American Cream Draft

Submitted by Gregg Banse on August 10, 2005 - 4:06pm. Draft Horses

Origin: Iowa, America
Height: Around 16.2 hh
Colors: Light, medium and dark cream
Build: Solid, muscular, not as large as the Shire or Clydesdale

Attributes: Very calm and gentle; eager to work, strong and grounded

History of the American Cream Draft Horse

The American Cream Draft horse is the first and only true breed of draft horse that is native to the United States. The American Cream Draft started with one mare, Old Granny, in 1911. Old Granny's ancestry is entirely unknown, however what is known is that she was a draft horse with a beautiful cream color. Old Granny was then bred to a black Percheron in 1920, and produced a colt, named Nelson's Buck, which had the same cream coloring as his mother. This stallion was crossed with another black Percheron mare, and their offspring was a colt named Yancey. Yancey's great grandson was Knox #1, who was bred to a sorrel Belgian mare. The offspring of this union was the gorgeous silver colt named Silver Lace.

Silver Lace sired many foals, on many different types of draft horse. Shortly, many cream draft horses were found on farms around the small town of Melbourne, Iowa. In 1939 Silver Lace was found dead under mysterious circumstances, and it is believed that perhaps a jealous buyer may have killed the stallion.

Lucky for the American Cream Draft, in a nearby county a man by the name of Theodore Rierson bought as many of the cream mares as he could find. The heritage of each mare was then discovered and documented. By 1944 the newly-founded American Cream Association had a complete record of all of Old Granny and Silver Lace's known offspring.

Unfortunately the American Cream Draft horse came into being at the same time the use of draft horses was declining. This meant that although the American Cream Draft was a beautiful, well tempered and strong horse, the American Cream Draft did not have many buyers. The population of the American Cream Drafts began to decrease drastically, and they came very close to extinction. Thankfully, in 1977 the American Minor Breeds Conservancy was organized and it helped to bring many small and declining breeds, such as the American Cream Draft, back to life. Finally in 1982 the American Cream Draft Association was formed to replace the now defunct American Cream Horse Association. Today (Nov. 2003) there are 300 registered American Cream Drafts in the United States, and they can be found around the country.

Characteristics of the American Cream Draft Horse

Appearance and Conformation of the American Cream Draft Horse

The American Cream Draft has a similar conformation to that of other draft horses. In this case it is the color and lineage that mark the American Cream Draft horse as distinct, not its build. An American Cream Draft is very muscular, but not that tall. The American Cream Drafts are more similar to the Percheron or Belgian, rather than the taller Shire and Clydesdale.

The color of the American Cream Draft runs from a very light cream - almost white - to a darker, almost buckskin color. The darker coloring is sometime referred to as a palamino color.

To be registered, a Cream needs to have some pink skin, the Cream coloring, white mane, tail and markings. The skin can be either all pink or mottled (pink and dark) and the place most often used to check is under the tail. The pink skin is the result of a special color gene in the American Cream Draft horses is called the Champaign gene.

American Cream Draft horses that have the light skin, although more prone to sunburn, produce a more rich cream color, and are therefore more desired. American Cream Draft horses with the darker skin produce a lighter color that can actually be close to pure white.

When American Cream Draft horses are born, the foals have nearly white eyes which will darken to the breed's unique amber as they mature. It should also be noted that when two American Cream Draft horses are bred there is only a 75% chance of the foal having the distinctive cream coloring. No horse is allowed to be registered as an American Cream Draft horse if it does not have the coloring. In addition, American Cream Drafts must be at least 75% pure in order to be registered.

American Cream Drafts are sometimes given blood tests to determine their genetics. The test proves two things: 1) the cream color is an actual genetic trait, not just a variation on the Belgian coloring; and 2) every horse is truly an American Cream Draft.

Temperament of the American Cream Draft Horse

The American Cream Draft horses are very calm and gentle horses. The American Cream Draft horses are very willing workers and very down-to-earth. American Cream Draft horses can be trusted not to be flighty or easily scared. American Cream Draft horses are often used around children and are very tractable.

Uses for the American Cream Draft Horse

American Cream Draft horses are still used on the farm and under harness, although they are extremely rare. American Cream Draft horses are also popularly used for pulling carts and wagons at specter events because of their beautiful and distinct color.