Mike Jackson’s Hartland Photos:
Semi-Rearing with Small Tail

Text & Photographs Copyright Mike Jackson 1998-2009


Semi-Rearing 800 Series with the slender tail came after the semi-rearing horses with the full wavy tail. Some of the figures used these horses exclusively while this style seems to have replace the old style or at least were substituted when needed.
Brown Semi-Rearing white over brown with mane up, slender tail:
This horse seems to have been used with at least three cowboys and may have been shuffled around over the years by collectors. I believe it can go with Jim Hardy or Buffalo Bill at about any time. Most Cheyenne sets have the full wavy tailed Semi-Rearing horse but it might be used on occasions.
Brown and White Semi-Rearing Pinto with mane up and slender tail:
One of the more rare horses. This one was combined with Tonto for a short period in around 1961, probably at a time they took the Lone Ranger off his full rearing horse and put him on a semi-rearing Silver. Possibly they were trying to generate more sales to previous owners of Tonto sets. I don’t believe this horse exists with a full wavy tail.
Semi-Rearing Pinto with mane up and slender tail:
The Warpaint Chief Thunderbird shipped with this horse at times in the later years with the tail being the only real difference. I have seen an Alden’s Christmas Catalog with a Warpaint horse like this and a bag of candy taped across his back. That could explain the occurance of more of the horses around than the figure. I can not tell in the photo whether it is the full wavy tail or the more slender one from the photo.
Buckskin Semi-Rearing mane up with black points:
This is a very rare version of Matt Dillon’s horse. You can see a little bit of the buttery color where it has been protected from the sun by the saddle. I don’t believe Maverick ever was comibined with this horse. Quite a few of Hartland’s earlier sets were switched over to semi-rearing horses around 1961, possibly to get previous customers to purchase the set again. Hard to say.
Black and White Pinto:
Being the later style mold, this is probably the exclusive horse of Bill Longley. Over the years, this horse and Cochise’s horse have probably been mixed up enough that no one really cares, but there is a difference. They are quite a bit less common than the full wavy tail Cochise horse which supports the theory. Still, there is a possibility this horse could have been shipped with Cochise in later years.
White Semi-Rearing mane up, black points:
This one is used with Paladin during the later years. He also has a full wavy tailed version and a mane down semi-rearing horse.
White Semi-Rearing mane up, smooth tail, and black tack:
Around 1961, Hartland substituted semi-rearing horses for the full rearing horses they had been using for a while, except for Oakley. This Lone Ranger combination has been fairly well documented and it shows up fairly often. The full rearing and walking versions are much easier to find.
White Semi-Rearing mane up, smooth tail:
Brave Eagle was the only figure to be used with this horse, however he also rode a similar horse with the wavy tail for a while prior to this one. They seem about equally common, although this slender tailed one might be a bit harder to find.
Black Semi-Rearing Horse with Thin Tail & brown bridle:
The semi-rearing horse mold with the thinner tail came after the same version with the wavy tail. This is one of the common mounts for Hoby Gillman.
Black Semi-Rearing Horse with Thin Tail, upright Mane and unpainted bridle or martingale:
Around 1961, several sets that normally got full rearing horses got semi-rearing horses for a short period. I a convinced this is a unique version of Ranald McKenzie’s horse from around that date.
Stevens Plastics 1994 Northwind:
This ia a very nice looking horse and quite hard to find even though they aren’t very old. Stevens only produced a few dozen—maybe as many as 100. The Indian markings are hand brushed as opposed to the typical mask and airbrushed elements of the original Hartland years.
If you have, or know of any other full wavy tailed walking horses, please let me know!