Why Are They Called the "Horse" Latitudes? Storytelling and horse legends at their best

Horses below decks on board a sailing ship; they were valuable cargo but sometimes only half the horses made it to their destination. What happened to some horses out in the middle of the ocean is the stuff of legends.  Illustration by John Charlton, as seen in The Graphic in November 1878.

Whenever horsepeople get together, the stories begin. And some of us are very good at telling them. Farriers are among the best storytellers on the planet, and I’ve traveled enough to bear witness that their ability to hold people spellbound--and deliver a great punchline--crosses all latitudes and longitudes--even the "horse latitudes".

In the age of sail, the horse latitudes were treacherous seas, and not for the typical reason of storms and waves. In two latitudinal zones, one about 30 degrees North and one about 30 degrees South, wind can be scarce and, even today, a sailing ship can find itself floating in still water, waiting for a breeze that may be weeks away. There's one big difference between now and then: today's boats have engines to keep a boat moving when the wind dies.

Sitting on a calm sea gives plenty of time for storytelling, and there's one tale that has been told for hundreds of years whenever the sea goes calm and glassy. It still gives people a chill, and may bring tears. Invest a few minutes and have a listen to this lost classic tale:

Back in the 1980s, actor Geoffrey Lewis added a new layer to the unforgettable legends surrounding going to sea with horses during the age of sail.

• • • • •

Horses no longer travel by ship, for the most part, but that doesn't mean they've been forgotten out on the water, either. Perhaps some superstitious memory of the horse latitudes legend inspires so many sailboat owners to make sure that a horseshoe is bolted to the mast, and some shipbuilders still include a time-honored horseshoe nailing ritual in the laying of the keel.

The story behind these unpredictable geographic zones is a pretty gruesome one, but back in the 1970s, a famous storytelling “band” turned the legend into performance art with some embellishment of the story from well-known character actor Geoffrey Lewis. He spun the gruesome legend of the horse latitudes into one of the world’s most memorable horse stories.

Just as the name stuck hundreds of years ago, so did the new-age, enhanced story behind the name, thanks to Lewis's convincing delivery. Admittedly, there’s not much to see on this video, and the quality isn’t great; the audio track is the key.

I hope this story--and the storyteller--inspire you to perfect and record your own favorite stories, and that you will share them with me some night, on the deck of a boat or around a campfire or down at the end of the bar.

Did it really happen? You can believe it or not, as you wish.

Legends of the horse latitudes were revived in the 1960s when a band called The Doors recorded a gruesome spoken-word ode to lost horses at sea called "Horse Latitudes", written by their leader, Jim Morrison. It would be 25 years until Geoffrey Lewis and Celestial Navigations broached the tragic subject again.

Now, 25 years later, it might be time to look again at the legends surrounding the horse latitudes.

Spoiler alert, if you haven't watched the video: Geoffrey Lewis's story builds on centuries of speculation and legends about how the horse latitudes earned their name. On the factual side, naval lore tells us that some ships were becalmed for so long that horses being transported from Europe to the New World either died because their fodder ran out, or they were jettisoned by the crew because fresh water was at a premium and a horse requires so much fresh water every day.

Old records of Portuguese ships transporting horses to Brazil do document how many horses were lost during the journey, but suggest that the horses died during the journey rather than being sacrificed for the greater good of the ship's progress. In the annals of maritime voyages, the losses were attributed to poor planning to accommodate horses below decks or "pilot error" in navigating what came to be called the horse latitudes.

Other sources say that shrinking water supplies had nothing to do with it; horses were dispensed with because the sailors sought to lighten the ship so it would float higher in the water where lighter air might push it along on its course.

Whatever the reason, the zone may not have earned its name from the act of dispensing with horses, but rather from the effect on approaching mariners who saw a sea ahead of them dotted with the bodies of disposed horses. In the age of pre-GPS navigation or even reliable charts, it was an ominous sign.

Another interesting aspect of shipping horses to the Americas and other places in colonial times is that there weren't any docks or cranes or even ramps to offload them when they finally arrived. The horses were often pushed overboard and made to swim to shore. Think about a horse having spent weeks in a stall without any exercise suddenly being forced to swim for its life.

Given the high value of horses, and the colonists' intense desire to establish horse breeding in the colonies, it's hard to believe they wouldn't have planned in advance what to do when and if the ship hit a calm zone in the horse latitudes. It remains a mystery, the stuff of legends, and--if nothing else- a really good story, when it's your turn to tell one some night when the power's off, the campfire is burning low, or you still have that last 200 miles to drive.

--Fran Jurga

Note: Geoffrey Lewis refers to the "doldrums" rather than the horse latitudes. Technically, the doldrums are an area about 5 degrees of latitude north or south of the Equator, where a ship may be trapped without wind. That zone's official name is the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). Many people refer to the horse latitudes when they mean the doldrums, and vice versa. Also, "doldrums" is a generic word used for a calm area or time, typically found in either the horse latitudes or the doldrums themselves.


Learn more:

NOAA explanation of the horse latitudes

For good source material in English about early Spanish and Portuguese shipping of horses:

Johnson, J. (1943). The Introduction of the Horse into the Western Hemisphere. The Hispanic American Historical Review, 23(4), 587-610. doi:10.2307/2507859. Alternate free to read version at this link.

To view the script of the story, for those wishing to retell the story or develop it for performance, here's author RavenStorm's transcript of "The Horses".

And to see more videos of Geoffrey Lewis telling great stories:

Celestial Navigations tribute Facebook page
or search YouTube.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is the news service for Hoofcare and Lameness Publishing. Please, no re-use of text or images on other sites or social media without permission--please link instead. (Please ask if you need help.) The Hoof Blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a headlines-link email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). Use the little envelope symbol below to email this article to others. The "translator" tool in the right sidebar will convert this article (roughly) to the language of your choice. To share this article on Facebook and other social media, click on the small symbols below the labels. Be sure to "like" the Hoofcare and Lameness Facebook page and click on "get notifications" under the page's "like" button to keep up with the hoof news on Facebook.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: The Hoof Blog (Hoofcare Publishing) has not received any direct compensation for writing this post. Hoofcare Publishing has no material connection to the brands, products, or services mentioned, other than products and services of Hoofcare Publishing. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

FEI hosts new Grooms Working Group; will support their role in sport horse welfare

Grooms are gaining recognition for the role they play in equine welfare within equestrian sport. The FEI's new Grooms Working Group is expanding into a more formal registration program for international sport horse grooms. (Fran Jurga photo/©Hoof Blog)

The Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) hosted the inaugural meeting of its new Grooms Working Group at the Federation's headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland this week.

It was the first meeting of its kind. 

The working group was created following a recent survey among national equestrian federations to determine the best way to improve communications and interaction with grooms and what the FEI can do to help them.

As part of a day of very positive discussion, it was agreed by the working group that there was a need to establish a more formal relationship, with grooms being officially welcomed into the FEI family through being registered with the FEI. Registration would facilitate further development of education systems, and create a more structured framework for cooperation between the FEI and grooms.

In addition, the FEI is taking significant steps towards producing applications and other tools which will best serve the grooms, allowing them to streamline preparation for upcoming events.

“Grooms play an absolutely vital role in our sport, especially in preserving the welfare of our horses, but often they go unnoticed and unrecognized, so this new working group has been set up to change that and establish an official relationship with these very important members of our community,” FEI President Ingmar De Vos said after the meeting.

The new Grooms Working Group had its first meeting at FEI Headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland this week. (L-R): Nanna-Riikka Nieminen (Finland) and Brent Kuylen (Belgium) representing Jumping; Jackie Potts (Great Britain) representing Eventing; FEI President Ingmar De Vos; and Alan Davies (Great Britain) representing Dressage. (FEI photo)

“It is vital for the sport and for the development of our global equestrian community to have a solid support network, and for the FEI to offer assistance and education where necessary. Grooms are truly worth their weight in gold, and we want to provide the finest resources and tools that will help increase knowledge of best practices and standards. Forging better relationships with our grooms is only the beginning. We want to help them share their knowledge with the wider community for the benefit of the sport globally.”

“I felt very honored to be invited by the FEI to talk about the future of the grooms,” said dressage groom Alan Davies, who works with British Olympic stars Carl Hester and Charlotte Dujardin.

“I am super excited about the fact that the FEI want to do things to help the grooms and improve everything, which at the end of the day is for the welfare of the horse as well. It was a great meeting, we talked a lot about amazing new features and things which can be developed. It won’t be easy and it is going to take some time to put in place but it will be a fantastic project.”

Belgium's Brent Kuylen, who has worked with Dutch Jumping world champion Jeroen Dubbeldam, and Finland's Nanna-Riikka Nieminen, who previously groomed for two-time Olympian Henrik von Eckermann of Sweden, both agreed that the day had been a “great experience” and were looking forward to future initiatives.

“I think this is a real step forward,” said British Eventing legend William Fox-Pitt’s groom Jackie Potts. “It’s good to try and keep the standards up, and use the experience and the knowledge that some of us have gained over the years, in keeping welfare a priority and keeping grooms in the industry as well.”

Following this initial meeting, the FEI will now focus on the key components of integration, registration, education and communication. Membership in the Grooms Working Group will be expanded to include grooms from other disciplines, with the next meeting planned for 2018, ahead of the FEI World Equestrian Games™ in Tryon, North Carolina (USA).

Information for this article was provided by the FEI. 

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is the news service for Hoofcare and Lameness Publishing. Please, no re-use of text or images on other sites or social media without permission--please link instead. (Please ask if you need help.) The Hoof Blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a headlines-link email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). Use the little envelope symbol below to email this article to others. The "translator" tool in the right sidebar will convert this article (roughly) to the language of your choice. To share this article on Facebook and other social media, click on the small symbols below the labels. Be sure to "like" the Hoofcare and Lameness Facebook page and click on "get notifications" under the page's "like" button to keep up with the hoof news on Facebook.
  

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Disclosure of Material Connection: The Hoof Blog (Hoofcare Publishing) has not received any direct compensation for writing this post. Hoofcare Publishing has no material connection to the brands, products, or services mentioned, other than products and services of Hoofcare Publishing. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Happy Fourth of July: A look back to when Uncle Sam was at the anvil, sharpening an ominous sword

In mid-1941, the United States was still politically neutral as war erupted in Europe, North Africa, and Asia. The Atlantic wasn't safe for US ships anymore. So this popular Liberty magazine cover became a billboard for one side of the debate. Artist Arnold Freberg had Uncle Sam take off his long-tailed jacket, and roll up his sleeves. Is he forging this sword blade, from a plowshare, reversing the words of Isaiah in the Old Testament? Or is he determined to turn that sword into an instrument of peace?

It's the Fourth of July. So, why, back in 1941, did Liberty Magazine have this blacksmith hammering on a sword on its cover? The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was still six months in the future.

Just for background, Liberty was a very popular magazine back in its day. It was second only to the Saturday Evening Post in the hearts of Americans. Its subtitle was "A weekly for everybody." In the upper left of this cover art, you can see a tiny Statue of Liberty and the words "The American Way of Life".

The Fourth of July in 1941 was the last one before the attack on Pearl Harbor, when the US declared war on Japan, and then on Germany; thousands of American men were soon drafted into the military. For the next four years, the nation technically battled two wars, one in the Pacific and one in Europe and North Africa. Yet this cover doesn't reflect any peaceful innocence of pre-war days. It's calling for a fight.

When this issue of the magazine was published, Winston Churchill was begging for help as London crumbled beneath the blitzkrieg bombs. Jewish refugees continued to plead for rescue. British and Soviet forces invaded Iran to protect access to oilfields needed to fuel their armies and air forces. Japan occupied Saigon and it looked like Thailand would be next.

At first glance, this cover seems to call for the United States to enter the war. But Pearl Harbor was still five months away, and no one knew it was coming.

The week before this magazine appeared on newsstands, a German U-boat attacked an American warship in the Atlantic for the first time. President Roosevelt gave the Navy permission in the future to fire back, although only if fired upon first...if that wasn't too late.

In the age before television and the Internet, magazine covers were powerful billboards, whether they reassured Americans of an idealized and peaceful way of life on the cover of the Saturday Evening Post, or called for political or military action--without saying a word--like this striking cover of Liberty.

What's was the artist's method? He removed Uncle Sam's trademark long-tailed jacket and rolled up his sleeves. He is intent on his job, fully focused on the accuracy of his blow; one eye is even closed to sharpen his aim. The veins in his arms are visible. His suspenders are taut. An invisible wind is blowing his long hair back. He's not smiling.

Behind him, you can see a factory bellowing smoke, symbolizing rearmament of the US military and general preparation for war. And the eagle? He looks pretty angry, too, underneath those super-sized wings.

The blond-haired, blue-eyed, muscled-up Uncle Sam--which the editors must have thought personified America's vision of itself better than the usual elderly, gray-haired one--was fine-tuning his sword blade to go out into the world and wage war. This Uncle Sam is no multicultural symbol of diversity. Part of the US mission in World War II would be to liberate Asians and Europeans and Africans who looked nothing like him.

Likewise, most of the young men drafted to do the job would look nothing at all like this Uncle Sam.

This is one of the most politically charged magazine covers in history, yet it is rarely shown and its artist is uncelebrated. Maybe it was buried deep in our grandparents' attics for a reason, or maybe it needs to be dusted off, looked at, and discussed, as if we're seeing it for the first time.

To learn more:

If you watch Ebay or haunt flea markets, you can find a copy of this edition of Liberty, or sometimes just the cover, framed. It inspired people -- including me -- to think about the way politics made use of Uncle Sam.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is the news service for Hoofcare and Lameness Publishing. Please, no re-use of text or images on other sites or social media without permission--please link instead. (Please ask if you need help.) The Hoof Blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a headlines-link email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). Use the little envelope symbol below to email this article to others. The "translator" tool in the right sidebar will convert this article (roughly) to the language of your choice. To share this article on Facebook and other social media, click on the small symbols below the labels. Be sure to "like" the Hoofcare and Lameness Facebook page and click on "get notifications" under the page's "like" button to keep up with the hoof news on Facebook.
 

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Disclosure of Material Connection: The Hoof Blog (Hoofcare Publishing) has not received any direct compensation for writing this post. Hoofcare Publishing has no material connection to the brands, products, or services mentioned, other than products and services of Hoofcare Publishing. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

New HoofSearch documents give busy equine professionals a one-stop lifeline to newly-published global research

The time has come: After almost two years in the incubator (and the library), a new service is finally available to all. HoofSearch is a little on the nerdy side; it is designed for those of you interested in research--and eager to keep up with it. The press release below explains all you need to know about this new project. If you are truly interested in the science side of hoofcare and lameness, I hope you will subscribe. If you decide not to, you'll still have The Hoof Blog, and I'll always be here for you.

--Fran Jurga

The Royal Veterinary College’s Equine Locomotor Research Course for farriers expands to the USA

Good news! The already-successful graduate diploma research course for farriers at England's Royal Veterinary College (RVC) will be offered in the United States, beginning in January 2018. The deadline for applications is September 4, 2017. 

Sue Dyson: Double video explanation of equine ethogram for recognizing lameness and pain

Bad behavior or signs of pain? All the facial expressions shown here are part of the ethogram developed by Dr. Sue Dyson's research team at the Animal Health Trust in England. In a continuation of the research, recognition of facial expressions in both ridden and unridden horses has been recommended as a way to identify potential lameness, not just "naughty" behavior, with larger welfare implications. (Photos courtesy of Sue Dyson)

Researchers at the Animal Health Trust (AHT) Centre for Equine Studies in England have produced a practical tool to help owners, riders, and professionals recognize signs of pain by observing a horse’s facial expressions. The second part of the study was published recently, along with a new video, with a focus on facial expressions relationship to lameness. Both videos are included in this article.