Helen Baker Kelley’s love of horses began early in the 20th Century when, as a 12-year-old, she showed ‘Grey dane’ at the Carlisle (Pa.) Horse Show and won first place. At the Cumberland Fair Horse Show the same year, she rode ‘Brown Buster’ over 6-foot-2 jumps to capture top honors again. This was the beginning of a long and triumphant career.

The gift of training and showing horses was inherited by Helen from her father, Joseph D. Baker, a former sheriff of Washington County who was himself somewhat an expert in the field of horsemanship.

When Helen lived near the Hagerstown Fairgrounds as a young girls in her early teens, she would rise early many mornings and run to the track to help gallop the race horses.

As her riding and show career progressed, Helen Baker Kelley won the Maryland championship on ‘Grey Simon’ and later sold the horse to Dr. and Mrs. J. Wesley Edel of Howard County. Later, this horse was judged Champion Horse of Maryland by the Association of Maryland Horse Shows.

In 1942, Helen had a serious fall off her horse ‘Shot Gun’ and was hospitalized for six weeks at University Hospital. Determined to ride again, despite doctors’ orders, she returned to the saddle and rode ‘Shot Gun’ to first place in a local show and to top honors in the ‘Terpening Challenge,’ a 4-mile, 14-fence jump event.

A well-known horse woman over the entire East Coast horse show circuit, Helen was also director of riding at Penn Hall Girls Prep School for 18 years, starting in 1955. She directed a summer camp for young equestriennes for several years. She raised and showed ‘Triple Crown’ and later sold the horse to the Lehrims of Washington. ‘Triple Crown’ was later donated to the Olympic Equestrian Team and won every jumping stake in the world.

For 23 years prior to her induction, Helen has been breeding thoroughbreds for racing on her farm at Blarneystone, with training done by her daughter, Katy. In 1939, Helen Kelley was voted the Maryland Outdoor Girl of the Year, which was based on athletic ability, personality, poise and general excellence in all sports.

Helen’s own philosophy about training horses was seeing something worthwhile develop. There wasn’t an animal she couldn’t train: ‘All it takes is patience’ was her motto.