A local horse-drawn carriage driver has spent nearly four decades working at Chadds Ford’s Big Bend Farm, writes Jim Graham for The Hunt.
Coachman Robert Longstaff spent 38 years working with George “Frolic” Weymouth, the longtime owner of the sprawling Chadds Ford estate. The pair spent years driving coaches and competing in horse shows across the country.
Originally, Longstaff first arrived in the United States in 1980 to train and care for local horses. After a chance meeting with Weymouth, Longstaff was invited to drive at Big Bend, where he would stay for the next 40 years.
Soon, he met his wife Stephanie through Weymouth, and the pair continued to live on the farm. Weymouth drove nearly every day, and Longstaff always maintained the team and horses.
Later, in 1983, they began competing at national horse competitions. This included the 100th National Horse Show in New York City and the Devon Horse Show.
Sadly, Weymouth passed away in 2016. Afterwards, Longstaff declined an offer to be head coachman at Buckingham Palace. He decided to stay at Big Bend with the remaining horses.
Longstaff and his wife currently live in Florida, but the coachman has plans to return to the Devon Horse Show to continue his and Weymouth’s legacy of carriage driving in Chester County.
Read more about Robert Longstaff and his decades of carriage driving at Big Bend Farm in The Hunt.
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