History: Gray Horse Harness Shop

Gray Horse Harness Shop

Cinching a Place in Visalia History

Story & Photo by Terry Ommen

Cattle and cowboys have played a big part in Tulare County history since its beginning in 1852. The first homesteaders were stockmen who understood the importance of the saddle horse and its connection to successful cowboying. Following these herdsmen came the saddle makers and the dealers anxious to ply their trade and outfit the wrangler with the necessary gear.

As the county seat, Visalia was a powerful magnet for these talented leather workers, and it all started with Juan Martarel. He became legendary in the saddle-making trade, and because of him, the Visalia Stock Saddle was born. Others followed in the business with names like Walker, Salazar, Ledesma, Herrera, Kern, Ybarra, Samstag, and others, securing a top spot for Visalia in the annals of saddle history. Because of them, the popular saddle was often used in song, story, and rhyme.

But there is one company that often gets left off the list of Visalia saddle and tack companies: the Gray Horse Harness Shop. It was located in the building on the southeast corner of Main and Church streets. D. R. Douglass built it as a general store in 1860. From there he sold a variety of products including saddles and tack. The business changed hands several times, and in about 1888, the Anderson brothers began a harness business there. About two years later, A. T. Pruess bought it; it is believed he named the business the “Gray Horse Harness Shop.”

Cattle and cowboys have played a big part in Tulare County history since its beginning.

Pruess started selling harnesses, lap blankets, and whips on a small scale, but quickly moved into the sale and repair of saddles. It has been said that Juan Martarel even worked there for a time. In 1892, Fred Uhl and Frank King were hired; King didn’t stay long, but Uhl did.

Uhl was a native Californian born in Marysville around 1865, but most of his early adult years were spent in Sacramento. There he learned the saddle and tack trade while working for one of the “largest manufacturers in the business.” Pruess recognized Visalia’s saddle-making legacy, and advertised in 1892 that he had hired “one of the best saddle-makers in the state [probably referring to Uhl], and is now prepared to turn out as good a saddle as is made in California.” He added, “I shall endeavor to keep up the reputation of the Visalia Stock Saddle.”

In September 1894, Pruess sold this shop to Fred Uhl. Upon leaving, Pruess thanked his customers and encouraged shoppers to continue to buy from the new owner. The Daily Visalia Delta had kind words for the departing man and gave a strong endorsement of Uhl, calling him an “experienced and competent harness maker and an energetic, wide awake young businessman.”

Uhl kept the name Gray Horse Harness Shop, hired Frank King back, and stayed at the same location. By this time, the 30-year old building had been selling leather goods since it opened.

Uhl was active in community affairs and was a member of the Elks, Masons, and Oddfellows. He quickly became a recognized community leader and acquired considerable real estate. On October 2, 1895, he married Nellie Gregg and eventually the couple had two sons—Fred Jr. and Kenneth. In about 1897, Uhl bought the “old corner” building (as it was called) from the Douglass family. By the turn of the 20th century, Uhl had expanded his inventory to buggies, surries, and wagons.

During Uhl’s ownership, he displayed a nearly-life-size horse statue in front of his shop to advertise. In 1903 he moved it to the roof. It became a recognized icon for the company, but on at least one occasion it played a part in an accident. In the afternoon of February 2, 1910, a visitor to Visalia named W. A. Wing from the mountain community of Auckland, was riding his horse near Main and Church streets. The animal became startled, and when it looked up and saw the statue on the roof, the horse reared up and sent Wing to the hard street surface. The Delta reported that the “sight so frightened the animal that he lost all reason and likewise all foothold…” Wing was unhurt and the newspaper had a good time reporting on it.

In about 1912, Frank King bought a half interest in the Gray Horse shop and the partners introduced automobiles to their product line. Around the same time, they started a tire business claiming “double tread means puncture insurance.” They had their own special process of adhering two old tires together, claiming that “if it pays to half sole shoes, it must surely pay to half sole tires.”

By the 1930s Uhl’s health began to suffer, and in 1935, the senior Uhl passed away. King then bought the other half of the business from the heirs, but the family kept the building.

In this 1906 flood photograph, the horse on top of the shop at Church and Main streets can be seen.

For the next six years, King was the sole owner of the Gray Horse Harness Shop. On April 9, 1941, after working in leather for nearly a half-century, King announced his retirement. On Wednesday evening, April 30, 1941, he closed the door to the shop for the last time. After over 80 years of selling leather goods, the “old corner” was finished.

Fred Uhl, Jr., the owner of the old building, wasted little time in announcing that the structure would come down and a new one would be built. On about June 1, 1941, it was demolished. As part of the goodbye, the Visalia Times-Delta noted that “there is hardly a farmer in the county…who has not purchased equipment through the years from this ‘old corner.’”

By November 1941, Uhl’s large single-story building at Main and Church streets was finished. In remembrance, the new building had the name Fred Uhl proudly engraved onto the upper portion of the exterior north wall. Still readable today, the name serves as a reminder of the site’s place in history as the Gray Horse Harness Shop.