Mountain Man Horse Gear

Browse this article to understand the basics of mountain man horse gear.

In the early 19th century, Americans were told that the West was a “Great American Desert.” This description of what today is the Great Plains came from several notable explorers. One of those explorers was a man named Stephen H. Long. While some people today call Long’s description a “myth”, the reality is that many primary sources do describe large sandy regions in the West. One such source is Francis Parkman who wrote, “No living thing was moving throughout the vast landscape, except the lizards that darted over the sand and through the rank grass and prickly pears at our feet.” When we look at the Plains today, we can’t necessarily imagine that it looked the same way 200 years ago. The reality is that the landscape has changed. However, one thing that hasn’t changed is the space.

Space is the factor that dominates the Plains. It’s big out here. Big skies, big grasslands, and big distances between places. I’ve talked to people from the East Coast who have said their impression of the Plains is that it is comparable to the ocean in its vastness. As a resident of the Plains, I take it for granted that it’s over a one-hour drive to the nearest Wal-Mart. Distance has always been a major part of life out here. It’s one concept I touched on in my book Pony Boy. Today, we overcome this obstacle with vehicles. Before the power of machines reached the Plains, the most practical method of overcoming the vast distances was with horses and mules.

Although we often think of mountain men using horses and mules to travel, the reality is that it didn’t start that way. East of the Missouri, the climate is different it is out West. The biggest difference is the humidity. East of the 100th meridian, rainfall increases quite a bit. One result of this is many more streams, rivers, lakes, and surface water in general. When the fur trade was active in the Old Northwest (known today as the Ohio River Valley) the first trappers mostly used canoes for travel. Using boats to travel was customary into the early 1800’s. As explorers and trappers moved west, they continued the tradition of traveling the waterways. Of course, Lewis and Clark used boats to travel the Missouri on their great expedition. Several years later, trapping enterprises led by Manuel Lisa also utilized boats for travel. It wasn’t until General William Ashley came along in the early 1820s that a shift in transportation came about. Ashly realized two things. First, the lack of surface water on the Plains greatly limited the range people could explore. Secondly, the distances were so vast that a man on foot was essentially helpless. Instead of tucking tail, he utilized some of mankind’s greatest allies; horses and mules.

It would be hard to overstate how important horses, mules, and donkeys were to the settlement of the West. These were the partners that allowed the Spanish, Mexicans, Natives, and Americans to traverse the vast ranges that would have otherwise killed many of them. In his book They Were the Vaqueros historian, vaquero, and author Arnold Rojas wrote of the first Spanish settlers of California:

It is difficult to see how the people who came in the early days could have made the journey in such numbers without the patient little (burro) the paisano could most readily afford.”

The same can be said for almost any group of the West. Whether the buffalo-hunting Lakota, the cattle-driving Texas cowboys, or the trappers of the Rocky Mountains, it’s difficult to see how they would have made it without their animal allies. Each group created a relatively unique horse culture. The gear they had access to, their work, and their larger culture, all interacted to influence the development of how they used horses. In this post, we’ll take a closer look specifically at mountain man horse gear.

Mountain Man Horse Gear

Journals

Let’s begin by taking a look at a journal entry on the subject of mountain man horse gear. Written records can offer us a good insight into the topic of mountain man horse gear. This journal entry comes from mountain man Osborne Russell. He wrote:

A Trappers equipments in such cases is generally one Animal upon which is placed one or two Epishemores a riding Saddle and bridle a sack containing six Beaver traps a blanket with an extra pair of Mocasins his powder horn and bullet pouch with a belt to which is attached a butcher Knife a small wooden box containing bait for Beaver a Tobacco sack with a pipe and implements for making fire with sometimes a hatchet fastened to the Pommel of his saddle his personal dress is a flannel or cotton shirt (if he is fortunate enough to obtain one, if not Antelope skin answers the purpose of over and under shirt) a pair of leather breeches with Blanket or smoked Buffaloe skin, leggings, a coat made of Blanket or Buffaloe robe a hat or Cap of wool, Buffaloe or Otter skin his hose are pieces of Blanket lapped round his feet which are covered with a pair of Moccassins made of Dressed Deer Elk or Buffaloe skins with his long hair falling loosely over his shoulders complets his uniform. He then mounts and places his rifle before him on his Saddle. Such was the dress equipage of the party my- self included now ready to start.”

From this entry, we can learn a few things. First, mountain men used what is called an “epishemore.” An epishemore (spelled many different ways in different journals) is basically a buffalo skin that has been cut to serve as a saddle blanket. Epishemores could also be placed on the seat as well. In this way, it would give the rider more comfort as well. Also, on the topic of blankets, it may be worth stating that mountain men likely used their Hudson Bay blankets as saddle blankets as well. Hudson Bay blankets were one of the most common items mountain men demanded.

Another thing we can learn from Russell is that mountain men also rode in saddles and used bridles. This probably seems obvious, until you understand that not all horse cultures utilize these items.

It may also be worth pointing out that Russell later says that a hatchet was “fastened to the Pommel.” If you understand saddles, you’ll realize this indicates what we would call a western saddle with a horn of some kind.

Images

Another set of primary sources we can examine are images. The best set of images from the time period come from a painter named Alfred Jacob Miller. Here are a few of the paintings he made that can show use what mountain man horse gear looked like.

In this painting called Waiting for the Caravan, you can see at least one item of note. That is the crupper used by the man in the foreground on the light-colored horse. A crupper is a piece of gear that attaches to the rear of a saddle skirt and loops underneath the animal’s tail. This keeps the saddle from moving forward when traveling downhill.

Another painting, titled Pierre, gives another good look. Starting at the animal’s head, it appears the animal (maybe a mule) is wearing a snaffle bit. I feel confident in this claim because the reins come from the corner of the mouth instead of from a shank that would be nearer the chin. Another thing to notice is the rope around the animal’s neck. This can be called a trail rope, today commonly called a get down. Rather than attaching to a halter beneath the headstall the animal could be led by a rope tied around the neck. The important thing here is to tie a bowline knot or other non-tightening knot.

Moving further back, you can see the saddle horn clearly projecting into the air. On the saddle, there appears to be a blanket covering the seat. The entire setup also looks to be held on by what is called a surcingle. A surcingle is a single cinch that goes around the barrel of the animal and holds on tack. Click on this link to see a modern example of surcingles.

Finally, the figure in the painting is wearing spurs on his moccasins.

Trade Inventories

Lastly, let’s use the trade inventory of 1836 as a source to get an idea of what mountain man horse gear was actually taken to rendezvous. Here is a copy and pasted section from that trade inventory. The dash indicates a section that was removed where items do not pertain to horse gear:

7 1/2 dz Snaffle Bridles

9 " Curb "

100 pr. Stirrup Leather

200 Leather Sursingles

1 dz martingales

3 Cards Spurs

—-

152 pair Mule and horse shoes

74 @ Nails for the above shoes

One thing that makes reading these inventories easier is understanding ditto marks. Ditto marks (“) indicate that the words above have been repeated. In this case, the trade inventory notes that both snaffle and curb bridles were used. The number of curb bridles was 9 dozen, compared to 7 1/2 dozen snaffles.

Another item that stands out is the stirrup leathers. Stirrup leathers are the piece of leather that connects the stirrup to the saddle. The trappers must have worn these out incredibly fast. 100 pairs seems like a lot.

You’ll also notice another mention of the surcingle.

Martingales also show up on this list of mountain man horse gear. A martingale is an article of tack used with a snaffle bit that draws the horse’s head down.

Finally, there is mention of shoes along with the nails for those shoes.

If you search other trade inventories, you’ll find saddles, harnesses, farrier hammers, and other assorted gear. However, the items listed above seem to be the most common.

Horses and mules were so central to the trapper’s way of life, that it is hard to see how they could have lived in a similar way without them. Out West, distances are simply too big to be overcome on foot. Mountain men needed horses. Having the right horse gear allowed the trappers to utilize the essential animal to their advantage. Having a sense of mountain man horse gear can help us better grasp how they used their animals to criss-cross the Great American Desert. It can also be useful information for people who enjoy using horses in our modern world.

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Guns of the Mountain Men - Primary Sources