by Mary Marshall
The humble beginnings of the
Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse and the Spotted Mountain Saddle Horse
evolved alongside the rich Appalachian heritage of the people who
settled in the area. Their principle objective was to breed a
multi-purpose horse that could work the land, be ridden in style and
comfort, and serve as an important economical asset. The horses had
to be tough to survive the rugged mountain lifestyle, and versatile
enough to perform multiple tasks with a stable, and willing nature.
Descended
from the Narragansett Pacer, Spanish Jennet, and ambling Galloways
of Colonial times, the ancestors of the modern Mountain horse
navigated into the unchartered territory of a hostile new land with
the pioneers. The aforementioned breeds were well known for their
comfortable gaits and willing attitudes, which were an absolute
necessity if you spent countless hours in the saddle as your primary
mode of transportation.
As the country began to
adopt motorized transportation and the evolution of more lucrative
professions beyond the farm, the horse lost it’s position as a
staple of daily existence. In spite of the transition, early
foundation breeders and Kentuckians Sam Clemons and Junior Robinson
were determined to breed and maintain records on the Kentucky
Mountain Saddle Horse. The unique four-beat gait, gentle
temperament, and startling beauty of the Mountain Horse could have
remained hidden away in the Appalachian foothills had it not been
for the vision of these two instrumental breeders.
The cradle of the Mountain
horse was Estill County, Kentucky. During the 1890s, a family on
their way back to Virginia, made a stop in Log Lick, Kentucky, to
visit the Tuttles. The following morning the family sold the Tuttles
a colt that had been traveling alongside their mare. That stallion
became an instrumental influence in the Mountain Horse breed, and
sired two influential sons that settled in Estill and Clark Counties
in Kentucky.
The exact origins of the
Mountain horses are speculative. However, breeder Sam Tuttle
purchased a mare in 1918, Lucy, and bred her to one of the
descendants of the original stallion purchased from the family from
Virginia. The mare was eventually bred to the Hinz Stud, located at
Hinz Farm, and the resulting foal was Tobe. As history has it, Tobe
was the sire of Old Tobe, foaled in 1927. Old Tobe was a virile and
prepotent stallion who became a "breed shaper" for several Mountain
horse breeds. A foundation sire par excellence,
Old Tobe stamped his get
with his signature chocolate color and flax mane and tail. The great
stallion lived to the ripe old age of 37, and died in 1964. One of
his sons, also named Tobe, became an influential foundation sire of
the modern type.
An
important connection to the formation of the breed occurred between
Tuttle and breeder Sam Clemons. The modern foundation stallion,
Clemon’s Tim, was foaled in 1970. Sired by Tobe out of a mare listed
as Tuttle Stock, the chocolate stallion became a revered sire of
coveted Mountain horses.
A horseman named Charles
Kilburn purchased the Tobe mare Nance from Tuttle in 1958. Kilburn
became good friends with Tuttle, and went on to purchase the
stallion Major and mares Tillie, Nellie, and Bird. The influential
sire Kilburn’s Chocolate Sundown, a direct descendant of Old Tobe
and Nance, was foaled in 1970.
Tuttle, a skilled breeder
and horseman, was significantly impressed with Kilburn’s Chocolate
Sundown, nicknamed "Chocolate," and stood him at his farm. Chocolate
was bred to hundreds of good Mountain mares under Tuttle’s watchful
eye.
Kilburn said that Tuttle’s
breeding goals focused primarily on producing stock with a smooth
four-beat gait, and a shorter stride. Chocolate produced get with a
consistently short four-beat gait, and produced a variety of colors
in his offspring, including black and sorrel. Tobe became well known
for producing varying hues of chocolate with a flax mane and tail in
his offspring. Tobe’s outstanding sons include Sewell’s Sam, Maples
Squirrel, and Yankee, the last stallion that Tuttle stood at stud.
The
offspring sired by the aforementioned stallions were consistent in
type, gait, temperament, and quality. It was obvious that there was
a need for a registry to showcase the breed.
The Kentucky Mountain Saddle
Horse was as natural as breathing to Junior Robinson. His first and
foremost concern was to breed a horse known for it’s gentle
temperament and smooth, four-beat gait. Although most of the records
had been kept verbally by the Appalachian people, there was limited
written verification of pedigree. Robinson was determined that the
Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse would have a registry in order to
determine and verify parentage for the future, while selectively
breeding horses with a smooth gait and gentle temperament.
Instrumental in the
formation of several Mountain horse registries, Robinson’s concern
was that good horses under 14.2 hands tall that possessed a true
four-beat gait could also be registered alongside their taller
counterparts. The undertaking to form a registry was a monumental
task, but the Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse Registry was
inaugurated by Robinson as founder in 1989, and accepted it’s first
registered horse General Jackson, bred by Robinson and currently
owned by noted author and breeder Barbara Weatherwax. General
Jackson, standing 13.3 hands tall, was the embodiment of the ideal
Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse, and has brought Weatherwax hours of
pleasure in the saddle.
Many
horses shorter than 13.3 demonstrated the classic four-beat gait,
and conformational attributes of the breed so the KMSHA opened up a
"Class B" registry in 1992 in order to accommodate horses ranging
from 11 hands tall to 13.3 hands. The "Class A" registry consists of
horses ranging from 13.3 hands and up. Both registry classifications
require identical standards for identification.
The Kentucky Mountain Saddle
Horse has won legions of fans worldwide and continues to grow in
popularity. The KMSHA registered it’s 20,000th horse in 2007, STF
Lydia. The foundation bloodlines, so meticulously and selectively
bred, have given the world a breed renowned for kindness,
versatility, beauty, and intelligence.
Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse
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