When someone asks you to go somewhere, you may consider multiple ways of doing so. One way that might come to mind is to go by car. It is the most common way of transportation in the world today. Other ways you might consider may include walking, biking, taking a bus, airplane, or even train. One thing that does not occur to people, though, is traveling by horse. Some places in the United States, however, do still use horses in their everyday life. These places may include Amish country and other small, rural, old-fashioned societies. For most people living in a modern day society, though, this is not a realistic option. People overlook and forget the importance of horses today and how much of an impact they have had in world progress. They have shaped many different aspects of how we operate nowadays, and without them, we would not be in the world that we are living in now. Horses have changed the world bit by bit over time. More specifically, horses have revolutionized transportation, recreational activities, and work effectiveness in America.
Ever since their taming in 2000 B.C., the horse has had a multitude of purposes. It was originally captured because, “it was much larger and stronger than the donkey,” and provided a new source of energy and free labor to help get work done (Asimov 54). Horses brought about a whole new idea of helping to aid farmers in their work in the fields and, also, to bear the many heavy loads that had previously been carried by donkeys or men. Once people realized the incredible help it could give, the horse began, “slowly replacing the ox as a much faster means of pulling a cart,” as well as other heavy farm machinery (Clutton-Brock 58). This idea of having another object, living or non-living, b...
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...bridge, MA: Harvard UP, 1992. Print.
Davis, Beverly. "Timeline of the Development of the Horse." Sino-platonic.org. Sino-Platonic Papers 177, 2007. Web. 09 Mar. 2014
Ganzel, Bill, and Claudia Reinhardt. "1920s Machines - Tractors." 1920s Machines - Tractors. Wessels Living History Farm, n.d. Web. 07 Mar. 2014.
"Horsepower." Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition. HarperCollins Publishers. Web. 9 Mar. 2014.
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Kelekna, Pita. "The Politico-Economic Impact of the Horse on World Cultures." Sino-platonic.org. Sino-Platonic Papers 190, 2009. Web. 9 Mar. 2014.
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Morris, Eric. "From Horse Power to Horsepower." Uctc.net. N.p., 10 May 2007. Web. 9 Mar. 2014.
Times have changed though people no longer have to have their horses trained in such a hurry. Very few horses are used very hard today. Not all horses were started in such a rough manner then either. The Spanish vaqueros of the 1800's used the bosal to start their horses, and they took their time in doing so.
With the amazing delivery of mail in 10 days across 2,000-miles of prairie land, mountains and deserts led many people to use them. With the growth communication between the east and the west the Pony Express grew in popularity. The Pony Express proved that the central route through the U.S could be traveled all winter. It supported the cattle route for the Transcontinental Railroad to meet with the Union Pacific Railroad. Communications was kept open with California during the Civil War. The Pony Express was the fastest communication between the east and west until the telegraph. It captured the hearts and imagination of people all over the world.
Attention Getter: To me life with out horses is a life not worth living. To most people there are only two types of styles of riding, English and western, but there are many more types than that. And all are different.
The Pony Express helped the two coasts connect. It traveled to St.Joseph, Missouri to Sacramento ,California. The mail system was the fastest at that period in time. It was faster than stagecoaches and steamboats. Traveling across the country in ten days or less depending on the distance. With four-hundred fast horses, one-hundred and ninety stations, and about eighty riders. People could connect with loved ones who have moved or tell important people about wars coming, or news about the government. The Pony Express helped people get the word travel faster than it ever has before.
3. Jackson J. Spielvogel. Western Civilization Third Edition, A Brief History volume 1: to 1715. 2005 Belmont CA. Wadsworth Publishing
Before motor trucks, railroads controlled inland transport of goods and services in the nineteenth century. The powerful railroad industry was the focus of technological innovation in an era when intermediate transportation needs were largely met by vehicles drawn by pack animals. Trains are quick and efficient but limited in their reach. The “flexibility of the horse” in transportation had n...
Cipolla, Carlo M., Epilog from "Guns, Sails, and Empires: Technological Innovation and the Early Phases of European Expansion, 1400-1700" Sunflower Univ. Press, 1996, pp. 132-148.
domestic horses (equus caballus). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 106(3), 947-951. doi:10.1073/pnas.0809127105
The equus horse’s original habitat was in North America about 4 million years ago where they crossed the Bering land bridge to Eurasia 2 or 3 million years ago (Jay F. Kirkpatrick). They were then brought back to their homeland years later by the Europeans. Christopher Columbus was one of the first recorded people from the Old World that brought horses along with him on his voyage. His voyage was originally to India, but he infamously found his way to the New World. However, Christopher Columbus’ voyage was not where the official exchange of the horse took place. Hernán Cortez provided the horses more exposure to the Aztecs in 1519. The Old World’s main form of transportation was the horse. During the 1450’s to 1750’s there was no such thing as a car, train or bus. Great distances could not be traveled due to a lack of transportation in South America. Society was blocked off because the landscape was difficult to travel by foot. Horses were a quick, efficient form of transportation that enabled the Native Americans to cover greater distances as well as terrains that could not...
Horses are the most noticeable symbol in the whole book. Horses are a necessity to the boys. The horses are political and economic assets to Grady, Rawlins and Blevins. Specifically for John Grady, horses are more important to him than humans. He constantly dreams of him running with horses and always thinks about them. To Grady horses are like a way to distract him from all his problems and give him a sense of freedom because he does not have to worry about all the stress, problems, and people. Grady relates humans and horses stating that horses are superior to the human race. "Finally he said that among men there was no such communion as among horses and the notion that men can be understood at all was probably an illusion." (Page 111) Grady has a passion for horses. He tells the horses everything like his life story, his thoughts, and secrets. Since Grady does not trust humans he turns to the horses as an output. Grady’s love for horses reveals more about Grady himself. It makes Grady seem like a fairly lonely person because he only trusts horses and prefers horses over humans.
In prehistoric America horse remains have been found that show they covered our great plains and were evolved to be able to eat the harsh vegetation of the area. The evidence of horses go back 54 million years. Without reason it seems this creature vanished from the area and not to be seen or have signs for the last ten thousand years. There are many theories as to what happened to them. One of the theories is that the horse died out due to disease. Another
Although most horses today are domesticated, in certain countries there are endangered populations of wild horses, including the Przewalski’s horse, found in Central Asia (The Foundation for the Preservation and Protection of the Przewalski Horse, 2008).
In conclusion, horses mean more to me than many other things. They are part of my friends and family, but I also have great respect for them. Horses are surrounded by benefits that make us feel exceptional. Their colors are all attractive. Their breeds are marvelous and unique. Their history with us is quite a beneficial relationship. Their behavior is different from ours, but is an easy language to learn. Showing horses is exhilarating! Caring for them can seem like a chore, but is actually an overall fun and propitious experience. Riding horses is fun and meaningful, not just something to learn or do just because. And, no matter what people say, I believe there is something truly special about my dear friend the horse.
Snodgrass, W. D. "A Rocking-Horse: The Symbol, the Pattern, the Way to Live." The Hudson Review 11.2 (1958): 191-200. JSTOR. Web. 23 Feb. 2014.
Land transportation is the dominant form of transportation in the world. People can move about land under their own power, either by walking or by other forms of human-powered transportation such as the bicycle. People also use domestic animals as a means of transportation, both for riding and for pulling wheeled wagons or carts.