Existing comment:
Apple
Jack
--
1910-1938
Troop "E" 3rd US
Cavalry
--
A Real Soldier Horse
The tombstone in front of you marked the grave of Apple Jack, a member of Troop E, 3rd US Cavalry. At the age of 26, Apple Jack was retired from service and left to live his days at the QM Remount Depot at Front Royal, Virginia. He was described as "[An] exceptional jumper, both in regular and trick jumping... well schooled, a grand field service horse... Now at liberty with the 2-year olds in pasture, where his quiet intelligent stability furnishes an excellent example for the youngsters to follow." Apple Jack was buried at the horse cemetery at Front Royal in 1938.
The Quartermaster Remount Mission:
The procurement and training of animals for military use has been a function of the Quartermaster Corps since its inception in 1775. Animals were used for transporting supplies and men. From 1775 until the early 20th century, horses and mules were purchased from civilian sources, sometimes with mixed results. In 1908, Congress authorized the Remount Service to procure, condition, provide initial training, and issue horses. The first remount depot was at Fort Reno, Oklahoma while the Front Royal, Virginia, Depot was opened in 1914.
World War I was the last major conflict in which the United States Army used horses and mules in large numbers. Around 571,000 horses [and] mules were processed through the Remount system, of which more than 68,000 perished. |