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The Rocky Mountain Horse is one of the most popular up-and-coming horse breeds in the U.S. today, and there's good reason for that. They are unusually safe, comfortable and people-oriented. They rarely spook and when they do they do it by freezing in place. These horses want to be with you as much as you want to be with them - they will leave their buddies and their food to follow you around the pasture all day while you fix fences. And they have the ability to move with a smooth fifth gait which allow their rider to fly down the trail at speed, without having to deal with the discomfort of a trot.
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Breed History - Where they come from
Three old world European breeds are believed to have provided the stock from which the Rocky Mountain Horse breed sprung. A Spanish breed called, “Jennets” was brought to the New World by the Conquistadors in the early 1500s. They were small, hardy and smooth gaited. Later, as colonial expansion took off in the 1600s and 1700s, early settlers brought large numbers of a Scottish horse called “Galloways,” and an Irish breed called “Hobbies.” Both of these breeds tended to be small, hardy, smooth gaited and extremely people-oriented. The Galloways were known for their unusual chocolate/flaxen coloring now common in the Rocky Mountain Horse.
As settlers spread out over areas around the Appalachian Mountains, these three breeds formed a core group of horses which we now refer to as Colonial Saddler stock, known for their smooth gait and hardy bodies, which became the primary horses existing in this part of the country. Because of the difficult terrain of the Appalachian Mountains, these horses often existed in a region with little to no outside influences for long periods of time. Such isolation soon caused a number of distinct genetic populations to spring up, including breeds later recognized as the Tennessee Walkers, The Fox Trotters and the American Saddlebred. Meanwhile, in a remote area of eastern Kentucky another breed was developing which is now known as The Rocky Mountain Horse.
This breed had all the characteristics of the original three, plus the unusual Chocolate/Flaxen color of the Galloways. They were especially known for their calm, gentle temperament and their smooth gait. Then in 1890, a young stud colt was brought into the region by a family traveling back to Virginia after a failed attempt to settle in the Rocky Mountains. He had the Chocolate/Flaxen color and smooth gait of the local horses, was beautiful, healthy and had a temperament everyone who met him loved. The family sold him to a local Kentucky farmer on their way through, and he soon became the most sought after stallion in eastern Kentucky. He bred thousands of mares and is credited with cementing the foundation of the Rocky Mountain Horse breed. He was known to the locals as the Rocky Mountain Stud Colt of 1890, and it was from him that the breed eventually got its name.
His decedents continued to live in the hills of eastern Kentucky, rarely breeding to outside horse or being noticed by outside people. Then, in the 1940s, a local farmer named Sam Tuttle who owned a number of stallions directly descended from the Rocky Mountain Stud Colt of 1890, became interested in actively preserving and perpetuating these extraordinary horses. He spent his life breeding these horses and was the breeder of the now famous stallion Tobe, who is considered the modern foundation sire for the Rocky Mountain Horse breed. Tobe had all the qualities of his ancestor, the Rocky Mountain Stud Colt of 1890. When Sam opened a business taking visitors on rides through the Appalachians, Tobe became one of his most sought after horses, carrying kids and beginners as easily as he excelled at demanding days of mountain riding, moving cattle and pulling carts.
Sam recognized the uniqueness and value of these unusual horses and spent his life breeding to strengthen and perpetuate these traits, but he didn’t recognize the need for written records or a formally organized breed registry. It wasn’t until the early 1980s that an official registry was created. The registry was formed by Rae and David Swan in 1986 and the breed was official named The Rocky Mountain Horse. The Swans spent their lives promoting the breed which is now, over 30 years later, is finally beginning to be known nationally and around the world.
Three old world European breeds are believed to have provided the stock from which the Rocky Mountain Horse breed sprung. A Spanish breed called, “Jennets” was brought to the New World by the Conquistadors in the early 1500s. They were small, hardy and smooth gaited. Later, as colonial expansion took off in the 1600s and 1700s, early settlers brought large numbers of a Scottish horse called “Galloways,” and an Irish breed called “Hobbies.” Both of these breeds tended to be small, hardy, smooth gaited and extremely people-oriented. The Galloways were known for their unusual chocolate/flaxen coloring now common in the Rocky Mountain Horse.
As settlers spread out over areas around the Appalachian Mountains, these three breeds formed a core group of horses which we now refer to as Colonial Saddler stock, known for their smooth gait and hardy bodies, which became the primary horses existing in this part of the country. Because of the difficult terrain of the Appalachian Mountains, these horses often existed in a region with little to no outside influences for long periods of time. Such isolation soon caused a number of distinct genetic populations to spring up, including breeds later recognized as the Tennessee Walkers, The Fox Trotters and the American Saddlebred. Meanwhile, in a remote area of eastern Kentucky another breed was developing which is now known as The Rocky Mountain Horse.
This breed had all the characteristics of the original three, plus the unusual Chocolate/Flaxen color of the Galloways. They were especially known for their calm, gentle temperament and their smooth gait. Then in 1890, a young stud colt was brought into the region by a family traveling back to Virginia after a failed attempt to settle in the Rocky Mountains. He had the Chocolate/Flaxen color and smooth gait of the local horses, was beautiful, healthy and had a temperament everyone who met him loved. The family sold him to a local Kentucky farmer on their way through, and he soon became the most sought after stallion in eastern Kentucky. He bred thousands of mares and is credited with cementing the foundation of the Rocky Mountain Horse breed. He was known to the locals as the Rocky Mountain Stud Colt of 1890, and it was from him that the breed eventually got its name.
His decedents continued to live in the hills of eastern Kentucky, rarely breeding to outside horse or being noticed by outside people. Then, in the 1940s, a local farmer named Sam Tuttle who owned a number of stallions directly descended from the Rocky Mountain Stud Colt of 1890, became interested in actively preserving and perpetuating these extraordinary horses. He spent his life breeding these horses and was the breeder of the now famous stallion Tobe, who is considered the modern foundation sire for the Rocky Mountain Horse breed. Tobe had all the qualities of his ancestor, the Rocky Mountain Stud Colt of 1890. When Sam opened a business taking visitors on rides through the Appalachians, Tobe became one of his most sought after horses, carrying kids and beginners as easily as he excelled at demanding days of mountain riding, moving cattle and pulling carts.
Sam recognized the uniqueness and value of these unusual horses and spent his life breeding to strengthen and perpetuate these traits, but he didn’t recognize the need for written records or a formally organized breed registry. It wasn’t until the early 1980s that an official registry was created. The registry was formed by Rae and David Swan in 1986 and the breed was official named The Rocky Mountain Horse. The Swans spent their lives promoting the breed which is now, over 30 years later, is finally beginning to be known nationally and around the world.