{{Short description|American harness racing driver (1904–1991)}} {{Infobox horseracing personality | name =Frank Ervin | image = | caption = | image_size = | alt = | birth_name =William Frank Ervin | birth_date =August 12, 1904 | birth_place =Pekin, Illinois, U.S. | death_date =September 30, 1991 | death_place =Winter Park, Florida, U.S. | resting_place = | nickname = | occupation = {{hlist|Harness racing driver|horse trainer}} | sport=Harness racing | years_active =1920-1974 | career wins = | career winnings = | race =Little Brown Jug (1949, 1953, 1965)<br />Walnut Hall Cup (1952)<br />Transylvania Trot (1952)<br />Hambletonian Stakes (1959, 1966, 1967)<br />Messenger Stakes (1965) | horses=Bret Hanover<br />Good Time<br />Keystoner<br />Diller Hanover | honors=Missouri Sports Hall of Fame (1967) <br />United States Harness Racing Hall of Fame (1969) }}
'''Frank Ervin''' (August 12, 1904{{snd}}September 30, 1991) was an American harness racing driver and horse trainer.
==Early life and education== William Frank Ervin was born on August 12, 1904,<ref name="Harness Museum">{{cite web|title=FRANK ERVIN|website=harnessmuseum.com|url=https://harnessmuseum.com/content/frank-ervin|access-date=April 21, 2026}}</ref> in Pekin, Illinois, United States.
He came from a long line of horsemen, with his father, Frank Ervin Sr., active on the racing circuit during the late 19th century.<ref name="Internet Archive. (2016)"/> Widely regarded as one of the leading trainer-drivers of his generation, Frank's father competed in the sport from 1890 through 1928.<ref name="The Sedalia Democrat. (1951)"/> At the time of his birth in Pekin, his father was training horses for Norman Jay Colman of Missouri. When Coleman transferred his stable operations to the Missouri State Fairgrounds, the Ervin family moved to Sedalia, Missouri.<ref name="Internet Archive. (2016)">{{cite web|last=Conway|first=J. P.|title=Full text of "Who's who and where in horsedom"|website=Internet Archive|date=2016-10-23|url=https://archive.org/stream/whoswhowhereinho00rans/whoswhowhereinho00rans_djvu.txt|access-date=2026-05-24}}</ref>
He completed his formal education through the eighth grade before he dropped out of highschool and became involved in harness racing.<ref name="JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier. (1978)">{{cite news|title=Races, Ervin rained out|newspaper=JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier|date=August 3, 1978|page=15|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/82481108/?match=1&terms=Frank%20Ervin|access-date=May 24, 2026}}</ref> He worked alongside his father from an early age as a horse groom and assistant trainer until 1919 before beginning his driving career.<ref name="Internet Archive. (2016)"/>
==Career== At age 16, Ervin was entered in his first official race when his father allowed him to pilot Black Diamond in a $1,000 stake event.<ref name="The Sedalia Democrat. (1951)">{{cite news|title=Frank Ervin Back to Race His Fine Stable|newspaper=The Sedalia Democrat|date=August 20, 1951|page=4|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-sedalia-democrat-frank-ervin-back-to/198228699/|access-date=May 25, 2026}}</ref> He went on to secure his first win with Black Diamond at the Coles County Fair in Charleston, Illinois.<ref name="JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier. (1978)"/> He made four starts as a driver in 1920<ref name="JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier. (1978)"/> and ended the season undefeated.<ref name="The Sedalia Democrat. (1951)"/> His early experience was restricted to a few drives in 1921, until his father was badly injured in an Aurora racing crash in 1922, after which he began driving more regularly.<ref name="JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier. (1978)"/>
He formed his own stable in Oklahoma in 1924.<ref name="The Sedalia Democrat. (1951)"/> Ervin raced a string owned by a man named Wilson of Okmulgee on the Kansas–Oklahoma circuit.<ref name="Internet Archive. (2016)"/> Severe injuries suffered in 1927 sidelined him from racing for the next three years. During his absence from the sport, he operated a filling station and later worked as a railroad brakeman. Ervin reestablished himself as a driver in California in 1941 and quickly found success with High Volo, the year's leading money-winning horse.<ref name="The Sedalia Democrat. (1951)"/>
During the spring of 1944, Ervin joined the stable of horseman Rube Parker at North Randall after Parker became ill and was unable to train and race his horses. The stable included Adios, Scotland's Comet, and The Colonel's Lady.<ref name="Internet Archive. (2016)"/> Not long after he began, Parker died, and Ervin inherited the horses, driving them to a series of wins.<ref name="JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier. (1978)"/>
In 1949, Ervin was the leading money-winning driver on the Grand Circuit, earning $179,771 during the 27-week season. His earnings were believed to be the highest single-season total ever recorded by a driver on the Grand Circuit at that time. His success in 1949 was largely driven by the performances of the horses Good Time and Our Time, both owned by William H. Cane.<ref name="New York Times. (1949)">{{citation|title=Ervin's $179,771 Tops Harness Horse Winnings|date=1949-12-23|issn=0362-4331|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1949/12/23/archives/ervins-179771-tops-harness-horse-winnings.html|language=en-US|access-date=2026-05-24|page=26}}</ref> Ervin captured the first of his three Little Brown Jug victories in 1949 with Good Time.<ref name="Wrensch, F. A. (1951)">{{cite book|last=Wrensch|first=Frank Albert|title=Harness Horse Racing in the United States and Canada|publisher=Van Nostrand|date=1951|url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Harness_Horse_Racing_in_the_United_State/mPhUAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=frank+ervin+harness&pg=PA171&printsec=frontcover|access-date=2026-05-24|page=}}</ref> Under his direction, the horse became the first to win $50,000 during a single year of racing.<ref name="JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier. (1978)"/>
Ervin advanced to second place in the all-time standings for drivers with two-minute miles in 1954. His career total climbed to 37, surpassing Thomas W. Murphy, who had 35, while the record remained held by Sep Palin.<ref name="The Noblesville Ledger. (1954)">{{cite news|title=Frank Ervin Takes Over 2nd Ranking In 2-Minute Miles|newspaper=The Noblesville Ledger|date=November 4, 1954|page=2|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/353740342/?match=1&terms=frank%20ervin|access-date=May 24, 2026}}</ref>
In 1959, he won the 34th Hambletonian Stakes with Diller Hanover, marking the first Hambletonian victory of his career after ten previous attempts.<ref name="New York Times. (1959)">{{citation|last=Blunk|first=Frank M.|title=Diller Hanover Takes Hambletonian in Straight Heats and Earns $73,666; WINNING TROTTER HANDLED BY ERVIN Diller Hanover Triumphs at Du Quoin Despite a Lost Shoe in Second Heat|date=1959-09-03|issn=0362-4331|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1959/09/03/archives/diller-hanover-takes-hambletonian-in-straight-heats-and-earns-73666.html|language=en-US|access-date=2026-05-24|page=23}}</ref> In the race, Ervin drove as a catch-driver for Ralph Baldwin's entry, while Baldwin personally drove Tie Silk.<ref name="Hambletonian">{{cite web|last=M|first=Ryan|title=Diller Hanover|website=hambletonian.com|date=2018-12-30|url=https://www.hambletonian.com/hambletonianhistory/1959|access-date=2026-05-24}}</ref>
On the verge of retiring from harness racing, the veteran driver took charge of Bret Hanover after the colt's purchase by Richard Downing in 1963. A training drive behind the horse persuaded him to continue racing.<ref name="Time. (1965)">{{cite web|title=Harness Racing: A Bond Named Bret|website=time.com|date=1965-06-11|url=https://time.com/archive/6627561/harness-racing-a-bond-named-bret/|access-date=2026-05-24}}</ref> Ervin suffered serious injuries in 1964 after Bret Hanover became startled by a marching band during a warm-up at Lexington, Kentucky. He sustained a back injury and a detached kidney, and temporarily lost the use of his right leg. Despite doctors believing he might be permanently paralyzed, Ervin recovered and returned to racing after several weeks in a leg brace.<ref name="New York Times. (1965)">{{citation|last=Strauss|first=Michael|title=Bret Hanover Holding Up Ervin's Retirement; Undefeated Pacer, Victor in 27 Races, Keeps 60-Year-Old Driver in Harness and Undecided About Quitting|date=1965-05-30|issn=0362-4331|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1965/05/30/archives/bret-hanover-holding-up-ervins-retirement-undefeated-pacer-victor.html|language=en-US|access-date=2026-05-24|page=5}}</ref> He went on to win 35 races in a row.<ref name="JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier. (1978)"/> During the 1965 Little Brown Jug, Ervin captured both heats of the race with Bret Hanover at the Delaware County Fairgrounds.<ref name="Standardbred Canada. (2016)">{{cite web|title=SC Rewind: 1965 Little Brown Jug|website=standardbredcanada.ca|date=2016-09-17|url=https://standardbredcanada.ca/news/9-17-16/sc-rewind-1965-little-brown-jug.html|access-date=2026-05-24}}</ref> Victories in the Cane Pace and the Messenger Stakes that season made him the second driver to win the Pacing Triple Crown.<ref name="Standardbred Canada. (2023)">{{cite web|title=SC Rewind: Ralph Hanover Wins The Triple Crown|website=standardbredcanada.ca|date=2023-12-16|url=https://standardbredcanada.ca/news/12-16-23/sc-rewind-ralph-hanover-wins-triple-crown.html|access-date=2026-05-24}}</ref>
He drove Kerry Way to win the 1966 Hambletonian trotting title.<ref name="Hambletonian. (2019)">{{cite web|last=M|first=Ryan|title=Kerry Way|website=Hambletonian Society Inc|date=2019-03-25|url=https://www.hambletonian.com/hambletonianhistory/1966|access-date=2026-05-24}}</ref> The performance established a Hambletonian record for fillies and made Ervin the first driver in harness racing history to record 100 two-minute miles.<ref name="Sports Illustrated. (1966)">{{cite web|title=Full text of "Sports Illustrated 1966: Vol 24 Index"|website=Internet Archive|date=2016-10-23|url=https://archive.org/stream/sim_sports-illustrated_1966_24_index/sim_sports-illustrated_1966_24_index_djvu.txt|access-date=2026-05-24}}</ref> Although hospitalized at the time, Ervin trained Speedy Streak, winner of the 1967 Hambletonian.<ref name="JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier. (1978)"/>
==Death== Frank Ervin died on September 30, 1991, in Winter Park, Florida, United States.<ref name="Harness Museum"/>
==Legacy== Ervin won the Little Brown Jug three times as a driver and a trainer, in 1949, 1953, and 1965, and in 1965 became the oldest winning driver in the race's history at age 61 years, 1 month, and 11 days.<ref name="Little Brown Jug. (2022)">{{cite web|title=Little Brown Jug Records|url=https://www.littlebrownjug.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Little-Brown-Jug-Records-2022.pdf|access-date=2026-05-24}}</ref>
With victories in the Hambletonian Stakes in 1966 and 1967, he joined a select group of trainers who won the event in back-to-back years.<ref name="Play Meadowlands. (2021)">{{cite web|title=90th Hambletonian A Taktertonian|url=https://playmeadowlands.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/2015_Pinkman.pdf|access-date=2026-05-24}}</ref>
He was inducted into the United States Harness Racing Hall of Fame in 1969.<ref name="Harness Museum"/>
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ervin, Frank}} Category:1904 births Category:1991 deaths Category:People from Pekin, Illinois Category:American harness racing drivers Category:American horse trainers Category:United States Harness Racing Hall of Fame inductees