Horses in Cities

In any urban area, the need to transport both goods and people is paramount. Many people in early urban history lived within typical walking distance of work. Thus, their employment possibilities were limited by how far they were willing to commute to work. As the country expanded westward, the need for transportation became more pressing, and the use of horses became more pronounced. Horses were a common sight in most urban areas until the early part of the 20th century. Horses were used to pull freight wagons and passenger coaches, as well as various other municipal conveyances.

Municipalities were called on to account for horses in the development of urban infrastructure, with a mixed record. For example, streets were usually designed to allow two wagons to pass side by side at the same time, but no provision was made for what would happen if a horse had to go over uneven or unpaved roads. In addition, equine waste disposal was rarely optimal, and open sewers made equine health difficult at times. The cities managed as best they could, nevertheless.

When the first omnibuses were introduced in cities (basically streetcars pulled by horses rather than some other sort of propulsion system), the horses seemed to be a perfect way to operate. Unfortunately, the horses strained under the physical weight of the cars, and many hurt themselves or were maltreated by the drivers. In the summer months in places such as New York and Chicago, the stress of physical exertion was such that horses often just lay down and died. To ameliorate these problems, teamsters tried to give horses breaks if they were starting long hauls, or they had extra horses on standby to help pull heavy loads up hills.

The problem of sanitation was difficult enough for cities, but it was compounded by the fact that horses also had to pull the garbage wagons. When a horse died, it often stayed where it dropped because loading a 1,000-pound animal onto a garbage wagon was difficult under the best circumstances and pulling the resulting wagon would quite likely result in another horse's death. A rotting carcass attracted vermin, further spreading disease and creating a pungent smell.

Cities also faced challenges related to boarding the horses. An average horse produces 10 to 20 pounds of solid waste a day and consumes 16 to 20 pounds of food. In addition, horses must be housed in an area that is adequate enough for them to remain healthy. With these considerations, there was limited space for horses in any city, let alone in a city that relied heavily on their use. In 1900, New York City had about 130,000 horses, even though newly designed public transportation systems such as the elevated and subway trains were already in use. In Chicago, the number of horses was not nearly as large (about 74,000), but that was still a substantial number to accommodate. Philadelphia and St. Louis maintained at least 35,000 animals apiece.

For citizens as well as city employees, the horse was both a godsend and a nuisance. Horses could transport many times the amount of goods that a person could carry, and they could travel faster than a person could walk. On the downside, horses were often easily spooked. Police commendation reports often cited an officer's bravery in slowing down runaway horses before the animals injured people. Large portions of city budgets also went for the upkeep of horses. The Chicago Police Department in 1900 employed five staff veterinarians to provide the horses with medical attention. The veterinarians had to help keep the animals that pulled emergency response vehicles in at least passable shape. Even if the horses were well cared for, their life expectancy was only 4 to 5 years.

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