She may not be from Lower Gwynedd, but her home was located right next to the border of the township. Grew up on her family farm, Marjorie Haines fell in love with horseback riding as a young girl. Her passion for horses grew, and was qualified in the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki in the Equestrian event.
Early Life
Marjorie Haines (1928-2014) was born in November 18 at her family farm. She was the granddaughter of John Benezet Haines II, who was an author, philanthropist, founder and head of an advertising firm in Philadelphia, J. B. Haines Advertising Agency. Her grandfather purchased a property in Upper Gwynedd where he became a gentleman farmer.
When her grandfather died, her father, John Benezet Haines III, took over the Evergreen Farms property where Marjorie was raised on.
At the Evergreen Farms, the Haines family held annual horse shows since 1935, sponsored by her aunt Violet Haines. The show was for kids under 17 years old. Marjorie participated in the horse shows before becoming one of the show's committee members.
Fun Fact #1: It was evident that the Haines family were avid horseback riders: Marjorie's grandfather was an enthusiastic horseman; Her aunt was a riding instructor at the Evergreen Farms.
Marjorie's Cinderella Story
Marjorie was only 24 years old when she qualified for the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki. After finishing art school at the Moore College of Art, she was motivated to learn about dressage from Fritz Stecken, and took lessons from him.
Fun Fact #2: Marjorie was on a budget while training with Stecken. One of Stecken's wealthier students supported Marjorie to help her continue her training with Stecken.
Marjorie was given by Stecken a Liver Chestnut Hanoverian named the Flying Dutchman to compete in the first Olympics dressage trial on April 1, 1952 at the Sleepy Hollow Country Club. She was the only woman competing in the trial, and not everyone was enthusiastic about a woman competing.
"The dressage test was 15 minutes long and included piaffe, passage, extended and collecting walks, a figure-eight at 'counter gallop,' 'trot and gallop change of leads at every stride,' pirouettes and 'zig-zag traversale.'"
- Lisa Slade, "The Chronicle Over The Decades: 1950s"
She traveled to Germany to continue the Olympic trials. It was Marjorie's first time traveling far away from home. She even had pneumonia after arriving in Europe. Even with struggles of finance and experience, Marjorie and her Flying Dutchman were able to perform well in the Olympic trials in Germany, catching the eyes of European experts, earning her spot on the US Equestrian Team, becoming the first American woman to qualify.
The 1952 Summer Olympics
In the Equestrian event, Marjorie was one of the four women to compete. The other three were Ida von Nagel of Germany, Elsa Christophersen of Norway, and Lis Hartel of Denmark.
Fun Fact #3: Lis Hartel was paralyzed from the knee down due to polio, but that didn't stop her from winning a silver in the individual dressage event.
Marjorie competed in the dressage event, both individual and team, with Flying Dutchman. In the team event, she competed with Robert John Borg and Hartmann Heinrick Pauly.
In the individual event she was placed 17th while she was placed 6th in the team event.
To understand what dressage looks like in the Olympics, check out the link below from the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
Bibliography
"'Horseless' Youngsters To Ride At Gwynedd Valley Show." Ambler Gazette. October 8, 1942. Page 1. http://digitalcollections.powerlibrary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/wivp-gazett/id/18355/rec/1.
"John B. Haines Rites on Tuesday." Ambler Gazette. January 30, 1936. Page 6. http://digitalcollections.powerlibrary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/wivp-gazett/id/21814/rec/8.
"Marjorie Benzet Haines." Olympics. Accessed March 11, 2022. https://olympics.com/en/athletes/marjorie-benzet-haines.
Mueller, A. H. Atlas of the North Penn Section of Montgomery County, Pa., Plate 29, 1916.
Slade, Lisa. "The Chronicle Over The Decades: 1950s." The Chronicle of the Horse. Last modified May 29, 2012. https://www.chronofhorse.com/article/chronicle-over-decades-1950s.
"The 1952 Olympic Games in Helsinki: En Route to the Games." eurodressage. Last modified December 4, 2015. https://eurodressage.com/2015/12/04/1952-olympic-games-helsinki-en-route-games.
"Woman Will Ride for First Time With American Team in Olympics." New York Times. April 2, 1952. Page 46. https://www.nytimes.com/1952/04/02/archives/woman-will-ride-for-first-time-with-american-team-in-olympics.html.
Wylie, Leslie. "Horses in History: Olympic girl power." Horse Nation. Last modified April 23, 2012. https://www.horsenation.com/2012/04/23/horses-in-history-olympic-girl-power/.