Figure, otherwise known as the ‘Justin Morgan Horse’, after his most famous owner, was the foundation sire of one of the earliest American breeds, the Morgan Horse. The details of his lineage have been hotly debated down the years, but he was almost certainly foaled in southern New England in 1789 and was sired by True Briton, s Throughbred, out of a dam by Diamond, known as ‘The Wildmair Mare’. John Wallace, for example, who published the first volume of his ‘Trotting Register’ in 1871, claimed that Figure was not, in fact, sired by True Briton, and effectively accused his owner of fraud by misrepresenation.
Vermont schoolteacher Justin Morgan reputedly received Figure as part payment of a debt in 1791. Morgan advertised Figure for stud duties at various locations in the Connecticut River Valley between 1792 and 1795, but thereafter the horse passed from owner to owner, stood in many places and sired an unrecorded number of foals. In 1891, Figure was sold to his final owner, Levi Bean, in Chelsea, Vermont, and died two years later of a flank injury, caused by a kick from another horse, aged 32. A fictionalised version of his story appeared in the 1945 children’s novel ‘Just Morgan Had a Horse’ by Marguerite Henry and was adapted as a film by Disney Studios in 1972.
A compact, muscular horse, who stood approximately 14 hands high, Figure was the progenitor of a breed that is, nowadays, revered for its beauty, athleticism and calm, intelligent demeanour. Morgans are suitable for various equestrian disciplines and their excellent disposition makes them popular pleasure mounts for experienced and novice riders. Indeed, the official breed registry, the American Morgan Horse Association (AMHA), originally founded in 1909 as the Morgan Horse Club, has the slogan “The Horse That Chooses You.” According to the AMHA, approximately 90,000 living Morgans are officially registered with the Association.