James P. “Jimmy” Mills

Born in 1909, Mills was one of the bright stars during the “hey day” of polo in the 1930s. Mills led his Yale Team to Intercollegiate Indoor Championships in 1931 and ‘32. Rated 8 goals at age 25, his outdoor wins included the 1933 U.S. Open with Aurora, the Monty Waterbury Cup in both 1933 and ’36, and the Junior Championship (now known as the Silver Cup) in 1929 and ’33. And he played on the winning East team in the 1934 East West series.

He was selected as the reserve for the Cup of the Americans team for 1932 and the Westchester Cup team in 1936. In England, he won the Hurlingham Champion Cup, the Roehampton Open Cup, the Coronation Cup, and the Ranelagh Novice’s Cup.

In 1933, when he won the Monty Waterbury Cup with Aurora, they upset a squad that included Tommy Hitchcock and two members of the International Team. He further distinguished himself in the 1934 East-West matches, a shocker that saw Mills win with a young team of “kids” against the heavily favored foursome of Cecil Smith, Eric Pedley, Aiden Roarke and Elmer Boeseke.

His much celebrated career was cut short when he developed debilitating spinal arthritis at the age of 37 (1945). Forced to give up polo, he then dedicated himself to producing race horses.