THE AMERICAN SADDLE HORSE 



Elise Castlemax Railey, Lexington, Ky. 



DERIVATION 



The American Saddle Horse Breeders' Association was organ- 

 ized in the city of Louisville April 7, 1891, a number of the lead- 

 ing breeders of saddle horses being present and participating in 

 the preliminary proceedings. The asso- 

 ciation was duly chartered according to 

 Chapter 56 of the Revised Statutes of 

 Kentucky. In article three of the consti- 

 tution and by-laws of the association is 

 found under the heading '* objects," the 

 following: " The objects of the association 

 shall be to collect, record and preserve the 

 pedigrees of saddle horses in America, and 

 to publish such register in such form as 

 shall be adopted by the association, and such other matters per- 

 taining to the breeding, exhibition and sale of saddle horses as 

 may be deemed advisable." 



In order to establish rules for the registration of animals by 

 breedina; it became necessarv for the directors of the association 

 to select certain great sires and enter them as the source of saddle 

 stock. The intention was to get back to the source, so it was not 

 desirable that the list be a long one. Only progenitors of what 

 were knowTi to the board to be saddle strains of horses were 

 selected for the foundation list. The list originally selected in 

 1901 comprised the names of seventeen stallions. In 1902 this 

 list was revised, and the names of seven stallions were removed 

 and numbers were set opposite their names. This list of founda- 

 tion sires stood until the annual meeting in 1908 when the names 

 of nine stallions were removed from the register and numbers set 

 after their names. Thus all were eliminated except the great 

 Denmark, and he was made the sole foundation sire of the 

 American Saddle Horse. 



Quoting from David Castleman, reproduced from " The Ameri- 

 can Saddle Horse :" " In eighteen yeai'^ since the formation of 



[47] 



