A Celebration of Design, Style and Grace - Western Saddle Guide
Transcript of A Celebration of Design, Style and Grace - Western Saddle Guide
A Celebration of Design, Style and Grace
January 22, 2010 – July 31, 2010
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A good saddle is something never to be sold. It is the merge point between human and horse and one that fits both is something to be used, treated well and treasured.
—Joe De Yong, 1949 Ph
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A Celebration of Design,Style and Grace
January 22, 2010 – July 31, 2010
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The image of a silver saddle can not help but to make you rather nostalgic. That sad-
dle brings to mind childhood cowboy heroes, flying across the screen in pursuit of a
bad guy or to the rescue of the heroine; or a cold winter day watching the grandest of
all parades, the Rose Parade, with all of the flashy palomino horses outfitted with mag-
nificent silver saddles and often ridden by movie stars.
It is not by coincidence that the good guys usually wore white hats and rode a silver
mounted saddle; Hollywood immortalized that lasting image. The white of the silver
on black and white film made sure the hero and his horse were easy to recognize, and
everyone wants to be a hero. Man has always sought to adorn his possessions whether
modest or grand in order to set himself apart from the crowd. That is the essence of
the silver saddle, expressing the owner or maker’s desire to stand apart.
This exhibit brings together some of the finest examples of this genre of saddlery ever
assembled, some which have never been exhibited publicly. The Bohlin, Keyston and
Visalias are magnificently adorned, but it is the rare and very elegant Loomis, not cov-
ered with silver, that is the height of saddle elegance and craftsmanship.
Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear…
Ross Middleton
Director
American Quarter Horse
Hall of Fame& Museum
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Saddling an Evolving West
It would be safe to say that no region other than
the wide open stretches of the American West
would be as conducive for the undertaking of
open-range cattle work. That activity created a
clean canvas for the evolution of the type of
saddlery used in that endeavor, and like the
young nation of its birth, the western saddle’s use
and importance expanded and evolved through
the years. Born of necessity, the western saddle
represented the intermingling of cultures at the
border of Mexico and the new nation to its north,
and through evolution, met the needs of
horsemen from both countries. With the end of
the Civil War, the dreams of an adventurous
generation led many to explore the unknown
country west of the Mississippi to the faraway
land of California and the Pacific Ocean.
Since the landing of the Pilgrim families, “getting
there,” meant getting there on horseback. Saddles
at that time could be best described as basic.
During the early 1800s, simple wooden tree
designs prevailed, with rigging draped over or
attached to the tree. With the appearance of the
Santa Fe Trail – a rural thoroughfare regularly
traveled by traders, trappers, and hearty travelers
eager to experience the new west – these simple
saddles underwent changes and improvements to
ultimately become the Santa Fe saddle. Still a
basic piece of equipment, it had a rawhide-
covered tree and simple stirrup set-ups looped
through a wooden frame. Carved wooden stirrups
were generally present, although eastern-style
steam-bent stirrups began appearing out west as
early as 1790.
Santa Fe saddles became quite the rage at trading
stops in high-traffic areas, selling for as much as
$15 at posts along the Missouri River. This style
of saddle became the norm until the California
Mission culture began asserting itself in the early
1800s. The vaqueros, or Californios, seemed
blessed from the start. The naturally mild
climates of California created an almost complete
lack of heavy brush and horse-eating cactus,
famous for tearing up rigs and rides on ranches in
the east. This perfect climate created an
environment where style and technique were
emphasized, and the embellishment of one’s
saddle was not only accepted, but expected.
Saddles became much more ornamental –
especially those of the Spanish dons and
landowners who made sure their rigs were
appropriately decorated. This often included
ornate silver trim, complex stitching, and
elaborately carved leatherwork. The need for
more area to decorate caused the saddle to evolve
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once again, to include such additions as rump
housings, mochillas (decoratively tooled leather
tree coverings), tapaderos (long stirrup covers to
protect the feet of the rider from razor sharp scrub
and brush) as well as elegant silver conchos – all
introduced on the rancheros of the Pacific Slope.
These handsome and expensively decorated
pieces of horse equipment raised the bar in
western saddlery through the region and beyond.
It was at about this time that adventuring
easterners, arriving in the west, began seeing this
elaborate and elegant approach to not only
saddlery, but everyday life as well. The mild
climate and easy pace were quite attractive to
them. They were rightly impressed with the
efficiency and grace of the vaqueros as they
quietly handled their stock, and it became
apparent that these methods and gear were unlike
anything brought from the east. Even fine
saddlery and tack from the capitals of Europe
could not match the efficiency and simple logic
of the gear from Mexico.
The quiet world of the vaquero was soon
shattered as the rush for gold brought increasing
numbers of men and animals west. The need for
saddlery and harness goods was never in greater
demand, and men trained in the production of
saddlery were highly sought after. Later, many of
these makers banded together to create unique
enterprises for the manufacture and marketing of
regional saddlery and harness products. It was
the beginning of marketing “named” or branded
gear as makers began to realize the benefits of
building and selling goods through resellers, and
their work soon found its way across America.
The work of these early large-scale saddlers –
names such as Main and Winchester, Hermann H.
Heiser, The Visalia Stock Saddle Company, Frank
Meanea, and The Hamley Company, among
others – started a quiet revolution in the branding
of certain looks and styles. The ride was on.
More and more names would be added as makers
realized the benefits of uniquely marketing their
brands. Styles, patterns, and embellishments such
as added silver were secretly planned and well
guarded. The dilemma for the large-scale
manufacturer was the mobility of the silversmiths
and saddlers who worked for them. In many
cases, and with varying degrees of success, these
talented saddlers picked up stakes, dragging
other skilled workers with them and headed off to
start their own businesses.
Many of these companies are still around, many
are gone, and many are gone, but their work is
seriously collected. They all shared a time when
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Saddlery and dress that celebrated a romantic past became all the rage in the late 1920s and 30s.
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horseback travel was not only important but
necessary, and a time when individual taste and
expression was allowed to be built into saddlery.
Silver is the chrome of saddle making and
properly used can add significant style.
Embellishment has always – be it on a saddle or
an automobile – been the aspect that followed
after the basic concept of transportation was
achieved. Style did matter. One not only needed
to get there, one needed to look good doing it.
This exhibit celebrates the old and the new,
along with a presentation of the grace of
embellishment added to the basic saddle form.
Many of the saddles shown are from long
established makers whose reputations were built
by making elaborate additions to what is a
product with a most basic purpose: that of
allowing a human to comfortably ride a horse. A
number of the saddles in the exhibit come from
saddler Edward H. Bohlin. Bohlin, a Swedish
immigrant, came to America at the turn of the
20th century to be a cowboy after seeing the
traveling Wild West shows of Buffalo Bill. His
skill was the unique ability to market his wares
through the emerging world of the motion
picture cowboy. Like they say, “timing is
everything,” and Bohlin came along during the
growth of the movie western hero – a figure who
needed to stand out on the screen. After a helpful
push by then silent screen star Tom Mix, Bohlin
led a group of talented saddlers who pushed the
bar until the start of World War II. The silver
saddles Bohlin and other makers of the period
produced would be almost impossible to
produce today because of contemporary labor
costs. Bohlin’s own personal saddle, on exhibit
at the Autry National Center in Los Angeles,
took over thirteen years to fabricate.
In the 1920s and 30s, Bohlin, as well as other
period craftsmen-based shops such as the Visalia
Stock Saddle Company, Keyston Bros, and
Olsen/Nolte, operated when the romance of the
west was at its height.
Along with movie cowboys, many horsemen of
the period rode in parades and competed in horse
shows. Communities often tried to hold on to the
sentimental cowboy memories of the past as the
nation ran headlong into an era of modernization
and non horse-based personal mobility.
The 1950s saw a return of the cowboy to the new
small screen of television, and the cowboy past
found a new home and a new sentimental
audience. It is no wonder that the late 1940s and
1950s saw a growth of western-genre based
museums – places where we as a nation could
remember a simpler, more heroic time as we
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The movie cowboy hero became the symbol of good in the early days of cinema. HereTex Ritter stands with his trusty sidekick, White Flash,
one of several he had during his career.
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considered a future that was, as many thought,
being threatened by the atomic bomb. This new
romance of the west on television lasted until the
early 1960s when an entirely new cultural
revolution raised its head.
Today we see renewed interest in custom saddle
making, and for many, an interest in the authentic
ways of the old vaquero and his style of
horsemanship. Much of this can be traced back
over the past thirty some years to a style of
horsemanship promoted quietly by a number
talented horseman. The brothers Tom and Bill
Dorrance, and Tom Dorrance’s student, Ray
Hunt, along with others, created an approach to
horsemanship that set time aside and allowed a
more solid, earned relationship to be created
between horse and rider. Today, horsemen who
have followed that approach have also taken on
a broader appreciation of the gear and saddlery
of the vaquero era.
Many of the saddles in this exhibit represent a
moment in time when the horse played an equal
role in the commerce of one’s life, and the merge
point – the place where man and horse met –
carried more importance than that of form simply
following function. Many contemporary makers,
like those in this exhibit, continue the time-
earned traditions of the great saddlers of the past
even as our world races headlong from an analog
to a digital world, where speed seemingly matters
more than studied competency.
For some, even in 2010, saddle making is a
singular event where the entire process – from
tree making to leatherwork to silversmithing – is
designed and completed by a single craftsman. It
is this singular process that we celebrate with this
exhibit. Here is living proof that we can still
manufacture unique, hand-made items in the
United States with many used every day in that
ultimate dance between man and animal.
The Grace of Embellishment
The western saddle, like all others, evolved
logically, and its origins aim directly to Northern
and Central Mexico. By the sixteenth century,
saddle making in Mexico had become a highly
prized and sought after skill. The field was
dominated by professional harness and saddle
makers working in shops creating singular,
recognizable items. This was the beginning of a
true atelier or “shop marked” system. Saddles that
came from specific shops in Mexico at that time
bore the shop stamp or maker’s mark – not the
individual employee’s name. This method
ultimately spread to the United States and
continues today. Maker’s or shop marks are
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Silver saddles and fancy dress were all part of the glamour of parades that helped lift spirits during the post depressionera of the 1930s right up to the start of the WWII.
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highly prized and sought after by collectors of
specific makers and styles. It is not only a sign of
origin, but also of the craft’s evolutionary lineage.
Early saddlery was designed for
transportation and stock work. It
traveled and evolved quickly as the
hacienda system flourished into
Northern Mexico and early
California. Wealthy ranch owners
employed many vaqueros whose
style of saddlery came mostly
from the provinces in the north of
Mexico. The saddle was organized
and lightweight. It was not much more
than a rawhide-covered tree with stirrups
hung over the saddle behind the horn. It was
either kept uncovered exposing the tree, or had a
large leather envelope, called a mochilla, placed
over it. While quite plain to start, the Spanish
influence spawned a number of floral patterns
that exhibit Persian and Moorish influence and
adorned later saddles. The natural elements of the
patterns – flowers, stems and leaves –
representative of working out-of-doors, created
a pleasing, natural surface and became regional
in representation. Because of the brushy terrain,
foot protection devices called tapaderos were
added to cover the stirrups. Large or small,
“taps,” as they were called, added a certain
romance – as well as utility – to a historically
plain device.
After 1860, when California became part of the
United States, many vaqueros stayed on
and continued to work the ranches
where they grew up. Grass was
plentiful, the weather was grand,
and the vaquero became quite
adept at creating, decorating and
individualizing his gear. Wealthy
ranchers of the time often had
very ornate silver-covered
saddles, and they encouraged the
establishment of the vaquero-based,
homeland-traditional skills. The vaqueros’
creations traveled throughout the west and
influenced regional styles – something that still
exists today as many shops’ styles have become
synonymous with an entire region. One example
is the Sheridan style of carving, influenced
heavily by Don King of Sheridan, Wyoming.
This unique style of carving features a highly
concentrated floral pattern known for its
coverage and delicacy.
The embellishment of a saddle is, quite simply,
an add-on. A rough out (smooth side down)
saddle performs just as well as a fully carved
saddle, and the bottom line is…the horse doesn’t
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care. It’s all for the human who is paying the
money. The pleasing lines and curves of the
saddle’s carved floral or geometric patterns can
be accentuated with an appropriate amount of
silver in the form of conchos,
horn caps, corner plates and
buckle sets. Subtle is best in
this case unless one really
wants to be seen. The
branding pen or the stockyard
is not the place one would
expect to find a fully rigged
silver saddle. How much is
too much? Here is a simple
rule of thumb: If it stands out,
it’s too much.
Saddles are, by their nature, symmetrical. There’s
a right side and a left side. It goes then that both
sides reflect each other be it a full flower pattern
or a basket stamp. The saddler needs to lay down
his pattern on the wet leather – usually a
substantial, oak tanned variety – and do his or her
tooling magic prior to the saddle being
assembled. Silver and gold work is then added
and the saddler’s – and owner’s – imagination
can know no bounds.
Unlike their cow-culture counterparts in other
parts of the West, who were primarily concerned
with function, California vaqueros added grace,
balance, and beauty to their gear. With their iron
bits and spurs, they overlaid and inlaid silver, and
in decorating a saddle used complementary,
engraved silver. These
customs spread throughout
the West and into Texas,
where the addition of overlay
work in brass, silver, and
copper became stylized and
often took the form of Texas
Lone Stars, longhorn heads,
hearts, diamonds, spades, and
clubs from decks of cards.
Throughout the 20th century,
saddle silver became more and more prominent on
custom saddles. In many cases this was a direct
result of the motion-picture cowboy and the high-
profile gear used in movies and later on television.
To distinguish the cowboy star from other riders
on-screen, these saddles were often dripping with
silver. A similar strategy was used in the 1950s and
60s when show saddles and performance saddles
began featuring more intricate designs along with
silver and gold adornments so that a competitor
might better stand out in the show ring.
Classic engraving styles, forming methods, and
shapes have been studied with heightened interest.
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Ultimately, saddle silver involves individual
expression, and silversmiths and engravers today
continue to create unique and contemporary
pieces, which include conchos, corner plates, and
cantle ribbons in sterling silver, different colors of
gold, and a combination of metal overlays.
Style and fashion tend to travel in circles, and
saddle-silver style tends to do the same. In the
last 30 years, saddle silver seems to have loped
full circle, with an increased interest in a simpler,
more graceful approach to saddle adornment like
that of the vaquero of days gone by.
A Nod to the Horse
Ultimately, the saddle is but a tool of the cowboy.
With it he gets the job done via horseback –
moving cattle, covering ground, checking fence.
And while most things evolve and adjust as
saddles have over the years, the task they are
used for continues as a function of human and
horse interaction. Stock handling is the ultimate
team sport - horse and human working together
in a seamless fashion doing a job well.
Between the horse and rider, the saddle is the merge
point, and while the human may
love the silver and carving he
rides – the horse doesn’t care.
He is simply responding to the
age-old relationship between
man and horse – a timeless
task interrupted only by the
spontaneous response of the
stock being worked, defined by
the task at hand.
Past and present and into the
future. Saddle up.
Bill Reynolds
Santa Ynez, CA
2010
It still all comes down to getting a job done onhorseback. Here saddler Chas Weldon sets out atsunrise. Photo by Joe Beeler.
It still all comes down to getting a job done onhorseback. Here saddler Chas Weldon sets out atsunrise. Photo by Joe Beeler.
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The “Don Marco” Saddle by Edward H. Bohlin
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small acorn studded edging on the rear jockey, skirts
and fenders along with exquisite filigree patterns and
laced edging throughout. A 10kt “JYL” on back of the
cantle signifies the saddle once belonged to the owner
of the Juan y Lolita Ranch, John J. Mitchell, one of the
founders of Los Rancheros Visitadores. The saddle was
ridden many times by Mitchell’s associate and
flamboyant friend, Elmer Awls. Owned by the LosAdobes de Los Rancheros, this saddle is on permanent
exhibition at the Santa Ynez Valley Historical Museum.
Courtesy of Los Adobes de Los Rancheros,L2009.12.2
This silver mounted
saddle made by Edward
H. Bohlin, and called
“The Don Marco” model
features superb acorn
filigree designs on the
corner plates along with
filigreed silver swell
caps. Fabricated silver
horn and silver gullet
plates are accented with
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The “Mission Saddle” by Edward H. Bohlin
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The saddle features handmade silver medallions
portraying the missions built by the Spanish in early
California. Each of the forms, showing specific
missions from different areas of California, are
exquisitely hand chased – pushed out from the back
to show realistic detail. This saddle is one of the
genre’s finest examples of representational chasing
ever created. The saddle was featured in the Bohlin
1937 catalog for $2237.00. The saddle is brown
leather, with floral cutout, overlay cantle and horn
silver. The saddle was a gift to the Buffalo Bill
Historical Center in Cody, Wyoming by the
Kriendler family, long time supporters and collectors
of western art. Jack Kriendler and his brother were
customers of Bohlin who crafted many things for
the family including for the their establishment in
New York City, the 21 Club, c. 1930.
Courtesy of the Buffalo Bill Historical Center,L2009.3.1
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Marjorie Murphy Reeves Bacon Visalia Saddle
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This silver parade saddle was made for Marjorie
Murphy Reeves Bacon (1912-2006), only
daughter of Dwight and Grace Murphy, of Santa
Barbara, Calif. A recent book written about
Dwight Murphy, “California’s Knight on a
Golden Horse” by Edward Hartfeld, revealed to
her the vast amount of important works her father
accomplished during his lifetime. The city of
Santa Barbara owes a great deal of its current
beauty, style and vaquero-themed events to the
foresighted Dwight Murphy. His superb
organizational skills, aided by his great wealth,
helped create much that is the essence of the
lovely coastal city. His works created the harbor
and breakwater, Spanish style buildings, and
many parks, including the horse and rodeo
facilities such as the yearly Santa Barbara Fiesta.
Started in 1925, the horse parade and vaquero
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stock show and rodeo continues to this day. This
saddle, made for Marjorie, was part of a matching set
of three that the family rode in parades. The silver
work on the saddle was done for Visalia by Robert
Schaezlein of San Francisco and is a tasteful and
classic example of a Visalia parade saddle, c. 1930.
Courtesy of the Museum of the Cowboy, L2009.5.1
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Olsen/Nolte Saddle
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This saddle, from Oslen/Nolte Saddlery, has had silver
added at later a time, but is a well-built silver mounted
saddle with nice color. Olsen/Nolte Saddlery brought
together the saddler capability of Al Nolte and the
business acumen of John Olsen. The saddlery
functioned under these two until Nolte’s death in 1942
and Olsen brought in Walter Goldsmith –superb
saddletree maker. His extremely popular Quarter Horse
Saddle was designed and built with the fuller-withered
Quarter Horse in mind, and it put
Goldsmith, and the Olsen/Nolte
Saddlery on the map, c. 1940.
Courtesy of the National Cowboyand Western Heritage
Museum, L2009.6.1
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Half-Size Vaquero Saddle by Don Butler
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This mini Vaquero saddle, crafted by Don Butler
of Sheridan, Wyoming, is ½ scale, full flower
stamped and features angora covers over the
saddle pockets. It was not uncommon for saddle
makers to create ½ size “salesman sample”
saddles that were easily transportable, highly
decorated and showed all available options. Early
vaqueros who were adept with their sixty-foot
rawhide reatas would, for sport, hunt and rope the
many grizzly bears that were quite prevalent in
early California. The use of grizzly bear fur was
also used and was the sign of success for many of
the time – as shown in this depiction of a proud
vaquero by artist and historian, Joe DeYong, titled
simply, “The Scarf,” c. 1999.
Courtesy of Don Butler, L2009.7.1
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Custom “San Gabriel” Model Saddle by Edward H. Bohlin
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This unusual “San Gabriel” model silver-
mounted saddle was designed by leather tooler
Frank Paul of Arcadia, California for
Hollywood’s Edward H. Bohlin Company,
featuring hand-chased silver and gold
embellishments depicting the oil industry. The
saddle is adorned with three-dimensional oil
derricks in 10K and 14K gold commemorating
the history of the oil industry in various parts of
the United States. Frankie Paul owned a saddle
shop in Arcadia, California in the 1930s and 40s
and was renowned for his leather carving and
precise tooling ability. Texan Max Williams
purchased the saddle from the Bohlin Company
in 1982; it is in his private collection, and the
saddle has never been exhibited in public. Like
the Mission saddle, it features unique and highly
detailed hand-chased, “de-bossed” images of the
oil industry. The saddle is a true one-of-a kind in
its depiction of historical moments of an industry.
Courtesy of the Max and Carolyn WilliamsFamily Trust, L2009.8.1
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Sherman Loomis Saddle
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sons Seth and Al until the shop closed in
1898. This is a very rare saddle, as only a
few S. Loomis saddles are known to still
exist - partly as Loomis saddles were
highly sought after as “using” saddles for
their strength and comfort and were, in
most cases, used up, c. 1890.
Courtesy of the Carriage and Western ArtMuseum of Santa Barbara, L2009.10.1
Sherman Loomis (1821-1886) arrived in Santa Barbara in
the 1850s from Pennsylvania.
By 1875, he employed seven saddlers and harness makers,
including Jose Alvino Mesa, master saddler and stamper.
Though Loomis never lacked competition in Santa
Barbara, his firm was the earliest, largest, and longest-
lived. At the time of his death in 1886, Sherman
Loomis’ shop was a family affair with four of his sons
listed as employees, so the shop survived run by
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Doug Cox Silver Mounted Saddle
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A contemporary, silver mounted saddle, designed
and made by Doug Cox of Gardnerville, Nevada,
this saddle is a great example of a current day
interpretation of a “using / parade” saddle designed
to celebrate the merging of saddlery and
silverwork. Doug attributes his inspiration and
construction skill in saddle making to many early
masters he was privileged to meet. Cox’s training
with Bob Kelly and Ray Holes launched his career.
Ray Holes was a well-respected saddle maker, who
in 1936 began crafting the Visalia style saddles so
well known to Californians. All silverwork was
crafted by silversmith and custom stirrup maker
Ron Mewes of Nevada City, California, c. 2008.
Courtesy of Doug Cox, L2009.9.1
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Jack Mitchell Visalia Sunburst Saddle
This brown leather, tooled saddle by the Visalia
Stock Saddle Company was made for Chicago
industrialist, John J. (Jack) Mitchell, founder of
the gentlemen’s riding group, Los RancherosVisitadores. The saddle features a unique
Sunburst design on the corner plates, along silver
swell caps with Visalia’s signature Bulls Head by
Robert Schaezlein. The cantle board features a
full sunburst pattern, and the saddle shows
sterling rounds and diamond studs lining the
edging. The fenders and tapaderos have tooled
Sunbursts. A unique Visalia saddle, it was used
on special occasions, such as the yearly rides of
Los Rancheros Visitadores which Mitchell
helped found with artist Edward Borein in the
spring of 1929. The saddle is owned by the LosAdobes de Los Rancheros and is on permanent
exhibition at the Santa Ynez Valley Historical
Museum.
Courtesy of Los Adobes de Los Rancheros,L2009.12.1
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Ute Chieftain Saddle
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This silver saddle, depicting a Ute Chieftain was
made by Keyston Bros. Saddlery of San
Francisco, California. The silver work was made
for Keyston Bros. by Acorn manufacturing of
San Francisco, today known as Comstock
Heritage Silversmiths of Reno, Nevada. Twenty-
one year old James Keyston started a small
whip-making concern in San Francisco in 1868.
Joined by his brother William in 1887, the
Keyston Whip Company expanded as Keyston
Brothers, and the two opened the first of several
increasingly larger shops in San Francisco. In
1905, a visit to the Lewis and Clark Exposition in
Portland, Oregon inspired the Keyston Brothers
to enter the field of harness and saddle making,
which was accomplished by buying out several
competitors – J.C. Johnson Company and Main,
Winchester and Stone – making Keyston
Brothers the largest manufacturers of harness and
saddlery on the West Coast of the era.
Courtesy of West of Santa Fe, L2009.11.1
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Maddox Western Leather Saddle
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This was the personal saddle of Dr. William Allen
Maddox, made by Maddox Western Leather, an Amarillo
saddle shop he co-owned with his brother. He and his
wife, Francis, ran the saddlery together until his
death in 1982. Dr. Maddox was well known in
Texas for his artwork in leather, and several of his
six-foot wide murals were displayed at the Texas
Centennial Exposition of 1936. Dr. Maddox
wrote Historical Carvings in Leather,
published by Naylor Co. of San Antonio,
Texas in 1940. This saddle was leased to a
production company for the 1963 film,
Hud. It appears in a scene displayed in the
window of a saddle shop, and Paul
Newman comments about winning the
saddle at the rodeo, c. 1955.
Courtesy of the National Cowboy andWestern Heritage Museum, L2009.6.2
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Tecalote Ranch Visalia Saddle
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This Visalia Stock Saddle was made for
Silsby Spalding owner of the Tecalote
Ranch, Santa Barbara, California. The
saddle features the typical tooling style of a
Visalia using saddle along with a silver owl
or “tecolote” on the horn. Spalding, an oil
tycoon and the first mayor of Beverly Hills,
was made famous during WWII, as it was on
his ranch on the Santa Barbara coast where in
1942, an Imperial Japanese submarine fired
the only known rounds on native US soil.
Three shells struck near an oil refinery, the
apparent target of the shelling. Rigging and
pumping equipment and a well about 1,000
yards inland were destroyed, but otherwise
no damage was caused. One shell overshot
the target by three miles and landed on the
Tecolote ranch, where it exploded. Another
landed on the nearby Staniff ranch, dug a
hole five feet deep, but failed to explode.
Eleven other shells fell short and dropped
into the sea, c. 1930.
Courtesy of the Carriage and Western ArtMuseum of Santa Barbara, L2009.10.3
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John Olsen Visalia Saddle
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popularity of Visalia tree saddles, Walker and Shuham
encouraged Mattle to continue adapting the Visalia tree to
produce superior quality saddles with complex carved
design work. Employing inventive advertising
techniques for the time, Walker and Shuham spread
their name, and that of the Visalia tree saddle, from
Mexico to Canada, using direct mail, handbills,
and catalog’s to reach a vast audience.
Walker’s far-sighted marketing genius
brought great success to a saddle company
that survives today, after numerous
ownership and location changes, as a
premier saddlery, and tack and bit
maker highly sought after by
collectors.
Courtesy of the Carriage andWestern Art Museum of SantaBarbara, L2009.10.2
This saddle, from the Visalia Stock Saddle
Company, was made for John Olsen of
Olsen/Nolte Saddlery. It is unknown why
a saddler of John Olsen’s stature would
have another saddle company build a
saddle for him, unless it was due to the
popularity of the Visalia A-Fork tree. In
1870, David E. Walker and Henry G.
Shuham arrived in Visalia to open
shop as the Visalia Stock Saddle
Company, hiring Mattle and
Martarel as lead saddle makers.
Wishing to cash in on the regional
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The “Palm Springs” Model by Edward H. Bohlin
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This full silver saddle outfit, made by Edward H.
Bohlin (1895-1980) and called the “Palm
Springs” model, features tooled black leather
with silver mountings. Tooled with a floral
design, this saddle is profusely decorated with
silver California Poppy conchos, many with
turquoise accents, around the fenders, skirts and
tapaderos. Hand engraved and chased, floral
decorated silver is featured on the fork, cantle
and gullet. Silver on the back of the cantle is
embossed with the name “Una.” Part of a parade
outfit owned by actress and equestriane Una
Merkel, who played opposite Marlene Dietrich
in the western “Destry Rides Again,” this saddle
has turquoise and turquoise colored glass inset
on the back of the cantle above her name and in
larger circular conchos throughout. This saddle
features some of Bohlin’s finest examples of non-
representational floral chasing, a task often
assigned to journeymen goldsmiths that Bohlin
had in his employ, many of whom were from the
Middle East and created hand made chains for
the company, c. 1930.
Courtesy of the Autry National Center of theAmerican West, L2009.2.1
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Cluster Special by Edward H. Bohlin
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During the early 1950s, the Bohlin shop designed a “new” type of
concho with a square, faceted pattern. The concho was divided into
four sections that made for unique light reflecting effects that were
perfect for the show ring and parades. Los Angeles television
newscaster, commentator and equestrian, George Putnam – a regular
in the Tournament of Roses Parades in Pasadena - had a number of
“Bohlinmade” saddles. This Bohlin saddle was built for Putnam’s
daughter Jil. It is a variation of the Cluster series Bohlin made during
the period that were featured in his 1954 catalog. Even in the early
1950s, when silver was under $5.00 an ounce, a Bohlin Cluster-style
saddle would start at just under $2,000. The Cluster’s uniqueness
was the die struck concho sections, which Bohlin made in a variety
of sizes. This enabled him to create a variety of patterns on saddles
- covering more leather with less silver. Many “Cluster” saddles of
this design had silver added later, as square patterns could easily be
added to, like puzzle pieces, whenever a customer wished, c. 1950.
Courtesy of Sandy Figge, L2010.1.1
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Ted Flowers Parade Saddle
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Unlike the many Hollywood-based makers, Ted
Flowers saddle shop was located in the center of
the American heartland - Indiana. He was quite
prolific at building parade saddles and seemed to
build most of his best during the 1950s and 60s
– not surprisingly, corresponding with the
popularity of westerns on television of the period
and the many horse shows and parades
throughout the country that featured silver saddle
competitions. The saddle features facing German
silver horse heads – a feature that appeared on
many of Flowers’ saddles. “German silver” is
really not silver but rather a mixture of copper,
nickel and sometimes zinc. It gets its name from
the country where it was first created during the
late 18th century. Flowers used a number of
metals, including German silver, Monel (a
mixture of copper, nickel and iron), brass and
even stainless steel. He did make a number of
parade saddles with sterling silver and gold
plating but seems to have leaned heavily on
German silver due to its popularity of the period
for affordability and durability over sterling
silver, c. 1950.
Courtesy of Peter J. Cofrancesco III, L2010.2.1
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Acknowledgements
The American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame & Museum wishes to extend its thanks
to the following for their support of the Art of the Western Saddle exhibit:
The Autry Center of the American West, Andi Alameda
The Buffalo Bill Historical Center, Elizabeth Holmes
Don Butler
The Carriage and Western Art Museum of Santa Barbara, Tom Peterson
Peter J. Cofrancesco III
Doug Cox
Sandy Figge
Los Adobes de Rancheros
John Crockett and Chris Bashforth
The Museum of the Cowboy, Jim and Linda Grimm
The National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, Melissa Owens
Shannon Richardson Photography
West of Santa Fe, Al Vendegna
The Max and Carolyn Williams Family Trust, Max Williams, Bruce Sciba
and Curtis Leggett
We wish to thank Bill Reynolds and the Lyons Press
for the use of imagery and information from
“The Art of the Western Saddle” - American Horse Publications, 2004 Equine
Book of the Year
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Art of the Western Saddle Curator, William C. Reynolds
Longtime western jouranlist and historian, William Reynolds wrote the award winning book, “The Art of
the Western Saddle,” which was released in 2004. It was named the American Horse Publication's 2004
Equine Book of the Year and was nominated for a Ben Franklin Award. Reynolds has written for many
western journals including Western Horseman, Horse & Rider, Southwest Art and was Associate Publisher
for Cowboys & Indians magazine from 2000 to 2007. During the mid-1990s, Reynolds along with his late
father, former CBS Television president, John T. Reynolds, owned the Edward H. Bohlin Company.
Reynolds is currently editor of The Cowboy Way magazine and is working on a film version of the book,
“The Faraway Horses,” which he co-wrote with Wyoming horseman and friend, Buck Brannaman.
Reynolds lives with his family in Santa Ynez, California.
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2601 East I-40
Amarillo, Texas 79104
www.aqhhalloffame.com
(806) 376-5181
Monday-Saturday
9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
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