Horses, Carriages, and the Derby

I have a special affinity for horses and carriages.  Maybe it comes from my little girl dreams, fueled by Saturday morning westerns, of becoming a cowgirl.  Or maybe it comes from growing up in Kentucky where once a year, the stage is set to watch magnificent thoroughbred horses compete in the Kentucky Derby. 



Regardless of the reasons, I love vintage images of horses.

This original is so faded, it was practically non-existent.  Because there was so little detail in the original, the restoration does have a bit of "noise".  However, for the owner of this image, just being able to see the horse, the carriage, and the driver means mission accomplished!



The young woman is wearing a hat that seems to be covered with roses. Since the Derby began in 1875, who knows... maybe... just maybe, she was on her way to a Derby party.  (Not really, this lovely lady lived in the Midwest.  Not likely she was headed to Kentucky, but I like to pretend.)


To add to the horse and carriage theme, the image below is one of mine.  The original was recently shared  by one of my cousins and what a family treasure.  This team of horses belonged to our Granddaddy and although he had retired them long before we were old enough to remember, we do remember playing on and around this carriage, which was stashed in the back of his company's garage.