Hitching Posts

Hitching posts have a long history behind them going back farther than I could possibly hope to understand. I have grown up seeing them dotted through the villages and towns around me in the Hudson valley but I have definitely taken their presence for granted. The size, style, and varieties of hitching posts seem endless. From the decorative to the practical, let's take a look at hitching posts!

Today I took a walk through my village and snapped a couple photos. While many of the 'original' functional hitching posts have been removed over time there exists a few representations with an unknown installation date to them.

Cast Iron Horsehead Hitching Post

I love all things cast iron and I have always loved seeing this particular post. I know it is at least over thirty years old but I'm assuming this to be a decorative piece. An absolute beautiful crafted piece that has stood the tests of time with little intervention.

Marble Hitching Post

I have seen two or three copies of this exact post scattered through the village. This seems to be a more practical and rugged example but I am unsure of when it may of been installed.

Please share more examples and stories if you have them.

The soil at our last place was too thin to reliably knock in a post to tether the donkey to, so we made a round concrete block with a ring set in which could be rolled around or moved in the box behind the tractor.



The underside looked like this, just to confuse people...



The new house has a tethering ring in the wall.  We'd just knocked a brick out so we could put a glass one in to let a bit of light in downstairs, which used to be just for animals, and my other half is helpfully pointing to the ring so you can find it...

Our local "corner store" has a horse area with at least 2 hitches available. I think it also has hooks so if the animals need a bucket of water, that can be done.

Unfortunately, it doesn't get as much use as I ought to. We have quite a large horse population, and a fair number of trails, but most of the trails are connected by roads, so it isn't a well thought out "car alternative". Most of the "pet" horses aren't of the sort of temperament that copes well with traffic.

An interesting tidbit.

We have a new credit union being built in town and it is specifically installing a hitching post due to the presence of Amish in the local area. It is common to see horse and buggy where I live so they are making accomodations for their members. I wish I had the space to get my own!

Due to a high Mennonite population around here, many stores (including Walmart) and restaurants have hitching posts - especially around the county seat.