HISTORY
“ye towne of Homonoscit shal for ye future be named Kenilworth, & for yr brand of horses they shal have ye letter V on ye near buttock.”
Agriculture was the primary occupation of the first settlers in Killingworth. Sheep and cattle grazed in pastures while wheat, corn, and flax were grown in many fields. Salt hay was farmed as well and used as food and bedding for cattle, mulch and home insulation.
In 1710 Killingworth saw its first shipyard established and soon the town was known for its manufacture of small coasting vessels.
HERE & NOW
We offer rough board to patient, mature, and healing horse people through a cooperative venture named Someday Farm Family, LLC. The Someday Farm Family (or SFF) interviews and decides on any new horses and realizes that each horse comes with their own human family and we always seek to keep the herd happy first and their people happy second. In keeping with this idea, the horse is ‘interviewed’ as are the people. We aim to welcome those horses who are cared for in sustainable and environmentally responsible ways. Think green or organic and you have the general idea. Kelly Rutledge of Synergy Therapeutic Horse Care is the barn manager.
There are seven stalls and eight paddocks and one outdoor riding ring. Most paddocks are fully fenced in 3-rail oak though some are bordered by bramble or berries and other ‘fence lines’ are merely streams or stone walls. Horses are rotated through pastures occasionally though most settle into a fitting spot. There are very few and limited trail riding opportunities directly connected to the property.
Bear in mind that the property is shared or visited by deer, coyote, bear, eagle, fisher cats, turkey, etc. The property is not shared with or visited by guns.
Astro is our lone gelding and is cared for by Kelly. Of course, as a cooperative every horse is cared for by ‘the village’ and so we hope it is plain why the interview process is so important to us.
Molly is the resident Appaloosa and is nearly fully blind. Her mom is Kathryn, a local minister and doctor who has previously managed horse barns herself. She turned 27 in April of 2010.
Dolly , a Morgan, is her best friend and was once registered to Kathryn but has since been adopted by Kate. Before Kathy, Dolly had a fifteen-year-old human-mom named Angela who taught her to taught her to enjoy Doritos® and Mountain Dew®. Kate now wants to be sure those remain fond memories for Dolly and nothing more; Dolly is driven by food like few other horses. Dolly often acts as Molly’s seeing-eye horse when they turnout together.
Iris , a Thoroughbred Arabian cross is recovering from a broken hind leg but does not like to talk about that particular day. She hopes you understand.
Lorri , a quarterhorse like Astro, shares her Mommy Judy with Iris. Lorri is the resident escape-artist and will wiggle through any fence (electric or otherwise) when no one is looking. We hope this is just because she is the youngest horse living here. She is also kind enough to hand you her halter when it is time to come inside and wants to steal the title of Most Food-Driven Horse away from Dolly.
All of the horses welcome a hello but you should be sure to know their preferences before approaching.
Horsebook:
Astro Bid is the son of Astro Machine (who represents a quarterhorse racing line) and Miss Snooper’s Bid (representing a pleasure line.) Astro’s grandfather was La Machine. He was born 4/28/84 in Maine. He has been our barn manager’s teacher and inspiration for over 20 years.
Black Iris uses her barn name Iris and is now just over 17 years old. Iris is recovering from an open fracture of her left hind leg and can once more be ridden.
Night Wing’s Bluff was foaled on April 23 1982 and had her barn name, Molly, registered then. Her dam’s name was Wind Princess, whose own dam was Eagle Eye (where she got her blue eye?). Molly was sired by Jet’s Big Guy whose own dam was Running Princess. Molly was born in Waterloo, New York. While we call her an Appaloosa, her real color variety is called Blue Roan.
Here is the poem that was left on her stall anonymously some years back:
"Molly"
The grey one, yes
the aging mare
with white, glazed eyes.
Gentle as the lightest breeze
with barely a flower bending
but to bow to her.
Rec Aaron’s Doll is a Morgan who prefers her barn name Dolly.
Ole Lorraina Would goes by Lorri and was foaled on 5/31/96 in Minnesota though bred in South Dakota where she lived her first five years. She was then auctioned in North Dakota to a long distance trucker before being auctioned a year later in MN to owners who cared for her in SD. She was later auctioned at Crowley’s in Massachusetts to a couple on Rte. 79 who later passed her on to Judy in Connecticut. Her father’s name BMQ Excalibur and her dam is Old Dusty Dollar.
Hope:
For horses:
To become a safe, healthy, and pleasant home for horses first. The horses come first.
For horse boarders:
To become a cooperative, healing, enlightened place to care for, come to know, and learn from horses.
For us:
To learn how to do for, be for, and be with horses as they require. To listen, guide, learn in all ways every day. To continue to feel the barn the way a cleric feels a temple.