Behind the Gate 
     
    
   
   
    
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     ver to drive for other trainers in this area; 
     
     he might have been one of our first and 
     
     best catch—drivers. I admired him and 
     
     Francis McIsaac next to dad as top horse- 
     
     men at that time. There were other 
     
     horsemen like Emmett Bernard, Walter 
     
     Craig, Sid Stead, Buddy Campbell, etc. 
     
     that kids like me could learn from. Over 
     
     the years, many Maritime horsemen had 
     
     the potential and ability to leave this area 
     
     and succeed at the highest level else— 
     
     where but for many the move didn’t take 
     
     place because they were afraid that they 
     
     might fail." 
     
    
   
   
    
     At age 18 in Charlottetown, an enthusias— 
     
     tic, eager and talented teenager began to 
     
     operate his first stable under the supervi— 
     
     sion of his dad. At that time, Jack Brown 
     
     owned a number of horses and he want- 
     
     ed one person to look after and train 
     
     them. Wally would do the training but 
     
     Joe orJody, his brother, would do the dri— 
     
     ving when it came time to race them. 
     
     Wally explained, “They weren’t really my 
     
     own horses even though I was doing all 
     
     the work on them. Dad was overseeing 
     
     what I was doing.” Nevertheless, a 
     
     youngster received a valuable learning 
     
     experience that he would draw from in 
     
     the years to come. 
     
    
   
   
    
     The very next year in 1975, George 
     
     Murphy, a potato dealer from Augustine 
     
     Cove provided Wally a real opportunity 
     
     to operate his own stable at Saint John 
     
     Exhibition Raceway in New Brunswick. 
     
     Wally fondly remembered, “I moved to 
     
     Saint John with George Murphy’s horses 
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
     and it was really my stable; however, that 
     
     winter when Francis McIsaac was avail— 
     
     able he drove the horses, otherwise, I did 
     
     the driving. Francis had such a large sta— 
     
     ble of his own so I usually drove 
     
     Colonial Court, Oar Darling and 
     
     Generals Margaret. I also had Another 
     
     Macca and he was the best horse around 
     
     but Francis was his regular driver. I will 
     
     appreciate and never forget the opportu- 
     
     nity provided me by George Murphy 
     
     because he really got me noticed." 
     
    
   
   
    
     This horseman would return to Charlotte- 
     
     town for the 1976 season but that would 
     
     be his last year stabled at the 
     
     Charlottetown Driving Park. The follow- 
     
     ing year he returned to Saint John which 
     
     became his base of operation for a num— 
     
     ber of years until his move to Florida. 
     
     That year he still had the George Murphy 
     
     horses plus Dal/2a Butler and Best Noc 
     
     sent over by his dad. In addition, Jack 
     
     Brown sent him horses with Island 
     
     names like Keppocb, Kin/ode and Fort 
     
     Amherst. In 1976, the Wally Hennessey 
     
     Stable was regarded as one of the quality 
     
     stables in the Maritimes. 
     
    
   
   
    
     Something extremely important to Wally 
     
     Hennessey took place during his tenure 
     
     in Saint John. He met his future bride. 
     
     He met Barbie through his involvement 
     
     in harness racing. Barbie’s dad was 
     
     Doug Colwell who, at that time, was the 
     
     General Manager and Race Secretary of 
     
     the Atlantic National Exhibition in Saint 
     
     John. Barbie happened to be working in 
     
     the race office one summer. Wally 
     
    
   
   
    
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