Alfred Gywnne Vanderbilt, 87, grandson of Cornelius Vanderbilt II reputed to be the richest man in the world, of Mill Neck, died on Nov. 12, 1999. He was born in London. His mother, Margaret Emerson, was from the Bromo Seltzer wealth and his father, Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt, died after giving his lifejacket to a woman on the Lusitania when the ship sank.

Mr. Vanderbilt was educated at St. Paul's School and Yale. He spent his life breeding, owning and racing horses. He ran the Pimlico Race Course and Belmont Park while he was in his twenties. He pioneered the use of the starting gate and the photo finish. He was the skipper of a PT boat and shot lions with Ernest Hemingway in Africa.

When he was 21, his mother gave him the 600-acre Sagamore Farm in Maryland. He bred horses there for the next 40 years. His line of stars began with Discovery who won six stakes races over all and sired 25 horses who won stakes. He was president of the Westchester Racing Association and served as chairman of the board of the NYRA for four years. He was chief executive of the Belmont, Aqueduct and Saratoga Racetracks. He was a member of the Jockey Club and was voted by New York's turf writers as the man who did the most for racing four times.

Mr. Vanderbilt's greatest achievement in racing was Native Dancer, whose name was one of the lineage puns for which Mr. Vanderbilt was famous. Native Dancer reigned as the champion 2-year-old colt in 1952 champion 3-year-old colt in 1953 and Horse of the Year in 1954. He went on to win the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes and six other stakes before retiring. And there was Next Move, the champion 3-year-old filly in 1950 and Bed o'Roses, the champion 2-year-old filly 1949 and the champion handcap in 1951.

In 1994, generations of Vanderbilts gathered in New York to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt, who founded the Vanderbilt fortune, great-great grandfather of Alfred Vanderbilt. Some of his famous relatives were his aunt Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, artist and founder of the Museum of Modern Art; his uncle, Cornelius Vanderbilt III, brigadier general; another aunt Gladys Moore Vanderbilt, who inherited the Breakers, the family summer cottage in Newport, RI.

Mr. Vanderbilt's courtships and marriages were regulars in the society pages. In 1938 he married Manuela Hudson. In 1946 he married Jeanne Murray and in 1957 Jean Harvey, heiress to the Harvey restaurant chain and Cudahy meat-packing empire. The marriages ended in divorce. His children from three marriages are Wendy, Heidi, Alfred Jr., Victoria and Michael. Another son, Nicholas Harvey Vanderbilt, died in 1984. His other children survive him as do seven grandchildren. Other family members include: his half-brother William Henry Vanderbilt III, governor of Rhode Island from 1938 to 1940; his younger brother, George Washington Vanderbilt III, a yachtsman and explorer; his first cousin, Gloria Vanderbilt, the daughter of another uncle, Reginald Claypool Vanderbilt and a famous clothing designer.

Mr. Vanderbilt had a wide range of artistic interests acquired through his mother's circle of artistic and theatrical friends. His own friends included George Abbot, Hal Prince and Fred Astaire.

A memorial service will be held at at later date. Contributions can be sent to the Disabled Jockey's Fund, c/o the Jockey's Guild, PO Box 250, Lexington, KY 40568, the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, PO Box 153, Albertson, NY 11507 or the Northern Museum of Racing, Union Ave., Saratoga Springs, NY 12866.

William J. Geiler, of Bayville formerly of the Bronx, died on Nov. 13, 1999. Uncle of Marjorie Burke, Audrey McCann and Madeline Smith. Arrangements were made by the McLaughlin Kramer Megiel Funeral Home, Glen Cove. Intermet Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx.

Ann Work, of Locust Valley, died on Nov. 14, 1999. Born in Scotland, she was a housewife and a member of the Daughters of Scotia. Wife of the late Fred. Mother of Margaret Troiano (Larry), Nyra Traxler (Ron) and Kenneth Work (Lou). Aunt of Diane Rigg. Sister of Bill Murdoch and Jenny Christie. Grandmother of 11. Great-grandmother of 14. Arrangements were made by the Whitting Funeral Home, Glen Head. Funeral service at Our Saviors Lutheran Church. Interment Locust Valley Cemetery. Contributions can be made to the Cancer Research Institute National Headquarters, 681 Fifth Ave., New York, NY 10022-4209.