Early Description of Californio Horsemen

Read this primary source describing Californio Horsemen in the 1800s.

Those familiar with the sub-cultures of North American horsemanship are probably familiar with the Californio vaqueros. This horse culture emerged from the self-sufficient Spanish missions that sprang up in modern-day California. Spain’s first mission was established at a place christened San Diego de Alcala in 1769. From that time until 1823, the mission system grew up the Pacific coast. As it did, Spanish citizens came up from New Spain to live in and work on the missions. At first, the culture was the same as the Spanish who continued to live in New Spain. However, due to their isolation and the passage of time, the Californians developed their own unique culture while still sharing similarities with their Spanish root. Part of this culture was the style of horsemanship they practiced.

The popularity of the Californio riding style is well-established today. One of the more notable events showcasing this tradition is the reined cow horse. In fact, the National Reined Cow Horse Association says on its website that the association was created, “with the goal of preserving and educating the public about the rich history of this traditional horsemanship.” To meet that goal, the NRCHA allows riders to show in multiple events including the hackamore, two rein, or in the bridle. If you know much about the history of the Californio, you’ll realize this follows the training process as a horse develops.

Much has been written about these historic horsemen. However, often the best way to learn about history is to research using primary sources. Primary sources are sources that come from a time period. If you think about it, who would you rather learn about the Apollo 11 mission from; Neil Armstrong, or a textbook? That is a no-brainer Luckily, if you want to learn a little about the early Californio horsemen, there are a few primary sources you can draw from.

One good one actually comes from a mountain man named Zenas Leonard. Leonard was in a company of trappers led by Captain Joe Walker to explore the region west of the Great Salt Lake and California in 1833. After much hardship, the group arrived in California and spent time with the local people. In his journal, Leonard had much to say about the land and the people. He was especially impressed by their horsemanship. It might be worth pointing out that he was a man who had ridden literally thousands of miles to get to California. He knew horses and was impressed with their prowess. In his journal, he recorded the following episodes.

Click this link to open an online version of the journal. His narrative of his time in California starts about 2/3s down the page.

Here is his first entry that describes how universal the use of horses was:

“They appear to do most of their work on horse-back. If they want wood they repair to the forest, ride along until they find a log to suit them, when they drop their noose round the end of it; and thus drag it to their homes. They are very expert on horseback, nor could it be otherwise, for they are constantly riding & never appear so well satisfied as when they are seated on a prancing steed.”

An entry about a roping competition:

“When a number of sporting gentlemen get together…they repair to the prairies, all well mounted and prepared for the chase. When they come across a herd of cattle they make large bets on who shall be the first to noose one of the cattle in the drove in sight. When every thing is arranged this far, they all take an even start. The one that gets the rope round the animals horn or neck first claims the assistance of the rest to throw the animal to the ground - which ends the chase for this time. As Spaniards are generally skilled in the art of throwing the noose, the chase in a case of this kind mostly depends on the fleetness of the horses.”

Here he describes watching men work with untrained animals:

“Two or three days after Captain Walker returned from this expedition, we were visited by 40 or 50 Spaniards, all well mounted, and each man prepared with a noose, on their way into the neighborhood of wild horses, for the purpose of catching some. In this company we found one of the horses which had been stolen from us before we left the settlement. — The Spaniards honorably gave him up after we proved our claim. As the manner of taking wild horses was altogether a curiosity to me, I was anxious to see the sport, and accordingly several others and myself joined the Spaniards and accompanied them. After travelling a short distance we arrived at a large pen, enclosing about three-fourths of an acre, which they call a park or correll. This pen is built quite strong, to prevent horses from breaking through. Attached to this pen, are two wings extending to the right and left, in the shape of a V, upwards of a mile & a half in length. The wings are made by posts being set in the ground and poles tied to them with a piece of elk or horse hide, about four feet high - the neck or pen being built much higher and stronger. This pen appears as if it had been used for this purpose many years. After we halted here, the Spaniards were occupied during the remainder of the day in repairing some weak parts of the pen and wings, and in the morning all hands proceeded to drive in the horses, which was done by sending out parties in different directions, mounted upon the swiftest horses in order to outrun the wild ones and turn them in front of the pen, when the men all collect in a breast and drive them down into the pen; which answers the same purpose as a basket does a fish-dam. When the animals are all in the pen, a fence is erected across the neck to prevent the escape of any horses. The men will then dismount and pass along close to the pen for the purpose of accustoming the horses to the smell of human beings. When this is done, four or five will enter the pen, leaving the balance on the outside to prevent them from breaking out, and with their cords noose and tie all under two or three years old. After securing 70 or 80 in this manner, all over this age were turned out, — as they are considered too hard to tame. They then blind-folded those they had taken & turned them loose with the tame horses, and they followed the same as a dog. It is in this way they always get them into the settlements, where they are divided to each man, who brands and hobbles them, and then turns them loose upon the prairie. After they have been confined in this situation two or three days, they are considered domesticated, their fetters taken off, and treated similar to the other horses.

“There is another way of catching these horses, which is this: They are noosed, thrown to the ground, partly blind-folded and saddled, when some adventurous Spaniard will mount on his back, let the horse rise to his feet, and if he becomes unmanageable, they give him the whip, and run the brute until he is no longer able to keep his feet under him, after which he is generally sufficiently docile.”

Another entry about how competent the Spanish horsemen were:

“We continued travelling from day to day, the country all the way being of the most enticing nature, soil very strong, timber tolerably plenty, and game in abundance. The two Spaniards we found to be of great advantage to us, as some of our horses caused us great trouble, and one of the Spaniards being an excellent rider and well acquainted with the art of noosing, would catch and bring together our horses at any time they would become separated.”

As you can tell from the entries, Leonard was impressed by the “Spaniards” horsemanship. Remember, he is not coming from a 21st-century perspective where most people know very little about horses. Instead, he is living in a world where everyone was familiar with horses. When you consider he was coming from that world, it may make their abilities all that much more impressive.

Hopefully, these journal entries can teach you a little about the past and how skilled early Californio horsemen were. It may also help you appreciate the roots of the reined cow horse competition. Although I am not a NRCHA competitor, I still appreciate the speed, control, and excellence the competition showcases.

Finally, it may be worth pointing out that traditions like these are not kept alive by words on a book or website. Instead, they are kept alive by men, women, and horses investing time and sweat into them. At some point, people have to live the traditions out for them to be real. As we live them out, knowing the history can give us a better appreciation for what we know and do. It was the contributions of those who came before us that have gotten us to where we are. The world didn’t start spinning when we were born. Each time we get in the saddle we benefit from the efforts of earlier people. Understanding that may help us all appreciate the horsemanship discipline we pursue.