I Bit the Bullet and Got a Very Large Heiser Item - Heiser Model 39 Saddle

[boykinlp]

Here are some pages from the Catalog I found my saddle in. It is the Heiser #28 Catalog. It should be from approximately 1935. The saddle is their Model 39 “The Oklahoma Special Roper Fork Saddle”. Do any of y’all have any other Catalogs with this Model saddle in it? Thanks.
Larry

 

[richcory]

OP, I really like that saddle, congrats.

Cory

 

[boykinlp]

I told you folks in my first post that the original owner of this saddle, whose initials "WR" are carved in the saddle, rode every year in the "Swallows Parade" near the mission in downtown San Juan. He was one the the Horsemen that are a big part of the parade, and this saddle was in the parade for decades. Hoping to find out who "WR" might be, I contacted the current organizer (Jim Taylor) of the parade.

I hoped maybe there was a program with a list of the riders or some other way he could help me identify who the owner was. Unfortunately, Mr. Taylor told me this about the parade: The Fiesta de las Golondrinas is an outgrowth of a school carnival in the 1930’s which was held to celebrate the return of the swallows. It became a local equestrian parade. Original events consisted of an equestrian parade, a trail ride, and a western dance. The Swallows Day Parade is now one of the nation’s largest non-motorized parades and draws interest worldwide. The parade has 3000-5000 participants, which include around 400 riders, each year. Having that many people involved each year makes it near impossible to figure out who "WR" might be. He said he would include my request in their newsletter that goes out to around 800 people.

My detective work is lacking. Do you folks have any ideas for me? I would really like to find out who the original owner was!
Larry

 

[Salty RI]

Today on How It's Made they made a saddle, it's all done by hand, the tools they use cut through that leather like it was butter, it took 40 hrs to make the saddle.

Sent from my LGL455DL using Tapatalk

 

[Claymore33]

Great saddle

As a guy who rides fence and works cattle every week, that is a great saddle. Worth @ $ 2,000

Claymore

 

[stamper]

That is just flat-out awesome.

 

[sunnybunny]

And a few more:
Larry

Hi, I found your post while looking for some HHH photos. It is really a beauty and I think you were lucky to find it. I live in North San Diego County and rode the area between there and San Juan Cap for decades and still go to the Swallows. Happy to report that cowboys still ride thru the Swallows (bar) on Swallows Day, by boyfriend among them. So the Portola Riders are based up there and I have many friends whose families have ranched there for generations and I will start asking around. Camp Pendleton divided these families but we used to get together for a three day ride to reenact when the Mexican government retook the Missions after their triumph over Spain. I can't tell you how much fun that was but 9.11 but an end to that kind of access to the base and the beach.

 

[huntsman22]

my old Heiser....

 

[Iggy]

That circle T is more than likely a ranch brand.

 

[rednichols]

The earliest known Heiser catalogue is 1895's No. 6. Unfortunately for your quest I keep scans of only the gunleather pages because the cats are very thick and I've no interest in saddles. BUT turnerriver has a substantial collection of complete Heiser catalogues, a few of which I donated to it.

 

[boykinlp]

This saddle now resides in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. So it has done some serious back and forth traveling across the country in the last few years. San Juan Capistrano, CA to Arizona to SC to ID. I moved it along to fund something else. Some folks thought I was crazy having a saddle with no horse, but I could explain it because of my interest in western leather. But now, I have a saddle stand, blanket, and an extra leather strap, but NO saddle and NO horse! It sure was nice to look at!
Larry

 

[Onomea]

For you saddle leather guys, this seems apropos here, an article about the Ambler saddle, and a link to the song the late, great, Ian Tyson wrote about it:

The Ambler Saddle: Where Western music met rodeo history with Ian Tyson and Cody Bill Smith | TSLN.com

https://youtu.be/jad1R8As2Qc?si=UbqMz6hqOrGKzHFL

 

[boykinlp]

For you saddle leather guys, this seems apropos here, an article about the Ambler saddle, and a link to the song the late, great, Ian Tyson wrote about it:

The Ambler Saddle: Where Western music met rodeo history with Ian Tyson and Cody Bill Smith | TSLN.com

https://youtu.be/jad1R8As2Qc?si=UbqMz6hqOrGKzHFL

I like the saddle story MUCH better than the song!! It’s hard for me to believe that a bronc buster could continue riding, and winning, on a saddle with a broken tree. That’s just CRAZY!
Larry

 

[Onomea]

Or one too small for him. I think that's pretty amazing.

He did say he repaired the tree, as well as other parts of the saddle, by himself.

(Re Ian Tyson's Ambler saddle song, my wife certainly agrees with you! Not a fan, she. I, and the rest of my family, growing up in the sixties, were Ian & Sylvia fans. I still enjoy them, those folk recordings from way back when. Marvelous harmony. But I really like Ian's solo stuff, when he got into what a cousin of mine in the late '80s called "western swing." Lotta his stuff out there, if ya look.)