Historical Research

RECLAIMING MEMORY:
An Oral History of the Desert Arabian Horse

Around Bedouin camp­fires, accounts of famous horses were told in story and song and poem. Knowl­edge of breeding prac­tices was passed from gener­a­tion to generation.

RECLAIMING MEMORY, the Institute’s current histor­ical research project, extends the oral tradi­tion of the Bedouin to the West, making recol­lec­tions of Western breeders, trainers, and other indi­vidual asso­ci­ated with the Desert Arabian horse avail­able to the public, researchers, histo­rians, and future custo­dians of the breed.

We have already lost too much. Many who played key roles are gone. The memo­ries of others who were instru­mental in the growth of Arabian breeding have never been recorded. Much that has been written is not readily avail­able. It is time to reclaim that which remains. Key features of this five-​​year program:

  • Focus on the crucial period from 1950–1990, when imports to the West reached new records and breeding reached unprece­dented levels.
  • 200 hours of inter­views with indi­vid­uals whose length, breadth, and depth of knowl­edge of the Desert Arabian horse can best inform future breeders, custo­dians, and others capti­vated by the magic of the Desert Arabian horse.
  • Conducted according to the highest schol­arly stan­dards of the Insti­tute for Oral History, Baylor Univer­sity, Texas.
  • Text and video prod­ucts avail­able to the Arabian breeding commu­nity via peri­od­i­cals, mono­graphs, video, and text+video via the Web.
  • Publicly avail­able archive of mate­rials that includes inter­views, videos, photographs, and other material.

The project is directed by prin­cipal inves­ti­gator M. Kent Mayfield, MA, M. Div., PhD., L.H.D. and guided by an Advi­sory Committee that includes:

  • Robert Arndt, editor of Saudi Aramco World;
  • Joe Ferriss, equine author and historian;
  • Peter Harrigan, histo­rian and author;
  • Lisa Lacy, researcher and daughter of Jarrell McCracken;
  • Mohammed Jassim Al-​​Marzouk, breeder and authority on Bedouin horse-​​breeding traditions;
  • Hans Joachim Nagle, Pres­i­dent of WAHO;
  • Geo. Walter Olms, Pres­i­dent of the Asil Club;
  • Mary Jane Parkinson, long-​​time editor of Arabian Horse World.

A budget of $250,000 covers travel expenses for volun­teer inter­viewers; inter­view processing, tran­scrip­tion, and produc­tion; and archiving. Addi­tional funding will be sought for text and video products.

Complete project descrip­tion is here.

For more infor­ma­tion: 

Help RECLAIM MEMORY – make a generous, tax-​​deductible dona­tion to capture our history before it is gone.

Your dona­tion pays for minimal trans­porta­tion costs for inter­viewers (all inter­viewers donate their time) and for the cost of tran­scribing, editing, and archiving the interviews.

Please drop us a note ( ) if you have photos, videos, books, or other mate­rials that would supple­ment this research.

Completed Project: THE BABSON INFLUENCE

The Institute’s first histor­ical research project was completed in 2009 with the publi­ca­tion of the 504-​​page mono­graph THE BABSON INFLUENCE: A Retro­spec­tive. This project compiled 75 years of mate­rial that focused on the breeding program of Henry Babson begun in 1932 with his impor­ta­tion of horses from Egypt. The mono­graph includes reprints of histor­ical arti­cles and new mate­rial, 600+ photographs (many never before published), herd and sire– and dam-​​line charts, and complete indices of people and horses. This limited edition is avail­able in our online shop. Photographs acquired during the research comprise the foun­da­tion of the Institute’s archive.