History of the Appaloosa

The Appaloosa we recognise today all started in the early 1700´s when the Nez Perce Indians acquired their first horses. Previously a sedentary fishing tribe, the Nez Perce´s acquisition of horses improved their mobility, their ability to hunt and their power, thus altering their culture forever.

The Nez Perce took to horsemanship fast. Quickly learning and becoming the first known people to selectively breed only their best stock. With their superior horses they were now able to trade their hunting skills and craftmanship throughout the Northwest of America.

The famous explorer Meriwether Lewis noted the breeding accomplishments of the Nez Perce, of these then named ´Palouse´ horses due to the Northwest river and valley of that name, in a diary entry from February 15th, 1806 "Their horses appear to be of an excellent race; lofty, elegantly formed, active and durable....some of these horses are pided with large spots of white irregularly scattered and intermixed with black, brown, bay or some other dark colour"

But to learn where those spots came from we need to look further back.... Evidence of spotted horses can be found in the paleolithic era, 18,000 B.C., in cave paintings in France.

The spotted horses of Russia also play their part according to the oral history of the Nez Perce. A Russian ship dropped anchor off the shore of what is now known as Oregon and three spotted stallions were swam ashore in exchange for supplies. According to many, most notably George Long Grass , these stallions were purchased at ´twice the price´ by the Nez Perce from the Siletz Indians and bred to their best mares produced the coveted bloodlines of today. From these breedings came the Ghost Wind Stallion . The famous medicine horse that the Nez Perce gave their lives to protect as they fled the murderous cavalry in the 1877 war.