The National Museum of Natural History receives requests for data on outstanding horses believed to be part of the Smithsonian’s collection of studies or displayed in exhibit areas. Several of the indexed horses are part of the Museum’s collection; The rest is exhibited or stored in other institutions. The following data have been compiled from the records of the Mammalian Division of the Systematic Biology Breakdown, Vertebrate Zoology Section, private correspondence, and the Museum’s acquisition and catalog archives.
Kidron was known as the horse of Army General John J. (“Black Jack”) Historical photographs show Pershing triumphantly riding Kidron across the Victory Arch in New York at the end of World War I.
The horse died on October 10, 1942 in Front Royal, Virginia. Hoping to be able to mount the horse, the War Department, Front Royal Quartermaster Depot, Remount of Front Royal, Virginia, gave the remains to the United States National Museum. However, due to Kidron’s age at the time of his death and the fact that the frame had decomposed due to heat, taxidermists were unable to mount the skin.
On March 31, 1943, the Smithsonian’s Registration Office accepted Kidron’s skin and skull as a step of War Breakdown. These remains are now part of the collection of the Mammal Division of the National Museum of Natural History.
Subscribe to Smithsonian eNews