County Museum Acquires Antique Saddle

Online, March 27, 2012 (Newswire.com) - KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. - An Army saddle believed to have been used at the Fort Klamath military post in the late 1800s has been acquired by the Klamath County Museum. It will be exhibited for the first time during a program at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 31, in the Baldwin Hotel Museum lobby. Shardon Lewis of Eagle Creek, a Civil War re-enactor and longtime student in the history of the U.S. Cavalry, will speak during the March 31 program. Admission is free.

"We're very excited to have located an extremely valuable artifact directly related to the fort, and to bring it back home to Klamath County" said Mark Clark, professor of history at Oregon Institute of Technology and chairman of the museum's advisory board. "It's hard to imagine a better object to display at Fort Klamath than a genuine saddle that was typical of what the Cavalry used throughout the American West."

The saddle is a McClellan 1874 model typical of those used by thousands of Cavalry troops from the Civil War through the early 20th century. A strap on the saddle carries a "Fort Klamath" stamp. Accessories that came with the saddle bear markings indicating they were used by a soldier in the Army's Fourth Cavalry, which saw action during the Modoc Indian War and other battles in Oregon. Fort Klamath operated from 1863 to 1889, and was an important base for the Army during the Modoc Indian War of 1872-73. Klamath County acquired an eight-acre parcel that includes the fort's parade grounds in 1966, and has operated a museum at the site since 1972.

The museum purchased the McClellan saddle in February from a collector in Central Point at a cost of $4,999. The Klamath County Historical Society contributed $1,000 to the saddle's cost. The saddle came with numerous articles of tack and accessories, Clark said.

"A beautiful saber and sheath came with the saddle, along with many accoutrements that were typically used by a cavalryman," he continued. "It would have taken us a long time and a lot of money to gather all the items that came along with this saddle."

Other objects acquired along with the saddle include a pair of saddle bags, a canteen, a feed bag, a parade blanket, and a headstall. One particularly rare object obtained with the saddle is a picket pin, which was driven in the ground to tie down a horse.

Lewis will discuss why the McClellan saddle won and retained the loyalty of Army troops over so many years, and will describe how the various accessories helped troopers travel in the field for long periods of time. Lewis, a social studies teacher at Grant High School in Portland, took an interest in Cavalry history while attending Oregon State University in the early 1970s. He studied under a professor who had retired from a previous career in the Cavalry. Lewis later joined the Northwest Civil War Council, and helped establish the Northwest Cavalry Association. He also assisted in the organization of the Cascade Civil War Society in Klamath Falls.

"I've always had a love of horses, and I really became interested in the Cavalry during the centennial of the Civil War," Lewis said. "I've never stopped studying Civil War history."

Clark said the saddle will be on display this spring in the Klamath County Museum before being moved to the Fort Klamath Museum for the summer season. No tax revenues are used by the museum to purchase artifacts, Clark said. A special acquisition fund is supported by donations and fundraisers, he said. While admission to Saturday's program will be free, Clark said, the museum will appreciate any donations to help replenish the museum's acquisition fund.

For more information contact the Klamath County Museum at 541-883-4208.

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