Bent's Old Fort NHS Learning Page - Livestock and Reconstruction

The Spanish Barb is a rare breed of horse that traces its ancestry to horses brought to North America by Spanish explorers during the 16th century. In this country, the Spanish barb was most prevalent in the southeast and southwest, both areas primarily settled by the Spaniards.

These horses formed the basis for the wild mustang herds of the American West. They were the breed of choice among early Spanish and Mexican cowboys. The barbs are of great historical, and "rare breed" value. The barb has the oldest history of any horse. It is a true and separate breed, with a short back, only 5 lumbar vertebrae rather than 6, and 17 pairs of ribs instead of 18 like other horses. The size of the lungs and heart are another proof of the horses uniqueness. A true barb will have a large heart and large lungs. These two organs are responsible for the horse's unique stamina. This stamina is what made the barb the great pony express horse it was. These horses were able to carry their riders at a full gallop for more than 20 miles. Most of the pony express horses came form California and were Spanish Barbs.

Livestock \| Reconstruction

Livestock
	Bent's Old Fort NHS has a variety of livestock for visitors to enjoy. All animals are historically accurate, and include: Spanish Barb horses, oxen, peacocks, Dominique chickens, and a mule, Jeremy.

	Spanish Barbs
The Spanish Barb is a rare breed of horse that traces its ancestry to horses brought to North America by Spanish explorers during the 16th century. In this country, the Spanish barb was most prevalent in the southeast and southwest, both areas primarily settled by the Spaniards. These horses formed the basis for the wild mustang herds of the American West. They were the breed of choice among early Spanish and Mexican cowboys. The barbs are of great historical, and "rare breed" value. The barb has the oldest history of any horse. It is a true and separate breed, with a short back, only 5 lumbar vertebrae rather than 6, and 17 pairs of ribs instead of 18 like other horses. The size of the lungs and heart are another proof of the horses uniqueness. A true barb will have a large heart and large lungs. These two organs are responsible for the horse's unique stamina. This stamina is what made the barb the great pony express horse it was. These horses were able to carry their riders at a full gallop for more than 20 miles. Most of the pony express horses came form California and were Spanish Barbs.
Oxen
Oxen were a common sight along the Santa Fe Trail. The depiction of these large beasts trudging across the plains is synonymous with western life and our transcontinental legacy. The early Spanish settlers of the Southwest had brought with them long horned cattle, descendants of Moorish cattle once bred upon the pampas of North Africa and Andalusia. Later, the Americans would introduce northern European blood into these herds.
Peacocks
George Grinnell, whose information on Bent's Fort came primarily form George Bent and the memories of old time Southern Cheyenne wrote that several peacocks were at the fort, and that their "...plumage and harsh voices astonished and more or less alarmed the Indians, who called them thunder birds, nun-um'a-e-vi-kis."
Dominique chickens
The Dominique breed developed from the fowl introduced during the early settlement of New England. This stock was widely distributed in the Eastern half of the United States by mid 19th century, Dominique were at Bent's Fort during that period also.

Reconstruction
When Bent, St. Vrain & Company planned a new trading fort in a region with limited lumber, the traders turned to adobe, a building material long favored by the Mexicans. Clay, water, and sand with straw or wool as binders, were mixed in pits, formed into 19" by 9" by 4" bricks, and dried in the sun. Although Mexican laborers, usually women, had to regularly maintain the adobe plaster, the bricks proved reasonably durable in the hot, dry climate. What you can see today is a reconstruction of Bent's Old Fort. It was built with similar materials and finished in 1976 for the nation's bicentennial and Colorado's centennial. It is furnished mostly with reproductions. Because researchers relied on detailed drawings of the fort by visitors, contemporary descriptions, and archeological findings, the appearance is close to that of the original fort. The most valuable of the drawings were those done by Lt. James Abert in 1846.



The Learning Page - Bent's Fort Livestock and Reconstruction