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Horsehair Bridle and Bit with Eisenhower History

Currency:USD Category:Western Americana / Tack - Bridles Start Price:100.00 USD Estimated At:2,500.00 - 4,500.00 USD
Horsehair Bridle and Bit with Eisenhower History
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A classic Yuma Prison made hitched horsehair bridle and matching reins. Black and orange diamond design on a natural field. The history traces this bridle to the possession of the one of our most famous First Ladies, Mamie Eisenhower. Featuring three natural hair tassels and 2" conchos with the engraved name MAMIE. The attached California bird spade bit has card suit pattern inlays with central dome concho and large domed conchos on either side, circled by twelve smaller dots.

Accompanied by a hand-written, notarized declaration dated Jan. 10, 2012, detailing the history of the bridle as a gift from Mamie Doud to the writer’s mother. It reads in part: “My mother knew Mamie Doud when they attended the same dance school in the Denver area. Mamie and my mother became friends because of their mutual love of horses. When Mamie married Dwight Eisenhower and moved away, she gave my mother this bridle as a remembrance… This bridle has been in my family for almost 100 years.”