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MODEL 1864 McCLELLAN CAVALRY SADDLE – SHOWING
HEAVY USE AND MODIFICATIONS - STRONG EVIDENCE WHICH
MAKES A COMPELLING CASE WITH THAT THIS SADDLE WAS
ULTIMATELY OWNED AND USED BY A NATIVE AMERICAN – A VERY
EVOCATIVE SURVIVOR OF THE FRONTIER:
This Model 1864 McClellan
Saddle was manufactured during the Civil War and was one
of the many thousands which saw continued service on the
western frontier after the war. The Civil War
manufactured McClellans were made in such large numbers
that they fulfilled the army’s need for saddles as
originally designed, then as the foundation for the
modifications incorporated for the Models 1868, 1870 and
1872 McClellan Saddles, and ultimately the Civil War
trees were used to build the Model 1874 McClellans until
the adoption of design changes in the trees in 1885.
In today’s world, we tend to regard saddles as a fairly
durable purchase; however modern saddles are not
subjected to the heavy use and the exposure to the
elements which rapidly consumed the frontier army’s
saddles. In a communication written by an Ordnance
officer during the early post-Civil War Indian War
years, he reported the service life of saddles on
campaign at a mere six months. Between long miles,
severe elements, and incidents of falls or accidents,
the saddles soon fell into such a state of disrepair
that they were deemed no longer serviceable and beyond
any hope of repair, upon which time they were stripped
of any serviceable components and the trees were
consigned to the saddler shop’s stove or the post’s
trash pit.
This McClellan Saddle presents as an example of one of
those which was surveyed out of service, but as the old
adage tells us, “one man’s trash is another man’s
treasure”. Once the decision was made, this saddle was
stripped of all of the brass and iron fittings such as
the escutcheon plates, pommel shield, footloops, screws,
and the equipment rings and staples, and the finished
bridle leather quarterstraps and skirts were removed.
All of these components were of considerable value to
the saddlers and ordnance sergeants on the frontier
posts as their workshops were at the extreme end of the
supply system and spare parts and finished leather were
both expensive and difficult to obtain.
The seat’s rawhide covering and the stirrup strap loop
on each side of the side bar was left in place, probably
because the company saddler felt neither were worth the
effort to remove them, or if the saddle was stripped by
an Indian intending to use the parts for other purposes,
the rawhide covering and the stirrup strap loops were
left in place because they served a useful function.
Likely the cause of the saddle being removed from
service by the army, the crest of the pommel arc
suffered a heavy blow which resulted in a considerable
loss of wood, including the coat strap slot. While the
mortise which joins the two sides of pommel crest was
separated, the tree retained its structural integrity
with no movement or looseness – a credit to the design
and original construction of these trees. What is
notable about this damaged area is that it provides
compelling evidence that this saddle was ridden for many
years after the damage occurred. The exposed wood where
the rawhide covering has worn away and the edges of the
broken wood are polished smooth, with an almost
glass-like surface. This could only have occurred as
the result of endless miles with the rider resting his
hands or his rifle across the pommel of the saddle and
the rocking gait of the horse giving motion to the
polishing effect of that wear. Only a person with few
or no other alternatives or resources would have
continued to use this saddle over the long term. Even a
down on his luck frontiersman, miner or sod buster would
eventually have had the opportunity to find a better
alternative or at the very least, make improvements or
repairs to this saddle. Instead, this saddle was used
as is, and for a very long time.
Whether this stripped tree was obtained from a unit in
the field, having been cast off from a column or lost in
an engagement with hostile Indians, scavenged from a
fort’s trash pit, or possibly given or traded to Indians
who frequented the fort and were known to the soldiers,
at some point this saddle passed into the hands of a
Native American who continued to put this tired old
veteran to good use.
The final feature which offers compelling evidence that
this saddle was used by a Native American is the manner
in which the saddle was rigged. As noted above, all of
the quarter straps which would have been used to secure
the saddle on the horse were removed, and in light of
the alternative girthing arrangement which was employed
on this saddle, I suspect the quarter straps were
removed before the saddle left the army's possession.
In their stead, pairs of holes are found on the front
and rear extensions of the side bars, arranged in the
identical manner of the girth strap attaching holes
found on the saddles made by the Plains Tribes. The
pairs of holes are burned through the rawhide and
underlying wood, and show wear and elongating
commensurate with the appearance of the balance of the
saddle.
As can be seen in the photographs below, the rawhide
covering
has worn away from the crest of
the pommel. The curls of the original rawhide tree
covering adjacent to the bare wood have been softened to
the consistency of brain tanned buckskin, again from the
continued rubbing of the Indian’s hand or his rifle as
they rested on the pommel as he rode. The softening of
the rawhide to buckskin-like leather is another
testament to the natural aging process of this saddle as
it continued to be used. The balance of the rawhide
seat covering is mostly intact with a beautiful aged
patina and color. There is some loss of the rawhide
which covered the iron pommel and cantle arches, and the
seams which join the rawhide under both the pommel and
cantle arcs are separated, however this is a common
occurrence on any of these rawhide covered trees to
include those that stayed in service with the army.
There a short area where the seam has opened along one
side of the central seat vent. All of these minor
openings are stable, show no sign of enlarging and they
do not detract from the saddle’s unique appearance. Most
remarkable is that in spite of the obvious prolonged use
and wear, all of the seams along the edges of the side
bars are fully intact and all of the rawhide is still
present on the side bar extensions and on the under side
of the seat.
The stirrups are a perfect match for the overall
appearance of this saddle. Perhaps acquired from the
same source as the saddle and very likely at the same
time, these stirrups are the classic Civil War era
hooded stirrups which were modified – most likely by the
trooper while they were still in service – in a very
typical manner by having the toe area of the hood
removed. The standard Civil War McClellan Saddle Hooded
Stirrups featured a narrow tread and a closely fitted
leather hood, both of which served to provide the
soldier with a very short space to fit his shoe or boot,
making it difficult to “keep” his stirrups. In response
to the soldier’s complaints, as the hooded stirrup
developed through the models that followed both the
wooden tread and the depth of the front bell of the hood
were increased to provide a better purchase on the
stirrup. In the interim, while the Civil War era
stirrups were still in use during and after the war, the
soldiers modified the stirrup hoods to allow the foot to
sit deeper in the stirrup for a more secure seat. One
method employed by the soldiers was to cut out almost
the entire front of the stirrup hood, as can be seen on
this pair. These field modified stirrups are fairly
rare for once the saddle was turned in, these modified
pieces were often discarded by the Ordnance Department
as ruined items of no further value and they did not
survive in storage to eventually make it into the retail
system in such places as Bannerman’s. For this reason,
these field modified stirrups are seldom found. That
they are known to have been disposed of by the company
saddlers makes their appearance on this saddle very
appropriate, attesting to its origin on the frontier.
The stirrups are a matched pair and both show wear
commensurate with the condition of the saddle. The left
stirrup frame was spilt with some loss of wood on the
tread, which led to a practical repair consistent with
Native American repairs to broken gun stocks. A strip
of salvaged leather was placed around the outside curve
of the bottom of the stirrup and secured in place with
rows of evenly spaced iron tacks – something the army
would not have gone to the effort to do. This repair is
the effort of a person who had neither an alternative
nor a ready source of supply, but did have the ingenuity
and the sense of design to execute this effective and
attractive solution. The stirrups are suspended on old
harness leather straps tied in place with old native
tanned thongs. Both straps are very solid with no weak
points.
This is the sort of Western Frontier artifact that
seldom appears on the market, either treasured in a
private collection which never sees the light of day, or
long ago disposed of as a lesser quality eyesore with no
appreciation for what it represents. This McClellan
Saddle is literally a “diamond in the rough”, used to
the limits of its design and purpose during its service
life, only to be ridden far past its prime by a Native
American who appreciated the wind fall of a ready-made
saddle. This is a very special saddle and one which you
will enjoy adding to your collection.
SOLD
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