Edward R. Bradley
(1859-1946)

Died aged c. 87

Edward R. Bradley was born December 12, 1859 in Johnston, Pennsylvania. At the age of 14, he went to Texas to be a rancher. He came to St. Augustine in 1891 and seven years later to Palm Beach. In 1898, he built the Beach Club restaurant, invested in real estate and became wealthy. He donated to St. Mary’s Hospital, St. Edward’s Catholic Church, and the West Palm Beach Public Golf Course. He promoted Palm Beach County with his associates and friends, especially those in Kentucky and New York. He served as president of the Thoroughbred Horse Association of the United States and was known as a preeminent breeder. Edward R. Bradley died in 1946.

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Colonel Edward Riley Bradley (December 12, 1859 – August 15, 1946) was an American steel mill laborer, gold miner, businessman and philanthropist. As well as a race track proprietor, he was the preeminent owner and breeder of Thoroughbred racehorses in the Southern United States during the first three decades of the 20th century. Testifying before a United States Senate committee in April 1934, Bradley identified himself as a "speculator, raiser of race horses and gambler". He appeared on the cover of Time magazine on May 7, 1934. In the year 2000, the Florida Department of State honored him as one of their Great Floridians. Born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania of Irish descent. His ancestors were from Draperstown, County Londonderry, then in Ireland. At age fourteen, Edward Bradley was working as a roller in a steel mill before heading for Texas in 1874 to work on a ranch. During the Wild West era he worked as a cowboy, a scout for General Nelson A. Miles during the Indian War campaigns and was a friend of Wyatt Earp.

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