Helping Document Hobby History 1

Nancy Kelly is a long-time, well respected model horse hobbyist. A month or so ago, she asked those of us who have been around a while to respond to a survey she is taking, one that she hopes will help document how our hobby began.

I've been around a while, and so I wrote her and told her I would participate. I haven't done the survey yet, but she did say that any old hobby magazines I had or other ephemera would be appreciated. I was happy to send her things, and so yesterday, as I cleaned out the hobby closet, I took photos of several things I thought would be of interest and should be documented.

First up? The article from the October, 1970 Horse and Rider Magazine which had editor Ray Rich judging IMPHSA's championship photo show.

I wrote to Nancy,

This photo is where my "hobby beyond the carpet herd" began. I'd collected since 1963 and had two friends, Bobbie Vance and Carol Holmes, who also had carpet herds. All our stables had Native American names - I was Pawnee Stables (located in Pagosa Springs but I thought it was Pagosa SPURS, Colorado, Bobbie was Apache Stables, and Carol, Cherokee Stables.) 

We would get together after school and on weekends and hold horse shows with our stables. But it was never beyond the three of us until Horse and Rider Magazine, to which I had a subscription, had magazine editor Ray Rich judge the championships of IMPHSA (International Model Photo Horse Showers Association) run by Ellen Hitchins in California and Simi Smiljanic in Indianapolis.

I wrote for information right away, and it opened a whole new world for me! (Bobbie and Carol did not share my enthusiasm - they were ready for boyfriends and I was not.)

This is  photo of a xerox I made a few years ago. I do still have the magazine with the article but did not come across it yesterday.

Lynn