enslaved Curtis. Although Jones and his brother enslaved nearly three hundred people, he relied particularly on Curtis for his skill as a jockey.

Jones and Curtis traveled throughout the mid-Atlantic region competing in races. They were the first well-known manager-athlete combination in America.1 In 1773, Curtis became famous for dangling his foot out of a stirrup to unnerve another jockey in a quarter-mile race. His trick won him the race, and the prize of 147,000 pounds of tobacco.

Breeding Consultant
Curtis was not only a popular jockey. He was also consulted on matters of horse breeding. For example, he selected the brood mare for Marmaduke Johnson’s stables. Known as Johnson’s Medley Mare, her offspring included Reality, Bonnets o’ Blue, and Fashion. These horses influenced Thoroughbred bloodlines for decades to come.2

Freedom and Post-Revolutionary War
Curtis served in the Revolutionary War. He protected Jones’ horses from British troops raiding the Carolinas for breeding stock.3 In appreciation, Jones filed a petition on December 5, 1791 for Curtis' freedom.

Jones stated that "by his attachment to his Country during the War by his fidelity to his Master (the said Willie Jones) and by his Honesty and good Behavior on all Occasions, has demon­strated that he deserves to be free."4 His name was legally changed to Austin Curtis Jones, but he and his family reverted back to Curtis after some time.

Curtis continued working with horses and became a trainer. He owned more than three hundred acres of land.

Legacy
Sometime before his death in 1808, Curtis had purchased his son William’s freedom and ensured the freedom of at least eight of his other children too. Upon his death, Curtis’ will left three hundred acres of property to his wife and amply provided for their eleven children.

A Raleigh, North Carolina newspaper published Curtis’ obituary. It lauded not only his skills with horses but also his personal integrity. “His character was unblemished; his disposition mild and obliging—his deportment uniformly correct and complaisant—he possessed the esteem of many—the respect and confidence of all who knew him.”5

Sources
Hotaling, Edward. The Great Black Jockeys: The Lives and Times of the Men Who Dominated America’s First National Sport. Rocklin, Calif.: Forum, 1999.

Mooney, Katherine. Race Horse Men: How Slavery and Freedom Were Made at the Racetrack. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 2014.
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Source: Historic Halifax - NC State Historic Site
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Source: https://africanamericanhorsestories.org/.../austin-curtis....
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More about enslaved Black Jockey's :
https://www.washingtonpost.com/.../72549e6a-9d8e-45cb.../
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https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/232565461.pdf