Antedating of "Hillbilly"

[Fred Shapiro]

I believe that a fair number of important words are found earliest as
names of racehorses.  "Skyscraper" is one example; "automation,"
amazingly, appears to be another.  And "hillbilly"?


hillbilly (OED 1900)

1896 _Wash. Post_ 13 Oct. 8 (ProQuest Historical Newspapers)  Events at
St. Louis ... FIFTH RACE -- For maiden two-year-olds; five furlongs.  Hill
Billy, 8 to 1, won.

Fred Shapiro


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Fred R. Shapiro                             Editor
Associate Librarian for Collections and     YALE BOOK OF QUOTATIONS
   Access and Lecturer in Legal Research     Yale University Press,
Yale Law School                             forthcoming
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