Morgan Horse

History: The Morgan Horse, which is the first American breed to be documented, has an impressive and interesting history.



The first Morgan Horse was born in 1789, and was actually named Figure. He was born in Massachusetts, but later moved to Randolph in Vermont. While Figure’s parentage is unknown, it is probable that he was either a thoroughbred or of mixed Arabian and Dutch heritage, or a combination of Welsh Cob.



According to Morgan horse history, the name Morgan came from his owner Justin Morgan, a music composer and teacher, who passed away. The horse then had a new owner, Robert Evans.

Robert Evans discovered that while Morgan was quite small in size (only 14 hands), he was very powerful and could do all kinds of draft work, along with clearing logs, plowing and even hauling freight.



At the same time, when he participated in hauling and racing contests, he out-hauled and out-ran all challengers and was never beaten until his death in 1821. He was 32, and the cause of death was a kick from another horse, which was, for some reason, left untreated.

Morgan left behind three sons – Bullrush, Sherman and Woodbury. All Morgan horses today trace their descent from these famous horses. Other breeds of horses such as the Tennessee Walking Horse, Standardbred and the American Saddlebred have some Morgan blood in them.

Illustrious career: According to Morgan horse information, this breed has had an illustrious career to match its illustrious heritage. Bred during the Colonial times, it is the oldest breed of horse to be developed in North America and there is a wealth of morgan horse information. The Morgan horse was at one time, the official horse of the United States Army. One of America’s famous generals, General Stonewall Jackson, had a gaited Morgan horse as his favorite mount. 1894 saw the first Morgan Horse Register being published.

Uses: While the Morgan horse was earlier used as cavalry mounts and also for riding and racing, they are now used mainly for pleasure riding as well as in harness classes.

Description: Morgan horses are a light breed, and not very tall. They are generally between 14 to 15 hands high (56 to 60 inches). They are found in various colors, although the most common are brown, chestnut and bay.

Starting from the original Morgan, most Morgan horses have a steady comfortable gait, which include a canter, trot and walk. In recent times, breeders have developed special gaited Morgan horses with a three-beat gait, which adds a rack, stepping pace, fox trot and running pace to the above mentioned three gaits.