The Comanche became legendary horsemen, terrorizing their enemies, frightening away settlers, keeping the plains open and wild. By the late 1800's more than a million mustangs roamed the Texas frontier. So many mustangs that early maps of the region labeled the plains with just two words -- "Wild Horses."

The Nez Perce Spotted Horses 1877
Few tribes could rival the Nez Perce Indians in the art of selective breeding The Nez Perce inhabited the mountainous plateau region at the intersection of what are now the states of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. Here, near the Palouse River, the steep mountains and box canyons provided natural enclosures in which horses could be contained or separated for selective breeding. The trademark of the Nez Perce horses was their spots. These horses, named Appaloosas after the river near which they were bred, were renowned among western Indians for their speed and endurance.

The peaceful life of the Nez Perce was ended when settlers and miners intruded on their lands. Treaties were made and broken, until Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce led his people and 3,000 horses on a 1,600 mile evacuation to Canada in 1877. All along the way, the Indians fought off pursuing cavalry. In one battle alone, the Indians lost 900 of their spotted horses. Just below the Canadian border, Chief Joseph surrendered to the cavalry as he heroically declared, "I will fight no more forever." His tribe was decimated, wounded, and starving. The remaining tribal members were exiled to Oklahoma, and Chief Joseph was imprisoned in Fort Leavenworth. The remaining 1,100 horses were dispersed. The purity and survival of the Appaloosa was threatened until the breed was revived in the 1900s.