The Palouse Goes Back to the Horse
As farmers in Eastern Washington pivot away from breeding their own livestock, a Spokane importer finds a booming market for draft horses.
Archie Galbraith, of Spokane, representing Galbraith Bros. of Janesville, Wisconsin, importers and breeders of draft horses, is meeting with good success in selling to the farmers throughout the Palouse country this spring. Mr. Galbraith has disposed of a number of good stallions recently and is looking for another carload to fill orders on hand. He sent a Percheron and a Shire to Walla Walla, and a Clyde and a Shire to The Dalles recently; also a Percheron to Garfield. Mr. Galbraith says there is a good future for the draft horse business in that section, and the demand for good horses is on the increase. Farmers have neglected breeding so long that they are in the market to buy farm horses rather than being sellers.
“Farmers have neglected breeding so long that they are in the market to buy farm horses—rather than being sellers.”
This report captures a moment of agricultural transition in the Palouse, where farmers shifted from self-sufficiency to reliance on specialized imports. Today, the region remains a powerhouse of industrial agriculture, though the 'draft horse' has long since been replaced by the massive, GPS-guided machinery that defines modern wheat farming.
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