William Joseph (“Doc”) Solomon, beloved veterinarian, farm owner and mentor to many, has passed at the age of 84.
As founder and owner of Pin Oak Lane Farm, a full-service farm and equine veterinary clinic in York County, Pennsylvania, “Doc” Solomon was responsible for helping to raise a Kentucky Derby winner, Lil. E. Tee, the supposed supporting act who took a curtain call in the 1992 running of the race after favorite Arazi flubbed his lines.
Alongside the many talented horses that “Doc” Solomon helped nurture, he inspired many young veterinarians and other young horsemen and women whose careers intersected with Pin Oak Lane Farm, according to an online obituary.
“I am who I am today in part because of Dr. Solomon,” wrote Dr. Modesty Burleson, in an online profile for the University of Pennsylvania Veterinary School, where “Doc” Solomon had also pursued his veterinary training many years prior.
“I loved helping him with the breeding work and became fascinated with everything related to breeding horses,” Burleson added. “He helped me choose Penn Vet–all the veterinarians I knew went to the School–where I then found a new community of mentors.”
“Doc” was born on January 20, 1942, the youngest of four siblings, and grew up in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, baseball and basketball his twin passions.
It was when the family moved in 1956 to Gettysburg, to a farm with a stone home that formerly served as a Civil War hospital, that “Doc” Solomon developed his deep love of the horse, helping to care for the Arabians raised at the farm.
Alongside his responsibilities at Pin Oak Lane Farm, “Doc” Solomon served on multiple state, national and international veterinary and agricultural commissions.
“Among other things, he helped draft the first zoning ordinance to protect farmland in his area and travelled to Russia as part of an agricultural delegation,” the obituary reads.
“It was impossible to go to a restaurant without someone approaching him to introduce themselves as someone who had worked for him on the farm as a teenager–Doc was always ready to give a leg up to a young person who wanted to work and had an interest in horses or farm life.
“Doc knew how to do just about everything, and he generously shared his knowledge through his leadership and through his signature 'tips,'” the obituary reads.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Friday, May 22, 2026 at 11am (viewing 10am) at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church (in the old church at the bottom of the hill) 315 N. Constitution Ave, New Freedom, PA 17349.
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