Louis Neilson III ’64

Paddy died Sept. 5, 2019, of cancer. He grew up near Baltimore, Md. He came to Princeton from Gilman School, where he played lacrosse and football. At Princeton he majored in politics and joined Ivy Club. He admitted in his Nassau Herald entry that his growing interest in steeplechasing “limited his on-campus activities noticeably.”

Paddy began riding at age 6, rode his first race at 14, and won Maryland’s Grand National at 15. He became one of the leading amateur steeplechase jockeys in North America, winning the Maryland Hunt Cup three times.

While he obtained a Wharton MBA and worked as a bond broker at Alex. Brown for several years, he eventually devoted all his time and energies to steeplechase riding, foxhunting, and training horses at his Rockaway Farm in Chatham, Pa., with his wife, Toinette. He chaired the Pennsylvania Hunt Cup Races for 17 years, the Plumsted Races for 11 years, and was a founding board member of the American Steeplechase Injured Jockeys’ Fund.

His National Steeplechase Association obituary stated: “While his victories are inscribed in the sport’s history, it was Paddy the caring and thoughtful person who will be remembered by a wide circle of friends, many from the racing world.”

The class extends its condolences to his wife, Toinette; their family; and to Jay Griswold, Paddy’s Princeton roommate, fellow rider, and close friend for 70 years.