Richard (Dick) Shepard, Chief of the Fort Sill's Field Artillery Half Section, the Army's last horse-drawn artillery unit, keeps tradition and history alive. He leads a group of 6 horses, 3 drivers, 3 "cannoneers" and one 'guide-on' as part of the US Army's recruitment and promotional program. This unit was started with a donation from a local Oklahoma businessman to purchase horses. Some of the saddles and hardware are original and were furnished by the Field Artillery Museum. The uniforms are replicas of those worn from 1918 to the 1930's.
Dick spent 3 days at the Florida Carriage Museum and Resort and was honored by Gloria Austin at a Saturday night banquet where Chief Shepard was introduced to competitors of the recent Horse Festival and Carriage Show. Retirement will find Chief Shepard buying and selling horses, just as his father and father before him has done. Dick says his father told him as a young man, when he handed him the reins of a horse, "You can trot this horse all day but if I catch you running, you had better be chasing something!" - meaning the most sustainable gait over distance is the trot and that the gallop should only be used for sprint work over a short distance such as when chasing or herding cows. "Wet backs make good horses," is another expression of Dick's, which means that a well-used horse makes a useful horse.
The Half Section's gun limber is of the type used by the Army through the 1930's. The 75mm cannon was the standard light field artillery piece for U.S. and French forces in World War I. It was used until the last horse-drawn artillery unit was replaced by motorized units in 1942. There are still 8 horse units in the US Military. Most are used for ceremonial purposes but American Special Services soldiers are still using horses and mules in Afghanistan where the mountainous terrain is too rugged for motorized units.
