...about Mustangs
PROUD HISTORY OF THE MCCULLOUGH PEAKS MUSTANGS
There are discussions about the horse being introduced to the Americas in the
15th century. Archeological research shows that the horse existed on this continent from about 55 million years ago till around 10,000
years ago, then vanished. It is possible that some of these original horses crossed the Bering land bridge and spread across other
continents. Recent DNA testing has shown a link between the fossils found of the horses of 10,000 ago and the descendants of horses
brought to the Americas by the Spanish. So it seems that the horse was not introduced to the Americas in the 16th century, but re-introduced.
SOME HISTORY
Early in the 1900's the Grabbert family homesteaded land in Germania (later to be called Emblem), Wyoming. They had two sons, Fred and Smokey. Their mother died in 1918 and their father three years later leaving the two boys with good farmland, burdened, however, with heavy debt. On the day of their father's death, a local banker arrived and served the Grabbert boys with foreclosure papers. The boys had to sell nearly all of their family possessions, farm equipment, livestock, and household items to pay off the debt. Their prospects were grim as they were left with few resources to work the family farm.
But the brothers had a plan. They retained from the sale two good saddle horses. They rode to the high desert of the McCullough Peaks, miles away to the northwest of their ranch where they knew of herds of wild horses that ranged freely. Using their well-honed skills as horsemen and much perseverance, Smokey and Fred managed to gather up enough good horses for a working herd. They brought these mustangs back to the family farm and set about the task of training them to plow the earth in harnessed teams of six. This they did in time for the spring planting. In the fall, they harvested a profitable crop, using their teams to draw the reapers. Within a year of family tragedy and near financial ruin, Smokey and Fred were operating at a profit. Smokey Grabbert eventually became one of the largest ranchers in the Big Horn Basin.
Mustangs
