The horse bred in the Central Basin and surrounding areas of Middle Tennessee was first and foremost a utility saddle horse. Blessed with a steady, dependable flat walk, a ground covering running walk, and a smooth comfortable canter, the horse was also intelligent, gentle, and willing to perform whatever chores were required. When drought and the arrival of mechanized farming destroyed the market for the usin’ horse in the fifties, many bloodlines were lost forever. Other bloodlines forged the foundation for today’s padded show walkers.

A few stalwart breeders retained the original vision with bloodstock that had been in their families for generations. These breeders insisted that the horses they rode and used regularly have smooth natural gaits. These horses had to be athletes with good bones and correct conformation to tackle the steep hills and rocky terrain of much of Middle Tennessee.  Of equal importance was the traditional gentle disposition. The horses were and remain ruggedly handsome, with the luxurious manes and naturally high tail carriages that were considered the hallmarks of a fine-bred horse in the formative years of the breed.

Today's Heritage Tennessee Walking Horse descends from bloodlines that have been in families for generations, bloodlines bred for gait and sense, not show ring primp and fire. A Heritage Walking Horse will trace back to horses with little or no breeding from padded sires and dams. The Heritage Walking Horse is an investment-quality horse!

CRITERIA FOR HERITAGE TENNESSEE WALKING HORSES

The International Heritage Walking Horse Association has yet again changed the standards on what makes a Heritage Horse distinctly different from the TWH bred exclusively for the show ring.  Please click on the link to go to their website to see what the current requirements are.

Various colors and patterns are exhibited within the Heritage Horse ranks. All color lines trace, generation to generation, to horses of those colors and patterns registered in the original TWHBEA Studbooks. Offspring of a pair of Heritage Horses are automatically designated as eligible once they exhibit a true, four beat, walking gait. (Foals from one Heritage parent and one from other bloodlines are referred to as Heritage Outcrosses. A few of the Heritage stallions and mares, due to the number of older lines in the third generation of their pedigrees, can sire or produce Heritage Horses from any bloodlines not discounted by other factors.) Delight's Midnight Legend is one of these stallions!