That horses have played a significant role in Prince Edward Island life would be an understatement. 'No where else in Canada have there been such numbers of horses relative to the number of people' says John Cousins in his thesis Horses in the Folklife of Western Prince Edward Island: Custom, Belief, and Oral Tradition. Horses replaced oxen as the draft animal of choice for P.E.I. farmers in the 1800s and the numbers of horses increased steadily from close to 19,000 of 1861 to some 36,000 in 1911. The versatility of the horse made it an extremely valuable asset on any farm. The horse plowed the fields, pulled the wagons and provided transportation for both people and goods and so became an essential part of the rural economy. And not only the rural economy depended on the horse since it wasn't until the invention of the internal combustion engine, that there were other methods to travel long distances, transport goods, and wage war.

And while the tractor, automobile, and other “machines” were replacing the horse in other parts of North America, it is interesting to note that the number of horses declined slowly on P.E.I. as there were still roughly 21,000 on the Island in 1951. This high figure may represent the effect of the continued small size of farm and low level of income compared to many other rural areas of North America where the horse had almost disappeared. But it may also reflect the love of the horse by Islanders and a lack of interest to change a valued part of their life-style. Certainly the opposition to the automobile in the early 1900s was an example of this with the unparalleled (in North America) passing of an act in 1908 which banned automobiles from Island roads. An act which held for five years!

There are now very few working horses left and few are on farms. A small number are kept to help gather Irish Moss which became an important industry, most especially in western P.E.I., in the last 40 years. Some people still breed draft horses but mostly for showing. The racing horse is now the most common horse on P.E.I.. Racing had always been an active sport on P.E.I. even in the days when the workhorse dominated, with the province earning the title of 'Kentucky of Canada'. By the 1880s the Island had more than two dozen harness racing tracks. The Charlottetown Driving Park has had continuous racing since 1890. Many rural families continued their connection to horses by raising standard bred horses for racing and the Island gradually acquired an excellent reputation in the Canadian and American marketplace for the quality of its thoroughbreds. And though the horse's role in Island life may now be almost completely one of entertainment, the love of the horse continues to run deep in the province. A profile of the P.E.I. horse industry written in 1988 stated that 'Prince Edward Island has more horses per square mile than any other province of Canada. The total economic impact of the P.E.I. Horse Industry is estimated to be in excess of $20,000,000.'.

Now enter the exhibit where you will find selections from the collections of the members of the Archives Council of P.E.I. demonstrating the importance of the horse in 19th and 20th century P.E.I. life.

man and horse

Horses in the Folklife of Western Prince Edward Island: Custom, Belief, and Oral Tradition

Canada. Prince Edward Island. The Garden of the Gulf