#207 How Indians of the American West Acquired Horses

[Notice: Friends of the podcast, I will be in New Orleans from April 28 through May 8, and would be delighted to get together for a beer or something. If there is interest, send me a DM on X or better an email at thehistoryoftheamericans *at* gmail, and I’ll set up a meetup!] Going down a rabbit hole while learning about the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, I started reading about something I have wondered about – how and when did the Indians of the American West acquire horses and learn to use them rather than eat them? The answer is not what you think, or at least not what I thought before I did this work. The story begins with the discovery of silver in Mexico, which I did not see coming. Subscribe to my Substack! X – @TheHistoryOfTh2 – https://x.com/TheHistoryOfTh2 Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/HistoryOfTheAmericans Primary references for this episode William Taylor, et. al., “Early dispersal of domestic horses into the Great Plains and northern Rockies,” Science, 30 March 2023. Jack D. Forbes, “The Appearance of the Mounted Indian in Northern Mexico and the Southwest, to 1680,” Southwestern Journal of Anthropology, Summer, 1959.