Category: Archives

A RESEARCH REQUEST

Research requests are always varied and interesting, and it’s easy to get lost in the stories from decades ago. Just before Christmas, the Museum received a request for any information regarding Dan Munsell and the western horses he sold out east in the mid-1940’s.

THE FACTS

Dan Munsell had sold a carload of western horses to the lumbermen and farmers of the Sussex, NB area. [The researcher’s grandfather] had bought a team of horses from them. During this horse purchasing transaction, [the researcher’s father] was able to get to know Mr. Munsell and his stepson. 

After all the carload of horses were sold, Mr. Dan Munsell bought a second-hand car from a car dealer in St. John, NB. The car was a used 1940’s dark green 4 door Chevrolet, which had a standard transmission, whose previous owner was a doctor in St. John. 

In early May 1946, [the researcher’s 19 year-old father] and his high school buddy Ernie started their fascinating journey west. They drove from Sussex, New Brunswick to Cut Knife, Saskatchewan with Dan Munsell and his stepson.

– from the request

FROM A LOCAL HISTORY BOOK

The researcher had numerous questions about the horses, their transportation out east, and other details. Unfortunately, very little information turned up in the Museum’s search. The following excerpt was the only direct reference:

When farming was horse power, the Munsell family were involved in securing and breaking bronchos. This meant they would go down to Medicine Hat, Alta. and drive back a number of head of range bronchos and then commence the work of breaking the animals to harness and work. When broken these were sold to other farmers in the area. This also meant that the problem of getting the animals to Cut Knife meant overland drives of many miles and several days duration.

from Blended Heritage: Zera Albert and Mary Ellen Munsell family history, page 773.

FROM A PRIMARY SOURCE

So Randy S. went looking further afield and offered up the following notes from Glen Brebner, a lifelong horse aficionado:

The horses referenced as broncos in the text were likely feral horses from the Alberta foothills. They were smaller, tougher, and stronger, and were captured, broke, and sold for work in those days. They were sometimes called cayuses or broomtails because of their long bushy tails which they’d turn to the wind to protect themselves from the cold in the winter and which would swish flies in the summer.

Glen says that sometimes people would try to “improve” these horses by culling out their natural stallions and substituting draught horse stallions to try to increase the size. The curious thing is that the interbreeding would only take for one generation, then the horses would always revert to their smaller ancestors. They were often sold for work around Saskatchewan and transported to the east coast by rail car.

from a conversation between Glen Brebner and Randy S.

So many stories, so little time…

~ Debbie M.