Tennessee Walking Horses

100 years old in 1968. Mr. Richardson, after his time in the Civil War that ended in 1865, declared that he was going to design a saddle that was comfortable for long days of riding. He built exactly that at his saddle shop in Culleoka.

I rode in that Richardson saddle for many miles, but the wear on the leather and stirrups proved that those who rode it for 10 decades before me also put many more miles on it.

Being as this saddle was nearly worn out, my grandmother took me to the historical National Bridle Shop in Lewisburg, Tennessee, for a new flat modern saddle. I rode in that saddle until I graduated college and moved myself to Alaska, without saddles.

As you can tell from this image (at right), Walkers adapted to varied tasks! My other grandfather, Clifford Dawson, was also from Culleoka. I assume that Mr. Dawson perched himself on a Walker with his carriage because I do not remember much about any other breed of horse being in that area of Tennessee except Walkers. Do not try this at home!

In 1968, who knew there would be horses in Alaska? Turns out there were horses so the saddles were shipped up to me. My grandparents had provided me a base of support for my future TWH.

After two months in Alaska, it seemed all roads lead me to the Diamond H Ranch, in Anchorage. Imagine that! I left Tennessee and landed at the only stable in Alaska with a Tennessee Walker, the stallion, Alaska’s Golden Sun (aka Sunny).

The (Diamond) H stands for Howard Taplin, founder, owner and instructor. Growing up in the 1920s on South Dakota prairies, he rode horses as normal transport. At 17, he joined the Horse Mounted U.S. Cavalry, where the military trained him to ride Cavalry style. This Cavalry man became my riding instructor, and then husband.

After Howard acquired ownership of Sunny, I found a Christmas card with 100 yards (meters) of ribbon, leading to the barn, ending with a big bow draped around Sunny’s neck. He was mine! Sunny took me all over the place, both saddled and bareback.

In the summer of 1969, we toured around the western states. Unsurprisingly, having a Tennessee Walking Horse from Alaska show up at the Fair Grounds in Idaho and Montana created a stir.

At a small show in rural Ninilchik, Alaska, Howard demonstrated Sunny’s gaits to astounded onlookers who knew nothing about gaited horses. For the finale, Howard turned Sunny across the arena, straight toward the crowd seated ground level by the fence. Imagine the gasps as this horse powered toward them, then gracefully stopped inches from the fence.

Sunny’s natural flair and showmanship won the crowd’s respect.

Due to sparce numbers of Walkers in Alaska, I had a dry spell of sorts after Sunny passed. I filled in the gap with Appaloosa mares, Shetland Ponies and Belgians.

In 2018, Romeo, CRTWH, showed up on Facebook in Fairbanks. Romeo’s name suits him perfectly, being as the first night he was here; he broke out of an iron pipe fence and easily stole all the mares away from all the geldings.

Romeo is fabulous on the ground, easy to manage and we communicate non-verbally (mentally) in the most unique way. He is vastly intuitive with a strong desire to please. I encourage his emotional stability; he requires patience and understanding. On the other hand, his sweet soul teaches me things like “Less is more” and “Haste makes waste”.

Working with Romeo is great, but I want to ride again. Leslie Hunchuk steered me to the amazing palomino Dusty, in Alberta, Canada.

Dusty apparently does everything, judging by comments of those who know her and by the photos and video they sent. I will become revived with those marvelous Walker gaits as we mosey along the trails. The Cointreau Stables folks, and Dusty’s owner Lori, have been wonderful in helping this long distance transaction materialize.

At right: The Tennessee Walking Horse “Romeo” joined the herd in 2018.

Below: The latest addition to Taplin’s herd is the beautiful “Dusty”.

And that, my fellow TWH enthusiasts, takes my Tennessee Walking Horse journey from Tennessee through Alaska and Canada to today.

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