The Horse in Colonial New England (from a complete study on horses) http://www.imh.org/imh/kyhpl1b.html [homepage] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ New England & the Horse is Chapter 3 http://www.imh.org/imh/kyhpl3a.html The Narragansett Pacer - the First Truly American Breed of Horse The Narragansett Pacer Began America's Fame as a Horse-Breeding Country. The name of the Narragansett Pacer comes from the area in which they were bred: the Narragansett Bay area of Rhode Island. George Washington owned a Narragansett pacer which he raced in 1768. In 1772, Edmund Burke, the famous English political philosopher, begged an American friend to send him a pair of these horses. A Narragansett Pacer is reputed to have served as Paul Revere's mount on his famous ride. The origin of the Narragansett Pacer has been argued for centuries. Its ancestors were probably among the English and Dutch horses which arrived in Massachusetts between 1629 and 1635. They were famous saddlehorses providing a comfortable gait, and were sure-footed, and long on endurance. The Narragansett Pacers carried people and goods through rutted and muddy paths. These horses were the only means to get to market or to the neighbor or to the doctor on most days of the year. More at site on Narragansett pace4r January 22, 1673 - The First Post Rider in America When the colonies in the Northeast were first settled in the early 1600s, the communities lying between Boston and New York were virtually isolated from one another. On January 22, 1673, Governor Francis Lovelace of New York dispatched the first post rider to effectively connect New York and Boston, and provide mail service for the settlements which lay on the way. The route taken by this first post rider carried him to New Haven, Hartford, and then Springfield, Massachusetts. The route then followed the "Bay Path," a former Indian trail, on to Boston. This route was known as the Upper Boston Post Road, and the total journey from New York to Boston was some 250 miles. The post rider remained the principle means of communication in colonial America, and his services were not replaced until improved roads permitted stagecoach travel in the late 1700's. 1674 - Plymouth Law Prohibits Running Horses in the Streets Many towns and cities in America have streets called "Race Street". Such streets gained their names from the habit of running horse races on them. In 1674, the citizens of Plymouth evidently grew tired or frightened of the races in their villages, and created an ordinance forbidding racing. However, the sting of the fine or the humiliation of the stocks did not seem to discourage the colonial racing enthusiasts. About a century later, Connecticut enacted a law which demanded the forfeit of a man's horse, in addition to a fine of forty shillings, if he was caught racing in the streets. Above excerpts is a sampling. The site is tremendous. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --