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Harness horse driver and trainer Michael John "Johnny" Mullin (1885-1959) campaigned for several decades over dusty, muddy and ice-covered tracks in Canada and the United States. A native of Godrich, Ontario, Johnny won multiple victories behind Billy Bishop -- including one on ice at Toronto in 1922 -- at the peak of his career in the 1920s. On June 13, 1930, Mullin was part of a historic race at the Chatham fairgrounds. That was the night Chatham's track became the first in Canada to race under lights. Johnny sped to a track record of 2:09¾ seconds that evening before 5,000 fans. He also set a track record of 208.4 in Hagersville with Peck Abbe, according to his son, Ben, who attended his father's induction. This record still stood when the track closed. Johnny's career of racing achievement was capped by a second wave of winning performances after he relocated to Norfolk County in 1940. He and Billy Stout won the Canadian Trotting Derby in Grand Valley in the late 1940s. He displayed a lifetime of racing skill while competing at the Norfolk County Fair in 1955, to the applause of hundreds of admirers. Johnny loved children and was a soft touch for any kid who wanted to ride on his lap around the track when Johnny was exercising his horses. An avid Toronto Maple Leafs fan, he also enjoyed watching any sport his sons played. Johnny's daughter, Frances (Mullin) Deschamps, was only seven years old when her father passed away March 6, 1959. At that time Johnny was receiving both Old Age Pension cheques and Baby Bonus cheques from the government. Johnny was inducted into our
Sports Hall of Fame in 1998. ______ |
