Though much has been written about his spectacular racing career, the complete story of Secretariat’s birthplace and the Chenery family who raised and raced him has never been told…until now. And now a Chenery is telling it.
Secretariat’s Meadow – The Land, The Family, The Legend is by Kate Chenery Tweedy, daughter of Penny Chenery (Tweedy) and granddaughter of Christopher T. Chenery, who founded the Thoroughbred farm in 1936. An author and family historian, Kate Tweedy has worked on the manuscript for three years. The book, written with Leeanne Meadows Ladin, a Virginia writer, tells not only Secretariat’s story but the saga of an enduring piece of land where an “empire built on broodmares” produced an immortal son.
Secretariat’s Meadow was published in September 2010, prior to the much-anticipated release of the Disney movie Secretariat. It is now in its third printing.
Penny Chenery wrote the foreword to Secretariat’s Meadow and shared over 200 exclusive photos from her private collection for the 160-page pictorial history. Chapters describe Chris Chenery’s climb from rags to riches; the early champions of Meadow Stable such as Hill Prince and Cicada; the rescue of The Meadow by Riva Ridge; the forgotten stories of the African -American grooms who helped raise Secretariat, and much more. The narrative is enriched by Kate Tweedy’s vivid recollections of The Meadow as a child, her access to family papers and her eyewitness account of the magic and the mayhem surrounding her mother and “Big Red” during the Triple Crown races in 1973.
TO PURCHASE: Secretariat’s Meadow was published by Dementi Milestone Publishing of Virginia. A limited supply of copies personally signed by the authors is available from the publisher. Email Wayne Dementi at dementi@aol.com or call (804) 363-0160. Unsigned copies are also available.
The book is also available through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and independent bookstores. It is also available as an E-Book at these links:
Secretariat's Meadow Blog 
Can’t wait to read the book. I loved the movie and being from VA, it gave me such pride!
Hello,
My group the FED EX PILOTS’ WIVES ASSOC will host a derby/party/auction on April 30, 2011.
All proceeds to Memphis Ronald McDonald House and Fed Ex House (houses kids from St. Jude and LeBoneheur’s and their families) We need auction items! Would Kate donate a signed copy of “Secretariat’s Meadow”? Please let me know, it would make a great addition to our derby theme!! I , too, am a fellow Virginian –