Research focuses on the Narragansett Pacer, the first “truly American” breed of horse, featured in “The Last of the Mohicans”

Fitzpatrick, Edward

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Arcade Exhibit Showcases RWU History Professor’s Research

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Roger Williams UniversityDOCS@RWUFeatured News Story The Week at Roger6-28-2018Arcade Exhibit Showcases RWU HistoryProfessor’s ResearchEdward FitzpatrickRoger Williams UniversityFollow this and additional works at: https://docs.rwu.edu/weekatroger_featured_newsPart of the Education CommonsThis News Article is brought to you for free and open access by the The Week at Roger at DOCS@RWU. It has been accepted for inclusion in FeaturedNews Story by an authorized administrator of DOCS@RWU. For more information, please contact mwu@rwu.edu.Recommended CitationFitzpatrick, Edward, "Arcade Exhibit Showcases RWU History Professor’s Research" (2018). Featured News Story. 123.https://docs.rwu.edu/weekatroger_featured_news/1237/11/2018 Arcade Exhibit Showcases RWU History Professor’s Research | Roger Williams Universityhttps://www.rwu.edu/news/news-archive/arcade-exhibit-showcases-rwu-history-professors-research 1/3 News ArchiveArcade Exhibit Showcases RWU History Professor’sResearchResearch focuses on the Narragansett Pacer, the  rst “truly American” breed of horse,featured in “The Last of the Mohicans”An illustration of the Narragansett pacer from ahistoric advertisement used in the exhibit.June 28, 2018 Edward FitzpatrickBRISTOL, R.I.  – People walking by the Arcade in downtown Providence can now see a Rhode Island HistoricalSociety exhibit of research that a Roger Williams University history professor did about the Narragansett Pacer – atype of horse  rst bred in Rhode Island that is described in glowing terms in “The Last of the Mohicans.”Professor Charlotte V. Carrington-Farmer wrote the article, “The Rise and Fall of the Narragansett Pacer,” for thewinter/spring 2018 edition of Rhode Island History, the peer-reviewed journal of the Rhode Island Historical Society.“The exhibition and article show not only how Rhode Island created the  rst truly ‘American’ breed of horse but howtheir breed – the Narragansett Pacer – was the No. 1 saddle horse in America in the 18th century,” Carrington-Farmersaid.The exhibit can be seen in windows of the Arcade, an 1828 Greek Revival style building that was known as thenation’s oldest indoor shopping mall and that reopened in 2013 with shops and restaurants on the  rst  oor andmicro-lo s on the second and third  oors.The article notes that in James Fenimore Cooper’s “The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757,” Uncas andHawkeye discuss the attributes of Narragansett Pacers, concluding, “This is a breed highly esteemed.”“As Rhode Island emerged as a horse breeding and exportation center in the second half of the 17th century, itsimultaneously developed its own breed of horse – the Narragansett Pacer,” the article states. “As the  rst and distinctbreed that was created in the Colonies, the Narragansett Pacer was the  rst American breed of horse. As ‘The Last ofthe Mohicans’ demonstrates, purebred Narragansett Pacers were prized saddle horses due to their ability to coverup to a hundred miles a day of rocky ground with their unique pacing gait.”7/11/2018 Arcade Exhibit Showcases RWU History Professor’s Research | Roger Williams Universityhttps://www.rwu.edu/news/news-archive/arcade-exhibit-showcases-rwu-history-professors-research 2/3Carrington-Farmer raises questions about whether Paul Revere used a Narragansett Pacer for his midnight ride, assome have speculated. But she says it’s clear that President George Washington owned and raced NarragansettPacers.“While the Narragansett Pacer may be gone, it is not forgotten,” Carrington-Farmer wrote. “Its signi cant legacy liveson in the contemporary breeds that it laid the foundations for. Perhaps there is no better testimony for the importanceof the breed than that the  rst President of the United States and ‘the best horseman of his age’ sought out the‘perfect Narragansett.’ ”ACADEMICS FEINSTEIN SCHOOL OF HUMANITIES, ART AND EDUCATIONShare This: REQUEST INFO VISIT CAMPUS APPLY MAKE A GIFTMap & DirectionsContact UsDirectoryNewsEventsAthleticsrwu.eduUndergraduate SiteGraduate SiteSchool of LawSchool of Continuing Studies    © 2018 Roger Williams University. All rights reserved.One Old Ferry Road, Bristol, RI 028091-800-458-71447/11/2018 Arcade Exhibit Showcases RWU History Professor’s Research | Roger Williams Universityhttps://www.rwu.edu/news/news-archive/arcade-exhibit-showcases-rwu-history-professors-research 3/3GMAIL AT RWU BRIDGES MY RWU IT HELP SITE POLICIES WORK AT RWU

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Arcade Exhibit Showcases RWU History Professor’s Research

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