138 SIDELINES APRIL 2014
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
Continued on page 140
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Tryon Horse Country:
The Horseman’s Paradise
By Libbie Johnson
P
eople who explore Tryon Horse Country
generally have the same first reaction: “I had
no idea…”
If you’ve heard of Tryon Horse Country, you may know it as
a small area in Western North Carolina, north of Spartanburg,
South Carolina, tucked up against the Blue Ridge Mountains. You
may also know that it has been home to the horse shows held at
Harmon Field since the 1920s and that it is home to FENCE, the
Foothills Equestrian Nature Center. You might even know that it
is a foxhunting haven, with two active hunts, generous quarry and
beautiful hunt country.
That’s a good start, but there is so much more to this area.
A “best kept secret,” Tryon Horse Country is quickly being
discovered again by those who love horses and horse people.
The story of Tryon Horse Country, the area roughly centered
around Tryon but also stretching across several counties and two
states, began in the 1920s when an innkeeper named Carter P.
Brown came to town. Young Mr. Brown refurbished a tumbled
down sanitarium and christened it the Pine Crest Inn. The inn
became a gathering place for visitors from around the country and
Mr. Brown, himself a horseman, made sure that his guests had
ample opportunities to spend time in the saddle. The inn’s livery
was always busy as were the two nearby liveries in downtown
Tryon.
This love of horses and horse sports eventually became the
call-to-action for Mr. Brown. He founded the Tryon Riding and
Hunt Club (Est. 1925), the Tryon Hounds (Est. 1925), the Block
House Steeplechase (Est. 1947), along with several horse shows
Carter Brown, in the 1930s, the man credited for creating Tryon
Horse Country.
Photo by Hensel Meith
Tryon in the 1930s was the place for horse sport – and it still is
today.
Photo by Hensel Meith
Locals watch the Olympic Team training at the Cotton Patch
Farm in 1956.
Photo courtesy of Tryon Riding and Hunt Club archives
In 1939, Morris the Horse caught the attention of Life magazine.
Photo by Hensel Meith
