From Cincinnati to the Colorado Ranger: The Horsemanship of Ulysses S. Grant

The cramped and dusty riding hall of West Point Military Academy was an unlikely setting for a high jump record. Most of the cadets dreaded going there. The academy horses were notoriously hard, the saddles even harder and the riding instructor’s tone was harsh and mocking. Yet on a pleasant May morning in 1843, a slender cadet on a large chestnut horse called York cleared a hurdle over six feet high in front of a small crowd. Although the spectators must have been impressed by the feat of ...