Riverside’s patron saint of horses

If camels are the “ships of the desert,” than Desert Arabian horses are the yachts. These magnificent animals were bred for millennia by the Bedouin tribes.

Bible scholars believe that when the three visitors from the East presented gifts to the infant Jesus, they didn’t trudge there on camels; they galloped into Bethlehem on Arabian horses. And, as this story will show, a gift to a child can change everything.

The Desert Arabians, equine aristocrats from the Middle East, would not exist today without the efforts of people like Riverside resident Henry Babson.

Babson was a prominent Riverside resident best known in the village these days as the former owner of a home designed by legendary architect Louis Sullivan. Babson offered the 23-acre estate at Longcommon and Delaplaine roads to the village as a gift, and the property was envisioned as a community house and recreation center.

Instead, the home was demolished and the land subdivided and sold for real estate development.

Babson also served on the Riverside Board of Trustees, the Riverside-Brookfield High School Board and the Riverside Library board.

“He never flaunted his wealth, his business excesses or his social position. Every action as a board member was motivated by his interest in the village and its general welfare,” former Riverside Village President Joseph Juric was quoted as saying in Babson’s obituary.

By 1930, Babson had developed an interest in Arabian horses, a fascination that began when he was a young man herding cattle on his family’s Kansas ranch. Each cowboy had eight horses, with the exception of a man who brought only four horses. These were characteristically compact Arab horses.

“I was amazed that the four horses were in better condition at the end of the drive than when they started,” Babson recalled in a 1965 article in Arabian Horse World magazine.

Babson went searching for Arabian horses in Europe, but didn’t find any that he cared for, so he returned to America empty-handed. Two years later, he went to Egypt and brought back five mares and two stallions, not realizing how crucially important his purchase would be in preserving ancient Arab bloodlines.

Desert Arabian horses are not only beautiful animals, they have extraordinary endurance and a keen intelligence. Relatively small in stature, they can gallop for hundreds of miles, subsisting on small amounts of water and a handful of food.

In medieval times, they were exceptionally skillful in battle and Europeans learned their larger domestic breeds were no match for the Desert Arabian. The Europeans interbred their horses with Arabians, producing mounts that were capable of carrying a knight and his armor at high speed.

However, the Arabians lost their military effectiveness during the mechanized age. At the same time, Bedouins were abandoning their nomadic lifestyle and no longer preserving the precious bloodlines.

As the interbreeding of the Arabians with workhorses increased, their legendary qualities were lost, along with their carefully catalogued family histories.

After Babson returned from Egypt in 1932, he began breeding the Arabians at his farm in Grand Detour, Illinois. During the next 60 years, Babson kept pure Arabian blood flowing in his stock and descendants of his horses populated farms throughout America.

When World War II was approaching, Babson further safeguarded the breed by spiriting Arabians out of Poland and other countries facing war.

The Babson influence has had a lasting effect on America’s horse breeding community. The hallmarks of a Babson horse are its intelligence and kindly disposition. They’ve also enjoyed great success in dressage competitions. Americans found out what the Bedouins had already learned: that these horses were so people-friendly they felt like family members.

Owning an Arab, in fact, came into vogue with upper class Americans and celebrities, partly due to a generous tax break. However, when this tax loophole was closed, the bottom dropped out of the market.

Arabians that had commanded six-figure prices were being sold for a fraction of their value. Hundreds were sold for slaughter and it appeared that efforts to save the breed would fail.

That makes the efforts of people like Debra Schrishuhn and Cathy Tice, who are active in preserving the Babson breed, important. Both women own Babson Arabians in Champaign, and they belong to The Institute for the Desert Arabian Horse.

The two friends have co-authored a book being published by The Institute: “The Babson Influence: A Retrospective.”

The book contains over 500 pages of photographs and breeding statistics and is being released to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the 1932 Babson importation of Desert Arabians.

The two horse enthusiasts first met at a farm owned by John Fippen, in St. Joseph, Mo. Fippen’s farm was stocked with Arabians and he later went on to found the Heirloom Project, an organization devoted to preserving the breed. Schrishuhn boarded her pony, Thunder, there and Tice worked at the farm.

Schrishuhn had received her pony when she was 12. Her parents were divorcing at that time and gave their daughter the pony to help console her. Schrishuhn, an only child, looked upon Thunder as a “little brother.” The pony actually outlived her parents, passing away at the age of 29, in 1995.

By this time, Schrishuhn had already purchased her first Arabian from Fippen’s farm. Ibntep, like many Babson Arabians, is now getting up in years. The 22 year old survived a broken leg in 1993 and can still rear up on his hind legs at his owner’s command.

The same stable houses Ibntep’s family, which includes the mare, Shebas Moriah; her feisty 7 year-old foal, Sean Mi Rose; and Sean’s brother, Alara Ben Raad.

“The Arabians are known for their competitiveness, trainability and pocket puppy temperament,” Schrishuhn said, “They love people.”

At a recent visit to Schrishuhn’s farm, these graceful horses were friendly to the extreme and enjoyed rolling and romping in Schrishuhn’s corral. The atmosphere was not near as pleasant at Tice’s stable, where 24-year-old Bedu Baarlime was fighting for his life. Bedu has been blind the past 12 years but still served as an able mount for Tice.

When the vet came to put Bedu down, the horse suddenly began feeling better. After receiving anti-inflammatory drugs, Bedu was his old self again, frolicking with some baby goats.

“These horses have incredible wills to live,” Schrishuhn said, “As long as they’re not in pain and can still do their ‘horsey’ things.”

Bedu’s very existence is testimony to the incredible will of a man from Riverside, who couldn’t bear to see a beautiful breed of horses lost to the ages.

In his nineties, Henry Babson was still full of restless energy, enjoying long walks on his farm and taking trips to Africa and Asia. He died in 1968 at the age of 94, but his legacy in the world of horses continues.

As the great man himself said, “When you buy an Arab pleasure horse, you buy contentment.

By JOHN RICE

If camels are the “ships of the desert,” than Desert Arabian horses are the yachts. These magnificent animals were bred for millennia by the Bedouin tribes.

Bible scholars believe that when the three visitors from the East presented gifts to the infant Jesus, they didn’t trudge there on camels; they galloped into Bethlehem on Arabian horses. And, as this story will show, a gift to a child can change everything.

The Desert Arabians, equine aristocrats from the Middle East, would not exist today without the efforts of people like Riverside resident Henry Babson.

Babson was a prominent Riverside resident best known in the village these days as the former owner of a home designed by legendary architect Louis Sullivan. Babson offered the 23-acre estate at Longcommon and Delaplaine roads to the village as a gift, and the property was envisioned as a community house and recreation center.

Instead, the home was demolished and the land subdivided and sold for real estate development.

Babson also served on the Riverside Board of Trustees, the Riverside-Brookfield High School Board and the Riverside Library board.

“He never flaunted his wealth, his business excesses or his social position. Every action as a board member was motivated by his interest in the village and its general welfare,” former Riverside Village President Joseph Juric was quoted as saying in Babson’s obituary.

By 1930, Babson had developed an interest in Arabian horses, a fascination that began when he was a young man herding cattle on his family’s Kansas ranch. Each cowboy had eight horses, with the exception of a man who brought only four horses. These were characteristically compact Arab horses.

“I was amazed that the four horses were in better condition at the end of the drive than when they started,” Babson recalled in a 1965 article in Arabian Horse World magazine.

Babson went searching for Arabian horses in Europe, but didn’t find any that he cared for, so he returned to America empty-handed. Two years later, he went to Egypt and brought back five mares and two stallions, not realizing how crucially important his purchase would be in preserving ancient Arab bloodlines.

Desert Arabian horses are not only beautiful animals, they have extraordinary endurance and a keen intelligence. Relatively small in stature, they can gallop for hundreds of miles, subsisting on small amounts of water and a handful of food.

In medieval times, they were exceptionally skillful in battle and Europeans learned their larger domestic breeds were no match for the Desert Arabian. The Europeans interbred their horses with Arabians, producing mounts that were capable of carrying a knight and his armor at high speed.

However, the Arabians lost their military effectiveness during the mechanized age. At the same time, Bedouins were abandoning their nomadic lifestyle and no longer preserving the precious bloodlines.

As the interbreeding of the Arabians with workhorses increased, their legendary qualities were lost, along with their carefully catalogued family histories.

After Babson returned from Egypt in 1932, he began breeding the Arabians at his farm in Grand Detour, Illinois. During the next 60 years, Babson kept pure Arabian blood flowing in his stock and descendants of his horses populated farms throughout America.

When World War II was approaching, Babson further safeguarded the breed by spiriting Arabians out of Poland and other countries facing war.

The Babson influence has had a lasting effect on America’s horse breeding community. The hallmarks of a Babson horse are its intelligence and kindly disposition. They’ve also enjoyed great success in dressage competitions. Americans found out what the Bedouins had already learned: that these horses were so people-friendly they felt like family members.

Owning an Arab, in fact, came into vogue with upper class Americans and celebrities, partly due to a generous tax break. However, when this tax loophole was closed, the bottom dropped out of the market.

Arabians that had commanded six-figure prices were being sold for a fraction of their value. Hundreds were sold for slaughter and it appeared that efforts to save the breed would fail.

That makes the efforts of people like Debra Schrishuhn and Cathy Tice, who are active in preserving the Babson breed, important. Both women own Babson Arabians in Champaign, and they belong to The Institute for the Desert Arabian Horse.

The two friends have co-authored a book being published by The Institute: “The Babson Influence: A Retrospective.”

The book contains over 500 pages of photographs and breeding statistics and is being released to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the 1932 Babson importation of Desert Arabians.

The two horse enthusiasts first met at a farm owned by John Fippen, in St. Joseph, Mo. Fippen’s farm was stocked with Arabians and he later went on to found the Heirloom Project, an organization devoted to preserving the breed. Schrishuhn boarded her pony, Thunder, there and Tice worked at the farm.

Schrishuhn had received her pony when she was 12. Her parents were divorcing at that time and gave their daughter the pony to help console her. Schrishuhn, an only child, looked upon Thunder as a “little brother.” The pony actually outlived her parents, passing away at the age of 29, in 1995.

By this time, Schrishuhn had already purchased her first Arabian from Fippen’s farm. Ibntep, like many Babson Arabians, is now getting up in years. The 22 year old survived a broken leg in 1993 and can still rear up on his hind legs at his owner’s command.

The same stable houses Ibntep’s family, which includes the mare, Shebas Moriah; her feisty 7 year-old foal, Sean Mi Rose; and Sean’s brother, Alara Ben Raad.

“The Arabians are known for their competitiveness, trainability and pocket puppy temperament,” Schrishuhn said, “They love people.”

At a recent visit to Schrishuhn’s farm, these graceful horses were friendly to the extreme and enjoyed rolling and romping in Schrishuhn’s corral. The atmosphere was not near as pleasant at Tice’s stable, where 24-year-old Bedu Baarlime was fighting for his life. Bedu has been blind the past 12 years but still served as an able mount for Tice.

When the vet came to put Bedu down, the horse suddenly began feeling better. After receiving anti-inflammatory drugs, Bedu was his old self again, frolicking with some baby goats.

“These horses have incredible wills to live,” Schrishuhn said, “As long as they’re not in pain and can still do their ‘horsey’ things.”

Bedu’s very existence is testimony to the incredible will of a man from Riverside, who couldn’t bear to see a beautiful breed of horses lost to the ages.

In his nineties, Henry Babson was still full of restless energy, enjoying long walks on his farm and taking trips to Africa and Asia. He died in 1968 at the age of 94, but his legacy in the world of horses continues.

As the great man himself said, “When you buy an Arab pleasure horse, you buy contentment.

By JOHN RICE

If camels are the “ships of the desert,” than Desert Arabian horses are the yachts. These magnificent animals were bred for millennia by the Bedouin tribes.

Bible scholars believe that when the three visitors from the East presented gifts to the infant Jesus, they didn’t trudge there on camels; they galloped into Bethlehem on Arabian horses. And, as this story will show, a gift to a child can change everything.

The Desert Arabians, equine aristocrats from the Middle East, would not exist today without the efforts of people like Riverside resident Henry Babson.

Babson was a prominent Riverside resident best known in the village these days as the former owner of a home designed by legendary architect Louis Sullivan. Babson offered the 23-acre estate at Longcommon and Delaplaine roads to the village as a gift, and the property was envisioned as a community house and recreation center.

Instead, the home was demolished and the land subdivided and sold for real estate development.

Babson also served on the Riverside Board of Trustees, the Riverside-Brookfield High School Board and the Riverside Library board.

“He never flaunted his wealth, his business excesses or his social position. Every action as a board member was motivated by his interest in the village and its general welfare,” former Riverside Village President Joseph Juric was quoted as saying in Babson’s obituary.

By 1930, Babson had developed an interest in Arabian horses, a fascination that began when he was a young man herding cattle on his family’s Kansas ranch. Each cowboy had eight horses, with the exception of a man who brought only four horses. These were characteristically compact Arab horses.

“I was amazed that the four horses were in better condition at the end of the drive than when they started,” Babson recalled in a 1965 article in Arabian Horse World magazine.

Babson went searching for Arabian horses in Europe, but didn’t find any that he cared for, so he returned to America empty-handed. Two years later, he went to Egypt and brought back five mares and two stallions, not realizing how crucially important his purchase would be in preserving ancient Arab bloodlines.

Desert Arabian horses are not only beautiful animals, they have extraordinary endurance and a keen intelligence. Relatively small in stature, they can gallop for hundreds of miles, subsisting on small amounts of water and a handful of food.

In medieval times, they were exceptionally skillful in battle and Europeans learned their larger domestic breeds were no match for the Desert Arabian. The Europeans interbred their horses with Arabians, producing mounts that were capable of carrying a knight and his armor at high speed.

However, the Arabians lost their military effectiveness during the mechanized age. At the same time, Bedouins were abandoning their nomadic lifestyle and no longer preserving the precious bloodlines.

As the interbreeding of the Arabians with workhorses increased, their legendary qualities were lost, along with their carefully catalogued family histories.

After Babson returned from Egypt in 1932, he began breeding the Arabians at his farm in Grand Detour, Illinois. During the next 60 years, Babson kept pure Arabian blood flowing in his stock and descendants of his horses populated farms throughout America.

When World War II was approaching, Babson further safeguarded the breed by spiriting Arabians out of Poland and other countries facing war.

The Babson influence has had a lasting effect on America’s horse breeding community. The hallmarks of a Babson horse are its intelligence and kindly disposition. They’ve also enjoyed great success in dressage competitions. Americans found out what the Bedouins had already learned: that these horses were so people-friendly they felt like family members.

Owning an Arab, in fact, came into vogue with upper class Americans and celebrities, partly due to a generous tax break. However, when this tax loophole was closed, the bottom dropped out of the market.

Arabians that had commanded six-figure prices were being sold for a fraction of their value. Hundreds were sold for slaughter and it appeared that efforts to save the breed would fail.

That makes the efforts of people like Debra Schrishuhn and Cathy Tice, who are active in preserving the Babson breed, important. Both women own Babson Arabians in Champaign, and they belong to The Institute for the Desert Arabian Horse.

The two friends have co-authored a book being published by The Institute: “The Babson Influence: A Retrospective.”

The book contains over 500 pages of photographs and breeding statistics and is being released to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the 1932 Babson importation of Desert Arabians.

The two horse enthusiasts first met at a farm owned by John Fippen, in St. Joseph, Mo. Fippen’s farm was stocked with Arabians and he later went on to found the Heirloom Project, an organization devoted to preserving the breed. Schrishuhn boarded her pony, Thunder, there and Tice worked at the farm.

Schrishuhn had received her pony when she was 12. Her parents were divorcing at that time and gave their daughter the pony to help console her. Schrishuhn, an only child, looked upon Thunder as a “little brother.” The pony actually outlived her parents, passing away at the age of 29, in 1995.

By this time, Schrishuhn had already purchased her first Arabian from Fippen’s farm. Ibntep, like many Babson Arabians, is now getting up in years. The 22 year old survived a broken leg in 1993 and can still rear up on his hind legs at his owner’s command.

The same stable houses Ibntep’s family, which includes the mare, Shebas Moriah; her feisty 7 year-old foal, Sean Mi Rose; and Sean’s brother, Alara Ben Raad.

“The Arabians are known for their competitiveness, trainability and pocket puppy temperament,” Schrishuhn said, “They love people.”

At a recent visit to Schrishuhn’s farm, these graceful horses were friendly to the extreme and enjoyed rolling and romping in Schrishuhn’s corral. The atmosphere was not near as pleasant at Tice’s stable, where 24-year-old Bedu Baarlime was fighting for his life. Bedu has been blind the past 12 years but still served as an able mount for Tice.

When the vet came to put Bedu down, the horse suddenly began feeling better. After receiving anti-inflammatory drugs, Bedu was his old self again, frolicking with some baby goats.

“These horses have incredible wills to live,” Schrishuhn said, “As long as they’re not in pain and can still do their ‘horsey’ things.”

Bedu’s very existence is testimony to the incredible will of a man from Riverside, who couldn’t bear to see a beautiful breed of horses lost to the ages.

In his nineties, Henry Babson was still full of restless energy, enjoying long walks on his farm and taking trips to Africa and Asia. He died in 1968 at the age of 94, but his legacy in the world of horses continues.

As the great man himself said, “When you buy an Arab pleasure horse, you buy contentment.