The Morgan Horse and horse breeds from around the world.
Today the Morgan horse thrives in the United States, Canada, Great Britain,
Australia, Spain, New Zealand, Germany, Italy and Sweden. 
The Morgan horse is kept as a show horse and also competes in a variety
of spheres, such as cutting horse, stock horse and reining horse classes,
hunter-jumper, dressage, roadster and carriage driving.
Did You Know :
A Morgan horse named Comanchee, the mount of captain Myles Keogh, was
the only non-Indian survivor of the Battle of the Little Big Horn in 1876.
He recovered from his many wounds and lived to the ripe old age of 29.
Physical Attributes of the Morgan Horse
Height
from 14.1 to 15.2hh approx
Colour Range
Bay, Chestnut, brown or black.
No white markings permitted above the knee or hock, except on the face.
Conformation
Expressive head, with straight or slightly dished profile, broad forehead,
large eyes and short alert ears.
Full soft mane and tail.
Slightly arched neck; sloping shoulders and well defined withers.
Compact deep body with short back well sprung ribs, broad loins and
deep flank.
Well muscled hind quarters with high set tail.
Straight sound legs with short cannons flat bone and sufficiently long
sloping pasterns to provide light springy steps.
Good sound feet with dense horn.
Origins of the Morgan Horse Breed
The horse, Justin Morgan was a living legend who began as an unremarkable
colt and became the father of an entire breed of horses recognized for
their quality and dependability.
Born in 1789, Justin Morgan started life as a small, rough-coated colt
known as Figure. In 1791, he left his birthplace in Springfield, Massachusetts
with his new owner, the soft-spoken schoolteacher Justin Morgan, by whose
name the stallion eventually became known.
His breeding was unknown but thought to be Dutch, Thoroughbred or Arabian
breeding. The quality of Justin Morgan's ancestry showed in his straight
clean legs; deep muscling over his quarters and shoulders; and fine, intelligent
head with large expressive eyes and short, pricked ears. Add to these
the quality of his movement, a thick but silky mane and tail, and a clean-cut
throatlatch, and you have the conformation of the ideal light horse.
Despite these fine qualities, Justin Morgan's lack of size was such that
his debt-ridden owner found no buyers on their journey north to Randolph
Center, Vermont. It was simply fate that no one but, his new owner realized
what a little giant he was.
Over the next 30 years, the little bay stallion worked long, hard hours
in the fields and on the roads of Vermont. Gradually, the local population
began to talk about the feats of "the Justin Morgan horse".
Standing just over 14 hands tall, Justin Morgan's exploits gained him
fame because he was not as big as colonial workhorses nor as tall and
long-legged as racehorses, yet he consistently outperformed both. There
was the time he pulled a log no draft horse could budge, the day only
he had the beauty, spirit and manners to carry President James Monroe
on a muster-day parade ground; and the time he outran the most winning
racehorse central Vermont had ever known, at least until that day.
Doing it all and doing it well, Justin Morgan remained sound of eye,
wind, and limb throughout a lifetime of two ordinary horses. That should
have been enough, but the stallion added still more: showy, ground-covering
gaits with speed to spare at any one of them; a gentle disposition that
made him safe enough for a child to handle yet spirited enough for any
horseman, beauty men would recall decades after his death; and a rare
courage that made men who lost bets on him hit their flagons of rum and
say, 'To the little Morgan!' and drink deeply.
Justin Morgan also proved to be one of the greatest breeding horses of
all time. As the saga of the little stallion grew, countless mares were
bred to him. So potent were the genes of this stallion that no matter
what type of mare he was bred to, be she of heavy draft or refined racing-type,
his offspring inherited his image and abilities.
While most breeds develop by breeding horses of similar characteristics
to each other, Justin Morgan's ability to pass his characteristics to
his offspring for generations to come allowed this single stallion to
found an entire breed in his likeness.
Today, every registered Morgan can trace his ancestry back to Justin
Morgan, through his best-known sons Bulrush, Sherman and Woodbury.
In the coming years, the offspring of these strong, willing, able light
horses grew along with the young nation that was building itself upon
hard work and determination. In the hands of American colonists, Morgans
cleared rugged Vermont mountainsides and converted them into rich farmland.
But they weren't mere workhorses, Morgans had the style and elegance to
capture the admiration of any city horseman. While some Morgans earned
their keep on the farm others were in high demand to become smart roadsters
for Boston and New York financiers. When harness racing reached its heyday
in the 1800s, the World's Fastest Trotting Stallion was Ethan Allen 50,
old Justin's handsome great-grandson.
As America grew so did the feats of the Morgan horse. 
New England men answered the call of gold and headed for California on
Morgans.
In the Civil War, the famed Vermont Cavalry was mounted on Morgan horses.
Not only did the Union's General Sheridan ride his Morgan Rienzi, but
Stonewall Jackson rode his Morgan, 'Little Sorrel,' for the Confederacy
as well!
In the Indian Wars, the only survivor in the Battle of the little Big
Horn was Keogh's Morgan-bred horse Comanche.
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