VIC THOMPSON
TRAINER ... BUSINESSMAN and PROMOTER !
“ The Tennessee Walking Horse business is great and getting greater . 1964 will be the best year ever for the breed and the next two years will see a great change in horses , management and breeding ”. These are the words of Vic Thompson , owner of Vic Thompson Stables and principal of Stallion Stables , Incorporated of Shelbyville , Tennessee , a man who aspired to greatness in all areas of Tennessee Walking Horse activity and a man who has achieved a level of apparent success in a business steeped with traditions , established practices and associations that have bred the nation ’ s greatest pleasure and show horses . His approach to the Walking Horse business is to buy , sell and influence the handling of as many fine Tennessee Walking Horses as possible . He is perhaps one of the most influential trainers in the business but is probably best known for his personal efforts to up-grade the entire Walking Horse Kingdom . When one talks to Vic he gets the idea that this is a crusade with him . He is most emphatic in his discussion of the business , the people in it and what he feels is necessary to achieve success over a period of years .
Vic Thompson was born in Austin , Texas in 1919 , and was raised in various phases of the horse business . His father , who had a ranch , always maintained a good string of horses but it was not until 1940 that the Thompsons got interested in Walking Horses . Vic prompted his father to come to Tennessee and look over this breed and they returned to Texas with twenty-two well-bred Walking Horses . His long association with horses and other animals prompted Vic ’ s interest in
VIC THOMPSON . . . trainer , businessman and promoter of the Tennessee Walking Horse . Vic is pictured behind his desk in the office of his stable in Shelbyville , Tennessee . ( Note horseshoe on desk ) — this is a shoe removed from MISTER SENSATION after his death . It was gold plated and mounted and presented to Vic by Don Decker of Omaha , Nebraska .
becoming a veterinarian and after high school he entered Texas A and M , majoring in pre-vet studies . The war interferred with his studies and he joined the United States Air Force and remained on duty in Texas for three and one-half years . It was while in the Air Force that he met his wife , the former Mariland Goff of Kennedy , Texas .
After the war Vic went to work for Senator Jess Martin of Fort Worth , Texas as a trainer . In the course of his activities for Senator Martin he delivered three Walking Horses to Warsaw , Ind . and sold them to Mr . S . H . Arnold . A short time later he went to work for Mr . Arnold as a trainer and worked in this capacity for over a year . The first horse that Vic bought for Mr .
VIC THOMPSON STABLES - a concrete block and metal structure designed to stable 44 horses in f . ne fashion . The stable is located right off the highway and is a frequent stop fo . passing tourists .
24 VOICE of The Tennessee Walking Horse