While my introduction to horse-drawn
vehicles can be traced to a runaway experience in my early teens, my dad and
grandad grew up using wagons and horse-drawn equipment – on a daily basis. Sometimes I have to remind myself that, even
though America enjoys a host of modern conveniences today, it wasn’t that long
ago that motorized wheels were an unaffordable luxury.
Like a lot of folks across the globe, my
grandad’s wagon-related stories were highlighted by runaways and wrecks. Of course, my dad would want me to add that grandpa
often fueled the problem by purchasing green (unbroken) mules to work the
fields and wagons. For obvious reasons,
they were cheaper. Dad laments that just
about the time they would get a single mule or team working well, grandpa would
sell them. No doubt, for a good
profit. During the process of breaking
them, though, there were times when explosive excitement and quick action ruled
the day!
After hearing the old stories and having
my own ‘incident’ behind the traces, it took a while for me to come back to
wooden wheels. Still yet, I couldn’t
shake the history of these pieces and in the mid-1990’s, I began a more serious
focus on researching and collecting unique vehicles. Since the internet was relatively unknown at
that time, it wasn’t always easy to find details on antique horse drawn vehicles. My earliest ‘guide’ was a used book store in
Springfield, Missouri. Visiting it a
half dozen times a year, I was blessed to some across a number of important
primers. “Conestoga Wagon 1750-1850” and
“The Prairie Traveler” were among the pieces found there and they continue to
be valuable assets in our Wheels That Won The West® library.
As the years progressed, I became
acquainted with more folks of a similar bent. Turns out, my intrigue with discovering and
preserving this segment of American history is not so unusual. Over and over, I’ve met collectors and
enthusiasts from all walks of life and all parts of the U.S. as well as several
foreign countries.
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Positioned at the entrance to Tom Watt’s collection, this Newton brand chuck wagon is fully equipped and set up as an authentic display. |
A number of years ago, I was introduced
to Tom Watt. Tom is a long, tall Arizona
Coloradan – meaning he spends about equal time between properties in each
state. Not only is he one of the
friendliest fellas I’ve run across but he’s also an astute businessman and
early vehicle collector. The pieces he’s helped preserve include several dozen historic wagons, carriages,
and stages. In fact, one of the small
thorough-brace vehicles he owns is purported to have carried President Theodore
Roosevelt during the 1904 World’s Fair at St. Louis.
Years ago, I wrote a brief history for
Tom outlining the background of another equally rare, hand built vehicle he has
on display – a Rhoads brand wagon from Anderson, Indiana. Some of that particular
brand’s heritage can be found in our “Borrowed Time” book which also covered other
hard-to-find details from national wagon brands like Birdsell, John Deere,
Peter Schuttler, Weber, Newton, Studebaker, and more.
Not long ago, Tom hosted a large group
from the Larkspur and Cherry Creek Valley Historical Societies. Walking
them through his collection is akin to stepping back in time to a day when
horseflesh ruled the road and the big ‘three’ in transportation was more like
the big 50 or 100. All total, there were
tens of thousands of horse drawn vehicle makers in the U.S. While most were small makers, a number of
them became strong regional, national, and even international forces. Tom’s compilation includes an impressive
lineup of notable brands and wide variety of vehicle types including those
built as a farm wagon, chuck wagon, sheep wagon, hearse, sleigh, mail wagon, buckboard,
buggy, carriage, mountain stage, mud wagon, Concord coach, stock rack, and
military ambulance. Seldom do we have a
chance to see so many different vehicles in one setting.
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Business wagons, such as this one promoting early Watkins products, were once a common sight as peddlers hawked their wares to rural sections of the U.S. |
Making the most of every opportunity to pass
on knowledge, appreciation, and insights from America’s first transportation
industry is just one of the unspoken duties many collectors gladly embrace. After 50 years of collecting, Tom Watt and
his wife, Betty, have put together some of the country’s most impressive vehicle
survivors and, in the process, have preserved a tremendous amount of
history. From rare brands to unique
designs, we are all the richer for it.
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Beginning in the late 1890’s, light wagons such as this one carried the mail via Rural Free Delivery (RFD) to farm families living distances from town. |
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