History of the
American Cream Draft Horse
The American Cream Draft Horse is the only draft breed that was developed in the United States. Specifically, their lineage goes back to Iowa to a mare named Old Granny who was discovered in 1911. She was sold to the Nelson Brothers Farm, where she was bred. Many of her foals had a light cream color, pink skin and amber eyes, the breed characteristics we see in Bert today.
As a breed they are a heavy animal with mares weighing 1600-1800 pounds and stallions 1800-2000 pounds and stand between 15-17hh. Known for their calm and willing temperaments, these horses make both excellent riding and driving horses, turning heads with their size and beauty. I certainly credit his breeding as to why Bert has picked up mounted archery so quickly! At birth they have blue dyes, which eventually turn into their amber color at maturity. These horses are genetically chestnut, also carrying the champagne gene which results in their cream coloring.
While Old Granny's breeding is unknown, it is with her foals that a type began to form. Her offspring went on to make grand babies with other drafts, like Percherons and Shire mixes, until Silver Lace No. 9 was born and went on to be one of the influential studs for the American Cream Drafts. His dam was a Belgian Draft horse and she is credited with the size we see in these horses today, as Silver Lace was the biggest horse in his lines. He became a popular stallion in Iowa, despite the states requiring stallions stand for public service to be registered with the Iowa Department of Agriculture, which only accepted horses of recognized breads His owners got around this requirement by opening Silver Lace Horse Company, where mare owners could purchase stock, which served to give them breeding rights to the stallion.
It was the breading of Silver Lace during the Great Depression that the American Cream Draft found more type in the offspring. Breeders became more selective about type and color in this this and breed standards were developed. A man named C. T. Rieson began buying Silver Lace mares and producing foals with a specific goal in mind. Towards the end of the second world war, twenty owners and breeders banded together and formed the American Cream Association, which granted them a corporate charter in the state of Iowa. The Iowa Department of Agriculture recognized the breed in 1950 because of a recommendation by the National Stallion Enrollment board in 1948. Despite the state finally recognizing the breed, numbers declined during this decade. Draft horses were being replaced by mechanical farm equipment and all numbers declined for every breed, leaving the American Cream Drafts with under 200 registered between 41 breeders. Between Rieson's death in 1957 and the loss of equine jobs the American Cream Draft was nearly extinct.
The American Cream Draft registry became active again in 1982 with three families beginning to rebuild the number of these horses, changing the organization's name in 1994 to the American Cream Draft Horse Association. While there are still less than 500 registered in the world, the numbers are beginning to grow again. Anyone breeding these draft horses today promises to maintain breed standards as they have existed for the past century, rather than succumbing to a more modern version of draft horse. This ensures that the American Cream Draft will always have a true draft horse style, rather than being a more flashy show horse. With the help of modern research, horses are also tested for Junctional Epidermolysis Bullosa (JEB), like inherited from their Belgian lines.
As a breed they are a heavy animal with mares weighing 1600-1800 pounds and stallions 1800-2000 pounds and stand between 15-17hh. Known for their calm and willing temperaments, these horses make both excellent riding and driving horses, turning heads with their size and beauty. I certainly credit his breeding as to why Bert has picked up mounted archery so quickly! At birth they have blue dyes, which eventually turn into their amber color at maturity. These horses are genetically chestnut, also carrying the champagne gene which results in their cream coloring.
While Old Granny's breeding is unknown, it is with her foals that a type began to form. Her offspring went on to make grand babies with other drafts, like Percherons and Shire mixes, until Silver Lace No. 9 was born and went on to be one of the influential studs for the American Cream Drafts. His dam was a Belgian Draft horse and she is credited with the size we see in these horses today, as Silver Lace was the biggest horse in his lines. He became a popular stallion in Iowa, despite the states requiring stallions stand for public service to be registered with the Iowa Department of Agriculture, which only accepted horses of recognized breads His owners got around this requirement by opening Silver Lace Horse Company, where mare owners could purchase stock, which served to give them breeding rights to the stallion.
It was the breading of Silver Lace during the Great Depression that the American Cream Draft found more type in the offspring. Breeders became more selective about type and color in this this and breed standards were developed. A man named C. T. Rieson began buying Silver Lace mares and producing foals with a specific goal in mind. Towards the end of the second world war, twenty owners and breeders banded together and formed the American Cream Association, which granted them a corporate charter in the state of Iowa. The Iowa Department of Agriculture recognized the breed in 1950 because of a recommendation by the National Stallion Enrollment board in 1948. Despite the state finally recognizing the breed, numbers declined during this decade. Draft horses were being replaced by mechanical farm equipment and all numbers declined for every breed, leaving the American Cream Drafts with under 200 registered between 41 breeders. Between Rieson's death in 1957 and the loss of equine jobs the American Cream Draft was nearly extinct.
The American Cream Draft registry became active again in 1982 with three families beginning to rebuild the number of these horses, changing the organization's name in 1994 to the American Cream Draft Horse Association. While there are still less than 500 registered in the world, the numbers are beginning to grow again. Anyone breeding these draft horses today promises to maintain breed standards as they have existed for the past century, rather than succumbing to a more modern version of draft horse. This ensures that the American Cream Draft will always have a true draft horse style, rather than being a more flashy show horse. With the help of modern research, horses are also tested for Junctional Epidermolysis Bullosa (JEB), like inherited from their Belgian lines.