Before Jamestown

I understand that Columbus brought horses to the New World on his second voyage. The cost and difficulty of transatlantic transportation made it more feasible to establish large breeding operations on this side of the ocean. As a result, Hispaniola, (now the Dominican Republic and Haiti)became the earliest center for horse breeding for all of the Spanish colonial outposts.

The horse in this picture is not from Shackleford, though I would quickly so misidentify him if given the chance. He would fit right in among his cousins at Shackleford, but he is a current resident of the Dominican Republic.

Horsemanship among the country folks in the Dominican Republic focuses on transportation instead of recreation or competition. I hope to be able to post more pictures of these horses and their riders, though I fear that it might take a day or two. Yesterday I dug the longest ditch that I have ever dug and two retention "ponds" around the low side of a corn field that we are about to plant. I was very pleased at the rate that I could shovel for a man of any age, much less of my age. This morning I find that I am not very sore. The only problem is that my fingers are not working very well on this key board.