Mid-Atlantic horsemen William Hicks dies

William H. “Billy” Hicks, a longtime trainer on the mid-Atlantic circuit who was also the owner of Hicks Feed Company, died on May 31 at Parkview Nursing and Rehab Center in Greenville, Del., according to one of his sons, Billy Hicks Jr. Hicks was 78 and died of natural causes, his son said.

Hicks trained in Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania throughout most of the 1960s and 1990s. A second-generation horsemen, he also conducted breaking and training operations at a farm in Maryland, operated a horse transportation company, and took over for his father in operating Hicks Feed Co., which supplies food for horse operations throughout the mid-Atlantic, his son said.

Survivors include Billy Hicks Jr., who is on the gate crew at Gulfstream Park, and two other sons, Bobby and Charles. In lieu of flowers, the family requests contributions to Parkview Nursing and Rehab Center, 2801 W. 6th Street, Greenville, Del., 19805.