|
The McClellan Saddle
An artifact from the Earl and Vera Sauer,
Ripley County Farm
Bought by the U.S.
Government, February 1941
This saddle is the 1913 modification of
the original 1859 model first used by the United States Cavalry. There was also
a modification in 1904, and both the 1904 and 1913 models were used extensively by cavalrymen in World War I. The McClellan saddle was considered a very good saddle from the first, but it was designed for the comfort
of the horse and not the rider. The saddle was lightweight, sturdy, and very
durable. It was produced in three sized with an open-tree design. A comfortable fit could be found for most horses, greatly lessening the serious cases of saddle burn. Historians point out that good horses were harder to come by than were cavalrymen.
The Sauer 1913 McClellan saddle always
hung over a board in a shed, when not in use. Fortunately, it was never in the
barn’s harness rack, for in August, 1931, the barn and all its contents burned to the ground. The durability of the saddle is evident during its recent restoration by Don Rudolph, a leather worker
at Reddington, Indiana.
The hooded stirrups, always worn by the cavalrymen, (Generals always rode with iron stirrups) had to be replaced, as
did the leather strapping, but, otherwise, a skillful stitching and polishing job accomplished the restoration.
Today, the saddle is on the organ bench
in the Jean Sauer McClellan home. It is a keepsake for her three children, whose
paternal grandfather was George Brinton McClellan, named for the General whose picture always hung in their grandparents’
house. We have been told that the McClellan saddle still is in use by some mounted
police units in cities around the United States.
(Pictures are by Andrea Rudolph, and the
horse is hers. Rudy, wife Resa, and daughter Andrea, work together on their extensive
horsemanship, leather, and camping projects).
|
| The McClellan Saddle |
| The McClellan Saddle |
|
The Madison-Jefferson County Library and the Jefferson Proving
Ground
When Indiana, a part of the Northwest
Territory, in December, 1816, became the 19th state of the United States,
movement into the area was rapid. The first counties established were at the
state’s southern and southeastern boundaries, which included Jefferson County. While most of these early settlers did not know how to read, the settlement wanted
books. The Madison-Jefferson County Library, the first public library of the
Northwest Territory was established, and twenty-five subscribers paid $5 yearly in those early years
to borrow books.
In December 1940, the United States Government
returned again to southern Indiana, this time to purchase back 55,000 acres
of the land granted to the state in 1816. An ammunition testing facility to support
the war effort was needed and the Jefferson Proving Ground was immediately established.
To support the Jefferson Proving ground, both civilian and military personnel moved into the Jefferson
County locale, and the Madison-Jefferson County Library became a resource for these
newcomers.
After the Jefferson Proving Ground ceased
operations, the JPG Heritage Partnership was established. This group of individuals
initiated the organization in September of 1998 with a goal of preserving the Jefferson Proving Ground history. In November of the years 2002 and 2003, the JPG Heritage Partnership planned a Jefferson Proving Ground
history all-day seminar. Both seminars were appropriately presented at the first
public library in the Northwest Territory, the Madison-Jefferson County Library.
|
