In local foxhunting circles, Arthur Lee Kirby is legendary for his role in helping to establish the Metamora Hunt Club.
But to Jamie Prather, he was simply her grandfather.
‘He was a tough old bird,? she said. ‘He never let us ride his horses. We never got to pet the hounds.?
Prather shared a few tidbits about Kirby and some Metamora Hunt Club history during a fireside chat held Friday afternoon at the Oxford Public Library.
Born in Rectortown, Virginia in 1891, Kirby secured his first job as a huntsman in 1912.
In foxhunting, mounted riders chase wild quarry through the countryside with a pack of specially-bred-and-trained hounds. It’s the huntsman’s job to control the hounds, using vocal commands known as cheers and a special horn, and ensure they work together as a pack. The huntsman trains the hounds and takes care of the kennels.
Kirby moved to Michigan and became the huntsman for the Bloomfield Open Hunt Club in 1925. A very well-respected man, Kirby served as Bloomfield’s huntsman for decades until the club’s hunts ceased in 1965 due to encroaching development and he retired. He was well-known and sought-after for his professionalism, knowledge and skill.
Kirby took a short hiatus from Bloomfield to help establish the Metamora Hunt Club, which was organized on Jan. 6, 1928.
The club’s vast area originally encompassed approximately 15 square miles in Lapeer County’s Metamora and Dryden townships and Oakland County’s Oxford and Addison townships.
Kirby brought a pack of hounds with him along with two of his brothers, who served as whippers-in. They’re main job was to assist the huntsman in controlling the hounds and keeping them together as a pack.
Kirby, who lived in Oxford for a little while, served as Metamora’s huntsman until he resigned in 1931 and returned to Bloomfield.
Welby, one of Kirby’s brothers, then took over as Metamora’s huntsman, a position he held until a heart attack required him to give up hunting in 1957. It was under Welby that ‘the greatest days of the Metamora Hunt took place,? according to a club history. The early success of the hunt was attributed to Welby’s ‘genius? for buying and breeding hounds.
Prather is proud of the pivotal role her grandfather and great uncles played in the Metamora Hunt Club’s history.
‘They were men that knew what they were doing and knew what had to be done to keep the sport going,? she said. ‘They had a tremendous love and respect for what they were doing.?
In many people’s minds, foxhunting is closely associated with wealth, power, privilege and above all, proper etiquette.
That’s why it’s so fascinating that Kirby also enjoyed another sport, an underground pastime with a seedy reputation these days.
Prather noted her grandfather was quite keen on cockfighting.
‘He was such an enigma to all of us,? she said. ‘Metamora had a lot of illegal cockfights. My grandpa would come up from Bloomfield Hills for years and years and years to go to the cockfights. That was something nobody talked about.?
Kirby also loved fishing and hunting for raccoons, but foxhunting was his passion.
Following his retirement, he still drove to the Metamora area on hunt days to observe the action from his car. It was said he had an ‘uncanny gift for knowing where the fox was going to break in view.?
Kirby passed away in November 1970. He was buried wearing his ‘pinks? (the scarlet-colored coat that serves as the foxhunting uniform) and with his hunting horn, which had 1912 stamped on it.
He would be proud to know the Metamora Hunt Club recently celebrated the 88th anniversary of its founding. ‘The hunt has continued to evolve,? Prather said. ‘It’s very much alive and happening today.?
The fox’s death is not the objective of today’s hunt, Prather explained. A successful hunt involves getting a fox ‘to go to ground,? meaning it takes shelter in an underground burrow or den.
Joe Maday, who’s served as one of the Metamora Hunt’s Masters of Foxhounds since 2007, told this reporter the club also pursues coyotes as quarry.
‘We actually chase probably more coyote now than fox,? he said. ‘Our hounds are trained to go after both.?
To learn more about the Metamora Hunt Club, visit www.metamorahunt.com
Prather encourages young people to ask their parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles questions about their family history and get them to tell all those ‘funny stories,? so they can be passed on to future generations.
‘Get somebody talking and record it. Get it in their own voice,? she said. ‘I sure wish I’d have asked some questions.?