Monte Waterbury

Monte Waterbury
Monte Waterbury in 1914.
Occupation	Rope manufacturer, Polo player
Born	April 24, 1876 Westchester, New York
Died	August 28, 1920 French Lick, Indiana
Major racing wins, honours and awards
Major racing wins
International Polo Cup (1909, 1911, 1913)
Honours
The Monty Waterbury Cup is named in his honor. Inducted into the Museum of Polo and Hall of Fame (1993)
Significant horses
Strawberry

James Montaudevert "Monte" Waterbury, Jr. (April 24, 1876 - August 28, 1920) was an American businessman and a 10-goal polo handicap player. His family owned a wire and manila rope manufacturing business in New York, and he was a member of the Meadowbrook Polo Club. Waterbury, together with his brother Lawrence Waterbury, Harry Payne Whitney and Devereaux Milburn were known collectively as the Big Four when they competed and won the 1909 International Polo Cup. They defeated England, which had held the cup since its inauguration in 1886.

Biography

He was born on April 24, 1876 to James Montaudevert Waterbury, Sr. and Catherine Anthony Furman in Westchester, New York.^[1] He had five brothers and two sisters, including Lawrence Waterbury II. He was educated through private tutors.^[2]

Waterbury was an active polo player in the 1890s through the 1910s. He was a member of the Meadowbrook Polo Club along with his brother Lawrence. He usually preferred to play the back position, but the team would often rotate positions as the game was being played.

Waterbury did not play polo internationally after the 1914 defeat at the International Polo Cup and only rarely pursued the sport in the United States in his later years.

Monte Waterbury died suddenly at the age of 44 on August 28, 1920 from an apparent heart attack one day after arriving at a health resort in French Lick, Indiana. He had been in poor health in the year preceding his death and it was generally accepted by his family that he had been suffering from a heart condition.^[2]

Legacy

The annual Monty Waterbury Cup at the Meadow Brook Club in Westbury, Long Island was named in his honor, with the first match occurring in 1922.^[3]

References

1. ^ "WWI enlistment slips". Ancestry Library. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "Monte Waterbury, Polo Player, Dead. Member of American Team Since 1902 Dies Suddenly at French Lick Springs. His Heart Was Affected. Played in 5 Matches Against England and Was Captain of Big Four When England Won Cup". New York Times. August 29, 1920. http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=F30B10FD3B5B11728DDDA00A94D0405B808EF1D3. Retrieved 19 September 2010. "James M. (Monte) Waterbury, Jr., who was one of the most brilliant polo players in this country, died suddenly yesterday at French Lick Springs, Ind., where he had gone for a rest." 
3. ^ "Monty Waterbury Cup". New Bridge Polo and Country Club. http://www.newbridgepolo.com/polo_waterbury.html. Retrieved 19 September 2010. "James "Monty" Waterbury was a 10-goal player, always composed, in perfect control of himself, his pony and his mallet. Few players had a shorter yet more illustrious career than him, in his day he held the distinction of being the best scorer the game had ever seen.Playing with The Wanderers, he won polo's very first U.S. Open in 1904. But he is perhaps best remembered as a member of the "Big Four", the U.S. team that won five Westchester Cup over Great Britain between 1909 and 1914. In 1920, he died of a heart attack at the age of 45. Two years later, his friends and teammates played for the first Monty Waterbury Cup, at the Meadow Brook Club, in Westbury, Long Island, were it became a perpetual challenge trophy, open to all teams." 

Persondata
Name	Waterbury, Monte
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	April 24, 1876
Place of birth	Westchester, New York
Date of death	August 28, 1920
Place of death	French Lick, Indiana