Nathan Scherr

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Nathan "Reds" Scherr (born July 2, 1923 in Baltimore , Maryland ; † November 21, 2003 in Reisterstown , Maryland) was an American building contractor, football official, and owner of the racehorse Aloma's Ruler (1979-2003), the 1982 Preakness Stakes , the second race of the Triple Crown , won.

life and career

Nathan Scherr was born on July 2, 1923 to Russian immigrants in the still booming city of Baltimore, Maryland. In his childhood, Scherr, who grew up on Oswego Avenue, was nicknamed "Reds" because of his full red hair. After graduating from the Baltimore Polytechnic Institute in 1941, he made in 1946 a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Cornell University in Ithaca , New York . During the Second World War he served in the US Navy , where he was subordinate to the Seabees , the construction troops of the US Navy. As a member of the Seabees, he built airfields in the operational area of ​​the US Army in the Pacific . After graduating from college, Scherr returned to Baltimore, where he worked with a New York construction company on the construction of the Liberty Reservoir , northwest of Baltimore and not far from his hometown of Reisterstown. In 1958 he founded the Peer Construction Company , with which he built row houses , shopping centers and apartments . One of his projects included the construction of the University One Condominium , a large apartment block, on the property of the late Marie Oehl von Hattersheim Bauernschmidt (1875–1962), who was considered the city's political nuisance from the 1920s to 1950s.

He also set up Garrison Farms, where he eventually lived. After he began building there in the early 1960s, he primarily focused on maintaining Fort Garrison , which was built on this site around 1695. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1971 and has been a listed building ever since. It is considered one of only three forts approved by the Maryland General Assembly in 1692. After it was built a year later, it served as the home of six rangers who protected the surrounding settlers from Indian attacks. At the time of the takeover by Scherr, who later donated it to Baltimore County , the fort was neglected and threatened by possible destruction by bulldozers .

With the help of horse trainer John J. "Butch" Lenzini junior , Scherr acquired the then two-year-old thoroughbred stallion Aloma's Ruler , son of Iron Ruler and the mare Aloma , at an auction for $ 92,000 in 1981 ( inflation-adjusted (2019): approx. $ 260,320). Both parents had successful ancestors; including Aloma's grandfather Native Dancer . After winning the Nutley Stakes in 1981 and the Bahamas Stakes in January 1982, the horse suffered an ankle injury in February 1982, whereupon coach Lenzini said he would not want to continue using Aloma's Ruler. Nathan Scherr spoke out against Lenzini's proposal and was able to celebrate the most important victory in the horse's career shortly afterwards after winning the Withers Stakes at the Aqueduct Racetrack on May 8, 1982. A few months earlier with an ankle injury before retirement, Aloma's Ruler defeated the Preakness Stakes on May 15, 1982 with jockey Jack Kaenel, the Linkage ridden and favored by Bill Shoemaker . The prize money at this point in time was $ 350,000 (adjusted for inflation (2019): approximately $ 932,879); Aloma's Ruler's odds were 6.90 to 1 (compared to the favorite's 0.50 to 1). After finishing ninth at the Belmont Stakes in early June 1982, the stallion won the Jersey Derby in July of the same year , but suffered another ankle injury at the subsequent Travers Stakes on August 21, 1982 when he still reached second place meant the premature end of his career for him at the age of only three. He was subsequently used as a breeding stallion, with six of his 18 offspring winning horse races.

In 1984 Nathan Scherr, himself an avid sportsman, acquired the major indoor soccer league franchise Baltimore Blast , which was founded six years earlier as the Houston Summit , for a rumored transfer fee of 2.9 million US dollars ( adjusted for inflation ( 2019): approx. $ 7,179,049), a league record sum, from previous owner Bernie Rodin . During his tenure at Baltimore Blast, he helped negotiate a merger between the Major Indoor Soccer League and the North American Soccer League (NASL). About five years after his acquisition, he sold the team again; but only for less than 25% of the amount he had previously paid Rodin. The new owner was the entrepreneur Edwin "Ed" F. Hale senior , at the time the chairman of the local 1st Mariner Bank , who is still today (as of February 2016) owner of the new Baltimore Blast franchise with games in the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) is.

In 1996, at the age of 73, Scherr retired. He died on November 21, 2003, five months after his horse Aloma's Ruler died, at the age of 80, as a result of his Parkinson's disease, at the Cherrywood Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center in Reisterstown , a few kilometers north of his native Baltimore. Scherr, who was survived by a sister, a brother, a daughter, a son and seven grandchildren, was married to Annette Fisher from 1954 until her death in 1982. The philanthropist was a member of the Baltimore-based Chizuk Amuno Congregation and supported The Associated: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore and the Medical College of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia . In addition, the hobby golfer was a member of the Woodholme Country Club and the Bonnie View Country Club .

Web links

Footnotes & individual references

  1. ↑ Mrs. B. crusaded for a better Baltimore Battler: Marie Oehl von Hattersheim Bauernschmidt was a tireless critic of local politicians and an advocate for the city's schools. (English), accessed on February 16, 2016
  2. ↑ Marie Bauernschmidt's Family (English), accessed on February 16, 2016
  3. ↑ The Fort Garrison in the Baltimore County's Landmark Database , accessed February 16, 2016
  4. ↑ 1980-1992 Baltimore Blast on funwhileitlasted.net  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (English), accessed on February 16, 2016@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.funwhileitlasted.net  
  5. ↑ Baltimore Blast gets new owner , accessed February 16, 2016
personal data
SURNAME Scherr, Nathan
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Scherr, Reds
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American contractor, soccer official and racehorse owner
DATE OF BIRTH July 2, 1923
PLACE OF BIRTH Baltimore , Maryland , United States
DATE OF DEATH November 21, 2003
Place of death Reisterstown , Maryland , United States