The Story of Skowreym: 1967 Arabian Outcrossing

The hurricane-strength Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962 was one of the most destructive storms to hit the mid Atlantic, and it caused significant damage to Chincoteague and the surrounding islands. You may be familiar with the storm and its effects on the island from Stormy, Misty’s Foal, the Marguerite Henry book that tells a fictionalized tale of the nor’easter. Dozens of wild ponies died as a result of the storm. 

Three years later and hundreds of miles away, Illinois was dealing with a flood of its own. In the spring of 1965, the Mississippi River rose about 22.5 feet, causing $125 million in damage to the Quad Cities region—the equivalent of almost $1 billion today. 

Patricia “Tish” Hewitt of Moline, Illinois had read articles about the Ash Wednesday Storm and Chincoteague’s plight, but seeing the flooding in her own town spurred her to action. She reached out to the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company to see if they would be interested in using one of her Arabian stallions, Skowreym, for breeding. 

The fire company said yes, and in February 1967, Friendship Farms staff member Lee Caldwell made the long journey to Virginia to deliver Skowreym. 

Skowreym and Tish after an endurance ride. 

Skowreym was not turned out to live on Assateague; instead, he lived a cushy life in a stable on Chincoteague. That spring, the fire company rounded up “the best and biggest mares, the most consistent good producers” and brought them to Skowreym to be bred. 

It’s unclear exactly how long Skowreym was loaned to the fire company—some have said two years, but a 1967 article in Western Horseman says that Hewitt only loaned him out for one season. During this time, he supposedly picked up some kind of parasite, and he never fully recovered. Skowreym died a few years after his return to Friendship Farms. 

Who was Skowreym?

Other Arabian outcrossings in the wild pony herd have been justified as adding genetic diversity and height to the breed. Funny enough, Skowreym was far more inbred than most wild Chincoteague ponies these days, and he also didn’t add much height—the gray stallion was barely over 14 hands. 

What he could add was talent, endurance, and refinement. 

Skowreym was an endurance powerhouse who won or came in second in numerous 50- and 100-mile races. In 1962, Skowreym and Tish won the Virginia 100-mile endurance ride in Hot Springs, and in 1964, Lee Caldwell rode Skowreym at the Florida 100-Mile Competitive Trail Ride, becoming reserve champion and placing first in the heavyweight division. 

Skowreym’s pedigree

Here is Skowreym's breeding. 

I’m sure you noticed that there’s a lot of Skowronek in there! If you're an Arabian horse fan, he needs no introduction. Born in 1908 or 1909, Skowronek was bred by Count Józef Potocki of Poland’s Antoniny Stud. Within his first few years, he was imported to England and was eventually purchased by Lady Wentworth of Crabbet Arabian Stud. It’s a subject of great debate if Skowronek was a purebred Arabian or if he had some thoroughbred or other blood. Nevertheless, he was a foundational part of the Crabbet Stud and the Arabian breed more broadly. 

Skowronek

One of Skowronek’s most influential progeny, Raffles, stood only 13.3hh. Raffles was born in 1926 at the Crabbet Arabian Stud and was imported to the United States by Roger Selby in 1932. Raffles was an excellent riding horse, winning the National 3-Gaited Championship in 1933. Though he was initially thought to be infertile, after some trust-building and exercise, Raffles sired 122 foals, including Skowreym’s dam, Rafeyma. 

"He was an artist's concept of what a horse ought to be," Lois Selby Perry, daughter of Roger Selby, once said of Raffles. 

Raffles

Skowreym: Origins

Skowreym was born at Comar Arabians in Ames, Iowa, which was owned by Joe and Garth Buchanan.

Bazy Tankerson referred to Garth and Joe Buchanan as part of the “*Raffles mafia,” a group of breeders with similar values who often traded and lent stock amongst each other. 

Allbreedpedigree.com says he was bred by Fullbright & Buchanan—I cannot track down a “Fullbright,” but Garth Buchanan did own his dam, Rafeyma. Rafeyma was a Selby Stud mare who is not to be confused with her daughter, Comar Rafeyma.

Buchanan once referred to “cross-pollination” of breeding programs between Comar Arabians, Selby Stud, and other like-minded groups, like Friendship Farms. Several Friendship Farms mares were bred to legendary Comar Arabian stallion Azraff, and its own breeding priorities aligned with those of Comar Arabians, so it’s no surprise that Skowreym eventually came to live with Hewitt. 

Tish Hewitt and Jimmie Dean, trainer and manager of the Selby Stud. Photo taken at the 1966 US Nationals. 

Friendship Farms was owned by William and Tish Hewitt. Tish was a great-granddaughter of John Deere, and William was the CEO of John Deere from 1955-82. Tish Hewitt kickstarted Friendship Farms with the purchase of several horses from Roger Selby. 

The 375 acre farm was one of the top producers of Arabians at the time, but now, it is a golf course called TPC Deere Run. The course is home of the John Deere Classic, and it’s operated by the PGA Tour. “Friendship Farms” is the name of the fourth hole. 

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If you liked this blog post, you might also enjoy my blog post "The Half Arabians of Assateague: Stanley White, Grandeur Arabians, and Premierre." 

A huge shoutout to Julie Koch on the "Reliving Arabian horse history" Facebook group for sharing the clip from the 1967 Western Horseman article. This blog post is possible thanks to the information in that clip!