By Mitzi Oxford
Two brothers walk into a barn in Homer, Louisiana. Read that again. This is not one of those “bar jokes” but part of the story of John and Darden Gladney. When you grow up in a family with seven children, a sense of humor is essential. They have that, plus a strong loyalty to faith, family and horses.
Nestled in the rolling hills of North Central Louisiana, Historic Homer is the seat of Claiborne Parish. Famous for its 1861 antebellum courthouse and Nationally Registered Historic District. The Gladney family has made an indelible mark in making and preserving that history.
Their grandfather, Dr. James Frank Gladney Sr., and their father, Dr. James Frank Gladney Jr., were both general practitioners and surgeons.
“Our grandfather drove a buggy, or if the roads were too bad, rode a horse to practice medicine. He had given his children a pony wagon as a Christmas gift. We drove a mother / daughter team of Shetland ponies to that same wagon just as our father and his siblings had done a generation earlier.”
Another cherished memory that John shared was that Louisiana State University had an experimental station adjoining the Gladney farm. It had miles of unpaved roads with minimal vehicle traffic, making for an ideal location to ride when they were kids.
“Even though Darden is younger than me, when we were boys, and my horse wouldn’t cross a creek, he would come to lead me across the water. That’s what brothers are for.”
As the second son and fifth child in the Gladney family, Darden was always a little more independent. “Our family was adding an addition to our house, plus we had just gotten a new pony. At breakfast one morning, I said I didn’t want to go to kindergarten, which was not mandatory in 1959. So, my mother let me stay home. It worried John at the time because he thought I would never learn to read. Each afternoon when he came home from a hard day’s work in the second grade, I would tell him what the carpenters and I had done that morning and where I had ridden my pony in the afternoon,” related Darden.
The Gladneys are Scots-Irish or Ulster Scots. Their ancestors landed in Winnsboro, South Carolina, which is in Fairfield County. From there, they migrated to Georgia and on to Louisiana. This heritage and their strong bond to the Presbyterian Church led to their first Tennessee Walking Horse.
“Our church called a new minister, Dr. Lloyd O’Neill. He came to us from Columbia, Tennessee. He brought his Tennessee Walking Horse mare with him, which he kept at my grandfather‘s farm. That introduction to the breed and with Dr. O’Neill‘s connections, we were able to purchase our first Tennessee Walker, Hutton‘s Red Lady. She was bred in Bell Buckle and came to Louisiana on the train.”
John followed in his grandfather and father's footsteps and became a thoracic surgeon. He practiced medicine for 33 years. Meanwhile, Darden was a teacher and school administrator serving his last 25 years as Head of School at Glenbrook School in Minden, Louisiana. John retired in 2013, and Darden in 2025.
“All in” for the Tennessee Walking Horse
The experience of their first Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration is something neither John nor Darden will ever forget. The year was 1964.
“We sat in the grandstands. We each had $.50 to spend, but we felt rich because the experience was so exciting. Two of the highlights for us were seeing Joe Webb win the World Grand Championship with Perfection’s Carbon Copy and seeing Triple Threat in that big ring,” John remembers. They would later buy a subscription to the Voice Magazine and read it over and over again.
Their first really winning horse was Black An Blacker. He was 10 years old and was shown extensively, maybe 27 or 28 shows a year. In those days, the Gladneys showed in Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama and Oklahoma, as well as in Tennessee.
Darden worked their horses at Gladney Farms and was groom and even a farrier in an emergency. John would ride as his schedule permitted and make as many shows as possible. John and Darden both showed their horses and sometimes traded off who would show which horse next. They were also joined by Darden’s daughter, Elizabeth, who showed as well.
John went on to say that he enjoyed driving to all the shows. “It was worth every mile. I got so excited when we won a good ribbon.”
According to Darden, “Showing horses is more than a hobby; it is a passion. Being an amateur means you do it for the love of the sport.”
At one of their first shows, Darden’s eight-year-old daughter said,” Our goal should be that we look like we know what we are doing and try not to humiliate ourselves.” Wonder where that came from? Sometimes family wisdom and humor come full circle.
On to the winner’s circle
Our first win in Tennessee was on Friday the 13th of August in 1999, when Serious Threat won the International Amateur Park Pleasure Canter Grand Championship. As they progressed in the show ring and because of their friendship with legendary trainer, Wink Groover, the Gladney brothers continued to invest in better horses.
The first horse Wink recommended that the brothers purchase also became their first World Champion in the amateur-owned and trained Park Pleasure division, It’ Up In Arms. “Big Mike” went on to win that title four times.
Wink later thought that Tijuana Tex would be a good match. The brothers bought Tex from Wink and Nancy. With John and Darden sharing rides, he went on to win eight world champion titles, two reserve world grand champion titles and was the 2009 Amateur Park Pleasure World Grand Champion.
Wink also recommended another future winner, José‘s No Counting Me Out. Both brothers won world championships with him in 2010 as a three-year-old. He was also named the Park Pleasure World Grand Champion that year at the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration. He returned in 2011 to win the Four & Under Western class at the Celebration.
John continued to show both Tex and No Counting Me Out. Tex was still showing at the age of 22 and No Counting Me Out was shown by John at the age of 18 last summer to a nice reserve finish at the West Tennessee Strawberry Festival show.
In addition to their pleasure horses, John and Darden have each won world championships in the performance division. John with Gin In Everything in the park performance division and Darden with Hello, Hello in the amateur show pleasure division.
Other champions in the Gladney brothers lineup include I Am To Be Feared, The Black Swan, Paper Thin, Big Time Charlie, Light Em Up, Moonshine At Midnight, Who’s Your Daddy, Cash Doctor, I Am Sam Jose, I Am Limitless, and Jimmer’s Angel.
Aside from Wink Groover, the Gladneys consider themselves fortunate to have worked with some other great trainers, including John Feltner, Bobby and BJ Richards, Dale, Josh and Jonathon Watts, as well as Patrick Thomas and Howard Hamilton. They hope to be in the winner’s circle in the near future with their newest edition, I Am Your Daddy, trained by Laurie Toone.
Learning moments
“As our parents grew older, we would show them the videos from the horse shows the next day, which they loved,” said John.
Those memories were helpful to John as a doctor, making him more aware of his medical partners and the importance of time with their families. “I learned to be more strategic with my medical practice so that I could devote time to riding and showing.”
Those lessons resonate a bit differently for Darden. Due to a cancer diagnosis and subsequent radiation, chemotherapy and surgeries, Darden has not shown or ridden as much for the last four years. He has been able to ride in several shows each year, always including the Celebration.
Darden added, “I would have never signed up for this journey, but it has been the most humbling experience of my life. I am fortunate to be treated by a world-class medical team, and I have the strong support of a loving family and friends. Learning that not only your friends, but the friends of your friends are praying for you is very meaningful. My horse show friends, whom I have known and competed with over these years, have been front and center with their prayers.”
It’s a wonderful life
Love is powerful, whether it comes from your brother, your friends or your competitors. Some years in the show ring were described by Darden as being like a Disney movie.
John says, “I’ve learned so much from practicing medicine, my brother and the horse business. It’s been a wonderful life.”
With the retirement of both brothers, their contributions to the Tennessee Walking Horse will continue to grow.
Winston Churchill once said, “No hour is wasted if spent in the saddle.”
Watch for John and Darden Gladney to be back in the saddle at a horse show near you.