Beyond Justin and his lil bud horse, any thoughts on where that horse came from? I have heard a theory that he was likely a Canadian brought down from Canada.
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The foundation sire, Figure (later called Justin Morgan, after his owner) was born in Massachusetts in 1789. His sire is believed to be an English Thoroughbred named True Briton, and his dam was part TB (sired by Diamond), part Arab, also born in Mass.
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There are so many competing hypotheses. I’ve heard True Briton crossed on a Canadian Horse. Among many others.
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There was a British breed, now extinct, called the Devon Pack Horse. It was a good looking multipurpose horse used extensively across a large county which had few major roads. Devon had extensive historical ties with the the early British settlements in America. Pictures I’ve seen of the horse look remarkably similar to a Morgan.
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I never heard this before so I went in search of info. Found this bit about reviving the breed on Facebook https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php/%3Fstory_fbid%3D2260019687448972%26id%3D482304708553821&ved=2ahUKEwjZrPmTwcyKAxW7IzQIHR4QInEQFnoECBwQAQ&usg=AOvVaw0_jbh_Nnag2Q0TYAoXFZUo
In the article they mention Goonhilly ponies. Now who wouldn’t want to have a Goonhilly 
(The link looks funky but it takes you straight to the article)
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I’ve lost the reference for a fine Victorian photo of one. Johnny Arden, a horseman, countryman and all round good man, attempted to re-create the Devon after seeing pictures of Morgans. He wrote about it in his autobiography “The Wheels Of My Life”. I can’t find my copy right now. Johnny died in July 2023 and the world became a smaller place. To be in his company on Dartmoor was a joy. He knew how the waters ran or the snows would lay, he knew where the livestock sheltered according to the winds, he traced mining history across the landscape. There was a obituary in Horse &Hound 16 Aug 2023.
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Interesting, I found this article that says both that Justin Morgan was a Quarter Horse and that founding QH were Morgans.
https://westernhorseman.com/ranching/ranch-horses/quarter-horses-then-and-now-part-1/2/
Because of the proximity to Canada, plus many Canadians were bought by the Americans for the civlil war it seems most likely Justin Morgans dam was a Canadian mare.
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Oh, AQHA has been saying for ages that the QH was here first, and there isn’t much Morgan in their backgrounds. Which is patently ridiculous, as some of the mid-20th century QH ranches, mostly before AQHA, specifically brought in Morgan stallions to run with their mare bands.
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yeah I think its undeniable that there are Morgans in the foundation horses of the AQHA.
It is a curious feature of every and any breed that some special historic status will be claimed in it’s ancestry. People like myth and legends. In reality, selective breeding and maintaining a breed registry is a fairly modern thing. People were racing their horses for centuries before the General Stud book was first published in 1793, which included pedigrees of racing horses going back decades earlier. The GSB is entwined in the development of the TB as a breed.
What I find interesting about the Morgan is that one stallion was so prepotent he could strongly shape his subsequent descendents. That suggests, to me, that he himself was of a particular and probably long-standing type/breed/landrace.
Yes! What a good point. 
