#EHC2026 – Ways of Being: Equid Experiences of the Five Domains

August 4, 2026August 4, 2026 Equine HistoryLeave a comment

Since the idea of the EHC came together ten years ago this July, there has been one common request: we should meet in Kentucky!

We are incredibly excited to be able to announce our two year collaboration with the Kentucky Historical Society. We will have a special session at this year’s virtual conference to learn more about the collections and programs at KHS, and next year we will, at last, meet in Kentucky.

Due to this exciting collaboration, we have also decided to extend the deadline for this year’s virtual conference to August 15. Please see the CFP below and let us know if you intend on submitting a paper or have any questions.

About KHS

The Kentucky Historical Society is home to a host of invaluable equine archival collectionsand associated objects. The crown jewel of the KHS equine collections is the Alexander Family/Woodburn Farm Collection, 74 cubic feet of material chronicling five generations of family members (1509–1969) and the extensive involvement in livestock and horse breeding—the most famous horse from Woodburn farm being Lexington, purchased in 1856. Other collections pertaining to equine history include the Gist Family Papers, H. L. Martin Papers, Doram-Rowe Family Collection, and Hughes Family Papers. KHS is also conveniently located near other libraries, archives, universities, and museums in the state, including the Keeneland Library, the Kentucky Derby Museum, and more.

To learn more about KHS’s fellowship program, click here.

For an overview of KHS’s collections previously written by the EHC, click here.

Equine History Collective Virtual Annual Conference 2026

Ways of Being: Equid Experiences of the Five Domains

September 25-27, 2026

How can we understand historical equid experiences? That question is so often at the heart of our work as horsetorians. In veterinary and animal welfare studies, the Five Domains Model is a means of measuring the impact of survival- and situation-related factors on the subjective experiences of more-than-human animals to determine their welfare states. First developed in 1994 by D.J. Mellor and C.S.W. Reid, the framework examines the interrelated conditions of nutrition, physical environment, health, and behavior. In 2020, Mellor et. al. updated the model to emphasize the role human-animal interaction plays in creating animals’ welfare states. Models from other fields of study, like the Five Domains, can become powerful lenses of inquiry for our work in animal history.

For our 2026 virtual conference, the Equine History Collective invites a wide range of proposals exploring historical equid ways of being inspired by the Five Domains Model. How do we understand and investigate historical equid experiences? Can frameworks like the Five Domains Model guide our research? What do we learn when we center these species-specific factors in our study of the past? Is it even possible to understand historical equids’ affective states and how might equid histories change if we pursue them?

Proposals should fall into one of the following categories:

The conference will take place roughly between 9 A.M. and 5 P.M. EDT. As a virtual conference, proposals for pre-recorded individual papers will also be accepted for anyone who would like to add special media or demonstrations that would be difficult to accomplish in real-time. We also accept proposals for alternative presentations.

Panel Session (3 to 4 speakers)

Panel proposals should include:

Panelists’ names and one-page C.V.s
Name and contact for panel organizer
Panel abstract (150 words or less)
Individual abstracts (250 words or less, ea.)

Individual Paper (presentation 15-20 minutes)

Proposal should include:

Name and one-page C.V.
Abstract (250 words or less)

Alternative Presentations:

These presentations might not fit the conventional format of a paper presentation or panel but offer alternative ways to explore the conference theme. These could include but aren’t limited to performances, film presentations, gallery-style exhibits, etc.

Proposal should include:

Name and one-page C.V.
Abstract/description (250 words or less)
Presentation format description (250 words or less)
Estimated duration

Please submit all materials by August 15, 2026 and direct any questions to EquineHistory@gmail.com.

Please notify us as soon as possible if you intend on submitting a paper.

The EHC values collaborations regardless of institutional affiliation. The organization is committed to accessibility and inclusion. Please let us know of any accessibility concerns or requests.

#EHC 2025:Horse Sense and Sensibility

March 25, 2025March 25, 2025 Equine HistoryLeave a comment

This Equine History Collective will meet in person for our annual conference at Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island from September 26 – 28, 2025. The theme for this years conference is “Horse Sense and Sensibility”

We invite submissions for papers, panel sessions, and alternative presentations that connect to broad explorations of the notion of horse-sense in history from a variety of perspectives, eras, and geographies. How have our interactions created the thing we perceive as horse-sense? What are the historical moments that have produced the reliability of horse-sense and its applications? How have our sensibilities towards equids changed? How have equids’ sensibilities towards us changed? We invite scholars, practitioners, enthusiasts, and other students of equine history to submit work exploring the ways in which we understand, misunderstand, and make meaning together with equids.

Proposals should fall into one of the following categories:

Panel proposals (3 to 4 speakers) should include:

Panelists’ names and one-page C.V.s
Name and contact for panel organizer
Panel abstract (150 words or less)
Individual abstracts (250 words or less, ea.)

Individual paper proposals (presentation 15-20 minutes) should include

Name and one-page C.V.
Abstract (250 words or less)

Alternative presentations:

Proposal should include:

Name and one-page C.V.
Abstract/description (250 words or less)
Presentation format description (250 words or less)
Estimated duration

Please submit all materials by April 1, 2025 and direct any questions to admin@equinehistory.org.

#EHC2024: Keynote Speakers

September 15, 2024September 15, 2024 Equine HistoryLeave a comment

The 2024 Equine History Collective conference ‘Tech-quids across Time’ is fast approaching. This online conference, hosted by Johnson & Wales University, will take place from September 19-21. Registration is required to attend the conference, and you can do so via our online registration form.

This year we are thrilled to have two fantastic keynote speakers: Jacquelynn Holly and Lynne Ferguson!

Jacquelynn Holly: Keynote presentation Friday September 20th, 3:00-4:00pm EDT

Jacquelynn Holly, a dedicated equestrienne with a penchant for the past, found her passion in the elegant world of sidesaddles. Her journey began in 2013 when she stepped into the enchanting realm of Victorian reenactment. Little did she know that this initial curiosity would blossom into a lifelong devotion to preserving and reviving the art of sidesaddle riding.

Jacquelynn Holly and her mule Rosy with one of the saddles she has restored.

As Jacquelynn delved deeper into the world of sidesaddles, her fascination evolved into a mission. She realized these beautiful relics needed more than admiration—they needed restored, but restored to be used, as there is a finite number of functionally, safe sidesaddles in the world, and no one is building new Western sidesaddle trees. Guided by her passion, she embarked on a journey to learn the art of rebuilding and restoring sidesaddles by disassembling and studying those in her own ever growing and ever changing private collection. Jacquelynn’s workshop became a sanctuary for these forgotten treasures. The collection is an eclectic assortment of Western, English, Icelandic, Mexican and Peruvian, from all eras of their evolution. Some had great potential, while others had no value and might otherwise be dubbed “wreckers”. Others, in decent condition, should still only be used for conversation pieces and decor. Today, Jacquelynn continues to meticulously disassemble sidesaddles, study their construction, and breathe new life into them. Each stitch, each pattern, carries the secrets of lost history. Jacquelynn revels in the challenge of preserving authenticity while ensuring functionality, and giving these pieces of art the opportunity to serve another 150 years. She takes great pride in uncovering the history behind each sidesaddle – who owned it, who made it, where it came from and where it is going. Her restorations go beyond leather and delve deep into history itself. She is also the founder of the Idaho Sidesaddle Association in 2018. The vision of the ISA is to promote historical education by riding in various styles of sidesaddles. Sidesaddles, having evolved across different cultures and eras, hold stories of elegance, resilience, and femininity. The association aims to weave these narratives into the practice of riding aside and it hosts an annual clinic in May in addition to participating in different events and educating the younger generation about sidesaddle to foster intergenerational learning and preserve the rich history of this discipline.

Lynne Ferguson: Keynote presentation Saturday September 21, 2:00-3:00pm EDT

Lynne Ferguson is the founder of the Native Horsemanship Youth Program, a non-profit free program serving low income youth and youth with disabilities that Lynne founded in 1998. She is also a singer/songwriter and musician with a long and successful career in many music genres, and live performances and music sales help support the program, as well as grants and private donations. All proceeds from her music benefit the Native Horsemanship Youth Program. You can find her music on YouTube and Spotify.

The Native Horsemanship Youth Program operates on the Port Madison Indian Reservation in Suquamish, Washington. Lynne’s great grandfather had Eastern Band Cherokee descendancy but grew up in Comanche country and learned his horsemanship skills there, which he taught to her grandma, and great-grandma, and they taught Lynne what they had learned. These methods rely on developing a close bond with your horse and this bonding experience is exceptionally healing to children who have experienced trauma. The methods respect the horse’s nature, and the participants learn to communicate with their horses using breath, body language, and intention. They use horses they have bred, raised, and trained to work with youth and adults with disabilities and/or on the autism spectrum. They are now serving their second generation of students. Lynne lives in a cabin – off the grid and on the Port Madison Reservation – surrounded by the horses and the natural beauty of the northwest. Her life and passions are music and working with these horses to help children grow and thrive.

#EHC2024: Conference Program and Registration

September 12, 2024 Equine HistoryLeave a comment

Hurrah!!! The annual Equine History Collective conference is fast approaching. This year’s virtual conference runs from September 19-21, and is being hosted by Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island. The theme of the conference is ‘Tech-equids across Time’ and we are super excited for our line-up of presenters, including two fantastic keynote speakers. Make sure you register for this fantastic equid event! A reminder that EHC members get discounted registration rates.

The complete conference program can be found below and on the 2024 Conference Page.

Christian Krueger, our fabulous EHC treasurer and artist extraordinaire has once again designed our conference logo. We all think it is pretty awesome, and it can also be found on our 2024 conference merchandise, which can be purchased through Bonfire.

EHC + Cheiron present: Horse training and management in the medieval period

May 15, 2024June 3, 2024 Equine HistoryLeave a comment

The Equine History Collective and Cheiron, the International Journal of Equine and Equestrian History are delighted to invite you to the second horse training seminar: ”Horse training and management in the Medieval period”, the first in a series of lectures on horse training from the Middle Ages.

Was medieval horsemanship cruel and abusive? Or did it, on the contrary, foster an ideal relationship of loyalty and companionship between the horse and the rider, epitomised by the practice of chivalry? Evidence gleaned from hippiatric treatises, administrative documents, romances, illuminations and legal sources suggests that it could be both. In this sessions, the authors will focus on the care and training practices showing both sides of the coin of medieval European horsemanship.

To join the event, click here.

Download the poster here.

To see the event on Facebook, click here.

Watch the recorded event here:

More information about our speakers:

Emma Herbert Davies is a PhD candidate at the Institute for Medieval Studies at the University of Leeds. Her thesis is on the warhorses used in English armies in the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries. She has been riding and training horses for almost four decades and has competed in several hunt races.

SELECT PUBLICATIONS:

David Jones and Emma Herbert-Davies, ‘Evaluation of Mail Horse-Armour’, EXARC (2022), 1-9.

Emma Herbert-Davies, ‘Appraising the Warhorse: Restaurum Equorum in the Reigns of Edward I and II’, in Historical Practices in Horsemanship and Equestrian Sports, ed. by Anastasija Ropa and Timothy Dawson (Budapest: Trivent, 2022), pp. 141-58.

Jennifer Jobst is an independent scholar with a PhD in Information Sciences and a long-standing interest in horse training techniques of the pre-modern era, as well as their practical application and relationship to modern riding. She has presented at several conferences and authored papers on riding and training: from thirteenth century hippiatric treatises, to furusiyya books from the Mamluk golden age, to sixteenth century riding performances and their relationship to dance. She also experiments with the techniques and exercises from original sources with her own horses, to better understand the skill and practical application of pre-modern texts.

SELECT PUBLICATIONS

Jennifer Jobst, “Horse Training in the Thirteenth Century: Insights from Jordanus Rufus,” in The Liminal Horse: Equitation and Boundaries, ed. Rena Maguire and Anastasija Ropa (Budapest: Trivent, 2021).

Jennifer Jobst, “Practical Advice on Equine Care from Jordanus Rufus, c. 1250 CE,” in The Materiality of the Horse, ed. Miriam A. Bibby and Brian G. Scott (Budapest: Trivent, 2020).

Anastasija Ropa is lead researcher at the Department of Sports Management and Communication Studies of the Latvian Academy of Sport Education. She is co-editor of the Rewriting Equestrian History series of books and the Cheiron journal.

SELECT PUBLICATIONS

Anastasija Ropa, Practical Horsemanship in Medieval Arthurian Romance (Budapest: Trivent, 2019).

Edgar Rops is a Latvia-based independent researcher. Edgar studied law at the University of Latvia and Bangor University (UK). His research focuses on Welsh law and the history and folklore of premodern Livonia.

SELECT PUBLICATIONS

EHC + Cheiron present: Horse training and management in ancient Egypt and beyond

March 6, 2024March 25, 2024 Equine HistoryLeave a comment

EHC Cheiron Collab Event

The Equine History Collective and Cheiron, the International Journal of Equine and Equestrian History are delighted to invite you to the seminar ”Horse training and management in ancient Egypt and beyond”, the first in a series of lectures on horse training from the ancient world to the modern day.

To join the event, click here.

To see the event on Facebook, click here.

To see the recording, click here:

More information about our speakers:

Miriam Bibby FSA Scot FRHistS is an equine historian, author, and editor. She is co-editor-in-chief of Cheiron, the International Journal of Equine and Equestrian History and an affiliate of the University of Glasgow’s School of Interdisciplinary Studies. Miriam is a former course developer for the University of Manchester’s networked learning course in Egyptology and has worked for several museums and heritage organisations. She was the founder of Ancient Egypt Magazine. Miriam’s MPhil topic was the Horse in Ancient Egypt. She subsequently gained a PhD on the subject of the little-known Galloway horse.

SELECT PUBLICATIONS:

Bibby, Miriam A. “‘They Shall Henceforth Be Fed in my Presence’: Observations on the Training and Treatment of Chariot Horses in Ancient Egypt.” Chariots in Antiquity: Essays in Honour of Joost Crouwel ed. Peter Raulwing, Stefan Burmeister, Gail Brownrigg, and Katheryn M. Linduff, 67-82. Oxford: BAR Publishing, 2023.

Bibby, Miriam A. “The Arrival of the Horse in Egypt: New Approaches and a Hypothesis.” Current Research in Egyptology III ed. Rachel Ives, Daniel Lines, Christopher Naunton, and Nina Wahlberg, 13-18. Oxford: Archaeopress, 2003.

Bibby, Miriam A. “Egyptian horses and chariots: a metaphor for control.” Tracking-up Winter 2008 – 2009, 18-20.

ABSTRACT

Back in the 1990s, I chose the horse in ancient Egypt as a topic for my Certificate in Egyptology dissertation, and subsequently received the Egyptology Certificate with Distinction. This encouraged me to research an MPhil on the same topic. From foundational work we are now at a point where scholars take a more nuanced, informed and equid-focussed approach to the topic. This I aimed to do in a recently published paper “‘They Shall Henceforth Be Fed in my Presence’: Observations on the Training and Treatment of Chariot Horses in Ancient Egypt” in Chariots in Antiquity: Essays in Honour of Joost Crouwel. My presentation draws on this chapter to encourage further debate and research into how horses were trained and managed in ancient Egypt. This treatment was not only influenced by the needs of the horses themselves, but also intended to maintain the complex vision of order – Ma’at – within the Egyptian cosmos.

Lonneke Delpeut is a PhD-student at the Institute of Egyptology, specialising in the art history and visual culture of ancient Egypt. Her BA-thesis was about the role of the image of the horse as a status symbol in Egyptian private tombs, looking at how images of horses were used by the tomb owners to show how special they were. Her MA-thesis specialised more in visual studies and looked at images of horses as a source of information by differentiating what is depicted from how it is depicted. Her PhD project proposal is a direct result of the work done in her MA-thesis.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Delpeut, L.P.P., Rogner, F., (in press), ‘The King Himself Training His Horses: Two New Perspectives on an Unusual Scene in Ramses III’s Temple at Medinet Habu’, Göttinger Miszellen.

Delpeut, L.P.P., Willekes, C., 2023, ‘Reality as a Representational Strategy in Depictions of Horses in Ancient Greek and Egyptian Art: How Purpose Influences Appearance’, Arts 2023, 12(2), 57.

Delpeut, L.P.P., 2021c, ‘What makes a Horse a Horse? Configurational Aspects of Ancient Egyptian Equines’, Cheiron: The International Journal of Equine and Equestrian History: Nov. 2021, Trivent Publishing: Hungary, 1-45.

ABSTRACT

Lonneke Delpeut will present her upcoming article about the earliest two-dimensional depiction of horse training in history, located in the temple of Medinet Habu in Luxor, Egypt. This scene, of which you see a sneak preview on the poster, shows a group of horses being part of a desensitising training, commonly used to prepare horses for stressful situations. This type of training is still used for military and police horses to this day. In addition to that, she will touch upon some archaeological remains that hint at how horses were kept in ancient Egypt.

Alberto Maria Pollastrini obtained his PhD in Egyptology from Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Paris in 2021. He is currently a member of the Research Unit AOROC – Archaeology & Philology of the East and West at Paris Sciences and Letters University, France. He specializes in Egyptian and Western Asiatic warfare and hoplology, particularly from the New Kingdom and Late Period. He also participated in excavation campaigns in Egypt and Italy.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Pollastrini A. M. (Forthcoming). Helmets and Body Armour in New Kingdom Egypt, Bloomsbury Publishing, UK.

Pollastrini A. M., “The Body Armour of Ramesses II” in: Mohamed Raafat Abbas and Friedhelm Hoffmann (eds.), Perspectives on the Ramesside Military System, Ägypten und Altes Testament (121), Munster. Zaphon Verlag, 2023, pp. 125-136.

Pollastrini A. M., “Les artisans armouriers et leur ateliers au Nouvel Empire” Égypte Afrique et Orient 106, 2022, pp. 37-44.

ABSTRACT

What is our current understanding of ancient Egyptian horsemanship?

The recent discovery of King Seneb-kay’s tomb at Abydos has helped strengthen the old theory that horses were ridden before the introduction of the war chariot during the 17th Dynasty, perhaps even in the Middle Kingdom. But how extensive is our current knowledge of ancient Egyptian horsemanship? The answer may be disappointing, considering the absence of written sources and the scarcity of iconographic sources. However, the few data available are not without significance. According to images, Egyptian equestrian traditions were far more advanced than generally assumed, especially about warfare. In this instance, we can assume that horses and riders received quite different physical and military training from the crews and steeds of war chariots, but in both cases, it was repetitive and harsh. Training for mounted archery probably had to be even more rigorous to enable the perfect synergy between man and horse, which formed the most effective ‘weapon system’ of antiquity.

#EHC 2023: Two Days until “Close Encounters of the Equid Kind” Starts!

September 26, 2023September 26, 2023 Equine HistoryLeave a comment

There are only two days to go until we kick off our 2023 Equine History Collective conference “Close Encounters of the Equid Kind”!!! This hybrid event will run from September 28th-October 1, both in-person and online at Roger Williams University in Bristol, Rhode Island. Join us for 4 days of exciting talks and alternative presentations on diverse aspects of the human-equid relationship. There is still time to register for the conference if you haven’t already done so! To learn more about the different talks, check out the abstract booklet and conference program.

We have a number of different events planned, including a public keynote lecture on Friday night by Dr. Katherine Mooney from Florida State University who will speak on “Superhorses and Horse Girls,” and a trip to the Newport Polo Club for the Turkish Airlines Final on Saturday.

Roger Williams University and the Bristol community have 100% embraced all things equid, as several other events are taking place in conjunction with the conference, including a public talk sponsored by the Rhode Island Historical Society on Thursday evening titled “Equine History in the Ocean State” (Dr. Charlotte Carrington-Farmer and Richard Ring) as well as a reading and talk by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Geraldine Brooks on Friday, sponsored by The Friends of the Rogers Free Library, Linden Place, and Roger Williams University. It truly is going to be a 4-day equine extravaganza!!! (Note, these related events are not being run by the EHC and may not have online access, but in-person attendees will be able to participate).

Christian Kreuger, our Treasurer extraordinaire and the artist behind Fence Line Studio has designed our 2023 conference logo, and you can pick up your very own EHC conference swag sport our equine UFO via the EHC Bonfire shop.

#EHC2023 Conference: Keynote Speaker Katherine Mooney

August 18, 2023August 18, 2023 Equine HistoryLeave a comment

Our fifth Equine History Collective conference (and first hybrid conference) will run from September 28th-October 1st at Roger Williams University in beautiful Bristol, Rhode Island. The theme for our conference is ‘Close Encounters of the Equid Kind,’ and we have a fantastic line up of speakers who will be considering the diverse ways humans have interacted with equids throughout history. Stay tuned for further information about conference registration (for both in-person and online attendance) and the conference program.

We are thrilled to announce that the keynote speaker for this year’s conference is Dr. Katherine Mooney, Associate Professor of History at Florida State University. Her research examines the cultural history of inequality in the United States. She is the author of Race Horse Men: How Slavery and Freedom Were Made at the Racetrack (Harvard University Press, 2014) and Isaac Murphy: The Rise and Fall of a Black Jockey (Yale University Press, 2023). Dr. Mooney will speak about ‘Superhorses and Horse Girls’ (see abstract below)

Image of Dr. Katherine Mooney — Dr. Katherine Mooney

Superhorses and Horse Girls

My mother bought me a mug: it says, in big letters: YOU CAN’T SCARE ME. I RIDE A MARE. The mare I ride now is the fourth mare I’ve owned. I have now also spent most of my professional life looking at horse magazines and horse people’s memoirs from the nineteenth and twentieth century, particularly in the U.S., Canada, and the United Kingdom and in the realm of Thoroughbred raising and racing. I wasn’t looking for information about mares, but I began noticing how assumptions about them had shifted over the relatively brief history I was examining. In the nineteenth century, mares ran in open competition regularly, a practice that still persists in flat racing in Europe. But in the United States, around the turn of the century, attitudes about mares began to shift, and sex-segregated competition became the rule after World War II. I began to think about how the history of mares seemed to map with striking directness onto the history of women. Second-wave feminists embraced mares as barrier breakers; one columnist opined after Genuine Risk’s Kentucky Derby victory, “in your face, Phyllis Schlafly.” And in the twenty-first century, fans have once again idolized superstar mares like Zenyatta, Rachel Alexandra, and Beholder, following their journeys to the broodmare band on social media. My keynote (and my next book) focuses on the relationship of mares’ history and women’s history in the United States, and it also seeks to more deeply address what that relationship has meant to women in times of personal, professional, and historical change and struggle.

EHC 2022: Conference Panels and Sessions

April 19, 2022April 19, 2022 Equine HistoryLeave a comment

It is almost time for our 2022 EHC conference. Join us from April 22-24 for a wonderful lineup of panels and sessions exploring a diverse range of topics within the theme of ‘All Creatures Great and Small.’

The full conference program can be found here

Conference registration is open until Wednesday April 20

EHC members can register at a discounted rate. Find out more about becoming a member here.

Below is an overview of our panels and sessions

Note: All times are in Pacific Daylight Time

Friday April 22

8:15am–9:15am Keynote Speaker: Susan Nance The Mule in the Coal Mine: Equines and Other Vulnerable Beings in the History of Human-Made Crises

9:30am-11:00am Session 1: What Makes a Horse? Comparing to Other Animals in the Pre-Modern World Ancient Egyptian Horses: What Makes a Horse a Horse? Lonneke Delpeut (University of Vienna); Poseidon’s Horses and Hephaestus’ Mules: Equids and Social Attitudes in the Classical World Carolyn Willekes (Mount Royal University); Horses Mules, and Other Fauna in Medieval Arthurian Romance Cynthia L. Jeney (Professor Emerita)

11:15am–12:15pm Overview of Equine Archives and Libraries This session will provide attendees with overviews of archives and libraries around the U.S. that focus on stewarding equine collection, including: Katie Richardson (Cal Poly Pomona), Emily Lozon (International Museum of the Horse), Claudia Pfeiffer (National Sporting Library & Museum), Becky Ryder (Keeneland Library), Janet Terhune (Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame)

1:30pm–3:00pm Session 2: Hunting as a Mode of Interaction. Horse, Hound, Game The Horse and the Dog: Froissart’s Perspective Anastasija Ropa (Latvian Academy of Sport Education); The Horse, the Fox, and the Hound: Fox-Hunting and the Evolution of Interspecies Sport Erica Munkwitz (American University); Marsh Tackey: The Preferred South Carolina Wild Game Hunting Horse Jacquelyn McFadden (Dacus Library, Winthrop University) and Patricia Stafford (Independent Scholar)

3:15pm–4:15pm Virtual Tour of Purdue Colleen Brady, Professor/Extension Specialist

Saturday April 23

8:00am–8:30am: “Morning” Coffee Introduce Your Animals!

8:30am–9:30am Seminar 1: Equine Archeology Project A roundtable/lightning round style session with several of the contributors to the project

9:45am–11:15am Session 3: Plantation, Stable, and Ranch Companion Animals/Afterlives. “Take a Mole That Has Just Surfaced from the Ground”: Sacrificing Small Animals for the Benefit of Italian Renaissance Horses Sarah G. Duncan (Independent Scholar); To the Dog Kennel: Horse Disposal Practices on the 18th – 19th-Century Plantation Elizabeth McCague (University of Maryland, College Park); “Cattle, Mules, and Horses Are the Nerves of a Sugar Plantation”: Equine and Bovine Labour in the 18th Century Atlantic World Charlotte Carrington-Farmer (Roger Williams University)

11:30am–12:30pm: Equine History Collective Business Meeting

1:30pm–3:00pm Session 4: Equines and Local Ecologies Humans, and Housing in New Deal Lexington, KY Piotr Wojcik (University of Kentucky); Conservation in the Land of Enchantment: Arabian Horse Breeding and the Adaptive Reuse Use of the Davey and Pritzlaff Ranches Tobi Lopez Taylor (Independent Scholar); Hancocks & Hounds: Purity and Performance in Pedigree Registries Katrin Boniface (University of California, Riverside)

3:15pm–4:45pm Session 5: Microbes and Horses For the Health and Safety of Montana’s Horses: Horses, Diseases, and Veterinarians in Late 19th- and Early 20th-Century Montana Kerri Keller Clement (University of Idaho); The Army Veterinary Corps’ “Self-Constituted Ally”: Mange Mite, Horses, and Veterinary Authority in the First World War Islay Shelbourne (University of St. Andrews) ; “The Horse’s Worst Enemy”: The 1894 Glanders Outbreak in Territorial Arizona Frank Whitehead (University of Arizona)

Sunday April 24

8:00am–8:30am: “Morning” Coffee Meet the Editors Miriam Bibby (University of Glasgow) and Anastasija Ropa (Latvian Academy of Sports Education)

8:30am–10:00am Seminar 2: Thoroughbreds Roundtable Nancy Henry (University of Tennessee, Knoxville), Cynthia Kurtz (National Sporting Library & Museum), Donna Landry (Professor Emerita), Richard Nash (Indiana University), Emily Reeb (National Sporting Library & Museum)

10:15am–11:15am: Virtual Tour of the National Sporting Library and Museum Cynthia Kurtz and Emily Reeb

12:15pm–1:45pm Session 6: Emotion and Affect between Horse and Human A Labour of Love”: The Metamorphosis of the Horse from Companion to Lover Present in YA Horse Stories for Girls Alannah Mewes (University of the Sunshine Coast); The Horse Is in the Mail: The Equine Art of H. Goodwine Teresa Rogers (Independent Scholar); Desperate Souls and Equine Saviors: Horses in Contemporary Therapeutic Culture Miriam Adelman (Federal University of Paraná)

2:00pm–3:30pm Session 7: Multi-Species Methodologies Let There Be Livingstock: Determining the Relationship of Horses to Livestock from Archaeological Sites Kate Kanne (Northwestern University); Multispecies Ethnography and Wild Horses Christine Reed (University of Nebraska at Omaha); Horses and the Critter “Gene”: Reflections on the Phenomenon PSSM2 Christian Gundermann (Mount Holyoke College)

You can also visit the EHC Bonfire shop to check out our range of EHC-themed merchandise, including items with our lovely conference logo designed by EHC’s own Christian Krueger.

EHC2022: Attend our Keynote!

April 11, 2022 Equine HistoryLeave a comment

Our 2022 EHC Conference “All Creatures Great and Small” is fast approaching. Join us from April 22-24 as we explore the many inter-relationships between equines and other species ranging from humans to microorganisms, acknowledging the anthropogenic world animals cope with, while also de-centering people in animal history.

The keynote speaker for the conference is Dr. Susan Nance, and she will be speaking on “The Mule in the Coal Mine: Equines and Other Vulnerable Beings in the History of Human-Made Crises.” This talk focuses on the story of a network of mules, children, mice, rats, and adults in the coal mines of early 20th century Pennsylvania, and asks how and why, when people see animals in crisis, they may still fail to change course.

The keynote takes place from 8:15-9:15am (PDT) on Friday April 22, and it is open to the public! To attend, please register here and you will be sent the Zoom link.

Dr. Nance is Professor in the Department of History at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, and she is also an affiliated faculty member with U of G’s Campbell Centre for the Study of Animal Welfare. She is the author of various books and articles including Rodeo: An Animal History (University of Oklahoma Press, 2020), Entertaining Elephants: Animal Agency and the Business of the American Circus (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2013), and she is the editor of the latest volume in the Broadview Sources Series: Ranching and the American West (Broadview, 2022). Susan is currently working on a new project, Animals of the Las Vegas Strip, a study of the nature and scope of the wild and exotic animal trade in the United States. The project is funded by a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Insight Grant and brings together the fields of animal, environmental, consumer, and entertainment history. It asks: What it was like to be a trafficked wild animal in the 20th century? To find out more about Dr. Nance and her work, you can check out her website.

The conference program is now available to download. Registration for the full conference is available through this link. EHC members can register for a discounted price: you can find out more about EHC membership here.

If you need some more equid themed clothing in your life, check out our EHC merchandise, including the official merch for our 2022 conference!