Andrew Tilles

Cap Tilles
C. A. Tilles in St. Louis, MO
Born(1865-11-25)November 25, 1865
St. Louis, Missouri
DiedNovember 22, 1951(1951-11-22) (aged 85)
St. Louis, Missouri
Education
Occupations
Parent(s)Louis Tilles (February 13, 1829 – September 11, 1875)[2]
Rosalie Peck Tilles(1837-10 Aug 1872)[3]
Relatives

Andrew "Cap" Tilles (November 25, 1865 – November 22, 1951) was an American business magnate and philanthropist. At an early age, Tilles adopted his childhood nickname of Cap, which he used for the rest of his life.[4][5] Tilles revolutionized the United States horse racing industry. Later in life, Tilles dedicated his resources to philanthropic projects in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1896, he co-founded and actively ran an investment syndicate that dominated the US horse racing industry through World War I.[6] The investment syndicate became known in the media as the "Big Three," after its three principal partners: Louis A. Cella, Samuel W. Adler, and C. A. Tilles.[7] The syndicate was officially known as C.A.T., which was short for the Cella, Adler, and Tilles partnership.[7]

In 1905, Tilles was forced to close his race tracks, as a result of progressive politics abolishing gambling in Missouri. The closing of the tracks eventually resulted in a multimillion-dollar personal fortune for Tilles with the sale of the partnership's land holdings in St. Louis. The Delmar Race track land was particularly lucrative property for sale and development along the famed Loop of Delmar Boulevard.[8] Tilles used his fortune to expand C.A.T. across the country. By 1914, Tilles had acquired 25 horse racing tracks across the United States, the most of any investor in US history.[9] In 1901, he founded the Western Turf Association, which eventually monopolized the Midwestern and Southern track systems. By World War I, the Big Three had acquired most every major non-coastal horse race track in the heart of the country, with the exceptions of Hawthorne Race Course in Chicago and Churchill Downs.[10] As president, Tilles revolutionized the horse racing industry by introducing electricity to the game, developing the modern system of licensing book makers, and holding the first-ever recorded instance of night racing.[1]

Tilles was also associated with the cigar, real estate, stock, and brokerage businesses.[11] In 1901, C.A.T. took ownership of the Delmar Investment Company, which among its holdings included a bucket shop. In 1909, bucket shops were declared illegal by the Anti-Bucket Shop Act of Congress. In 1910, Tilles and his partners at the Delmar Investment Company were arrested in the Western Union bucket shop scandal. Federal agents raided Western Union and uncovered a secret and illegal telegraph and ticker service for bucket shops across the country. In 1911, Tilles was extradited to Washington, D.C., to stand trial for illegally operating and conspiring to operate a bucket shop in St. Louis. On October 10, 1911, the case was dismissed in favor of Tilles' acquittal after the Anti-Bucket Shop Act was declared unconstitutional by Justice Wright of the district of Columbia Supreme Court.[12][13]

In later years, Tilles turned towards philanthropy. Among his other charitable acts, Tilles initiated a million dollar foundation for the education of poor children.[14] He also funded and developed three municipal parks, which remain in use to this day: Rosalie Tilles Memorial Park, Louis Tilles Memorial Park, and Tilles City Park.

  1. ^ a b Carver 2002, p. 176.
  2. ^ Carver 2002, p. 28.
  3. ^ Carver 2002, pp. 18, 27.
  4. ^ Carver 2002, p. 171.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Tilles Foundation was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ The Bismarck Tribune. "Two Turfmen Who Recently Ran Their Race Embodied All That Fiction Writers Used in Tales", May 13, 1918, p. 6. Retrieved November 1, 2014.
  7. ^ a b St. Louis Republic. "Fair Grounds to be Sold to Syndicate", March 15, 1901, Front Page. Retrieved December 8, 2013.
  8. ^ Carver 2002, p. 181.
  9. ^ Carver 2002, p. 177.
  10. ^ The Washington Herald. "Ed Corrigan Bankrupt" Washington D.C., November 17, 1909. Retrieved December 8, 2013
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference History of Rosalie Tilles Park was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ The Washington Herald. "Daily Court Records" October 10, 1911, p. 10. Retrieved November 1, 2014.
  13. ^ The Pittsburgh Press. "Anti-Bucket Shop Law Declared Unconstitutional" March 30, 1911, p. 20. Retrieved November 2, 2014.
  14. ^ Southeast Missourian. "Gives Million to the Poor" Cape Girardeau, December 22, 1926. Retrieved January 21, 2014.