page_title: Horses in the United States
section_title: Historic period
hierarchical_section_title: Horses in the United States / Historic period
context_page_description: Horses in the United States have significant popularity and status that is acknowledged by a number of observers and researchers. There are about 9.2 million horses in the country and 4.6 million citizens are involved in the horse business. In addition, there are about 82,000 feral horses that roam freely in a wild state in certain parts of the country.
  In 1493, on Columbus' second voyage to the Americas, Spanish horses, representing E. caballus, were brought back to North America, first in the Virgin Islands, and, in 1519, they were reintroduced on the continent.
context_section_description: European settlers brought a variety of horses to the Americas.  The first imports were smaller animals suited to the size restrictions imposed by ships.  Starting in the mid-19th century, larger draft horses began to be imported, and by the 1880s, thousands had arrived. Formal horse racing in the United States dates back to 1665, when a racecourse was opened on the Hempstead Plains near Salisbury in what is now  Nassau County, New York.
  There are multiple theories for how Native American people obtained horses from the Spanish, but early capture of stray horses during the 16th century was unlikely due to the need to simultaneously acquire the skills to ride and manage them.  It is unlikely that Native people obtained horses in significant numbers to become a horse culture any earlier than 1630–1650.  From a trade center in the Santa Fe, New Mexico area, the horse spread slowly north. The Comanche people were thought to be among the first tribes to obtain horses and use them successfully.  By 1742, there were reports that the Crow and Blackfoot people had horses.  The horse became an integral part of the lives and culture of Native Americans, especially the Plains Indians, who viewed them as a source of wealth and used them for hunting, travel, and warfare.
  In the 19th century, horses were used for many jobs.  In the west, they were ridden by cowboys for handling cattle on the large ranches of the region and on cattle drives.  In cities, including transporting people via carriage and horse-drawn public transport. They were used for hauling freight and for farming.   In some cases, their labor was deemed more efficient than using steam-powered equipment to power certain types of mechanized equipment.  At the same time, the maltreatment of horses in cities such as New York, where over 130,000 horses were used, led to the creation of the first ASPCA in 1866. In the 19th century, the Standardbred breed of harness racing horse developed in the United States, and many thoroughbred horse races were established.
  At the start of the 20th century, the United States Department of Agriculture began to establish breeding farms for research, to preserve American horse breeds,  and to develop horses for military and agricultural purposes.  However, after the end of World War I, the increased use of mechanized transportation resulted in a decline in the horse populations, with a 1926 report noting horse prices were the lowest they had been in 60 years.  Horse numbers rebounded in the 1960s, as horses came to be used for recreational purposes.
caption: Horse-drawn sightseeing bus, 1942
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