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W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center Records
0062
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Title: W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center Records
Creator:
W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center
Creator:
Pomona Quartermaster Depot (Remount)
Identifier/Call Number: 0062
Contributing Institution:
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Special Collections and Archives
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
143.8 Linear Feet
(107 boxes, 64 trophies, 3 signs, 2 saddles on stands, 1 painting and 1 plaque)
Date (inclusive): 1873-2017
Abstract: The W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center is an Arabian horse breeding, training, and education facility at California State Polytechnic
University, Pomona. The Horse Center grew out of the Kellogg Ranch built by cereal magnate W.K. Kellogg in Pomona, California
in 1925. Kellogg donated the ranch to the state in 1932 and it was operated by the University of California until 1943, when
the ranch served as the Pomona Quartermaster Depot (Remount) for the Army Remount Service. The ranch was transferred to the
California Polytechnic Colleges in 1949 and the breeding program was incorporated into the agriculture curriculum. The collection
includes files documenting the horses that have lived at the Horse Center, administrative records, records from the Pomona
Quartermaster Depot (Remount), breeding records, audiovisual materials, and realia and ephemera.
The processing of this collection and the creation of this finding aid was funded by the generous support of the National
Historical Publications and Records Commission.
Advance notice required for access.
Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright. Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository
and the copyright holder.
[Box/folder# or item name], W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center Records, Collection no. 0062, W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Library,
Special Collections and Archives, University Library, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
The W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center is an Arabian horse breeding, training, and education facility at California State Polytechnic
University, Pomona.
The Horse Center grew out of the Kellogg Ranch built by cereal magnate W.K. Kellogg in Pomona, California in 1925. With the
ranch, Kellogg fulfilled his life-long dream of breeding outstanding Arabian horses. The ranch quickly became a popular Southern
California destination for the free Sunday horse shows offered to the public. Hollywood stars were drawn to the ranch as well,
often as guests of Mr. Kellogg. Several Kellogg horses went on to be used in films, most notably the stallion Jadaan in Rudolph
Valentino's last film
The Son of the Sheik
(1926).
Kellogg had hoped that the ranch and breeding program would prove a lasting legacy and decided to donate the 750 acre ranch
and 87 Arabian horses to the state of California in 1932. The gift agreement stipulated that the facility be known as the
W.K. Kellogg Institute of Animal Husbandry, that the breeding program would continue, and that Kellogg be consulted on important
matters of policy. A formal presentation ceremony took place at the ranch on May 17, 1932. Present were Mr. and Mrs. Kellogg,
California governor James Rolph, and 22,000 spectators. Will Rogers served as the master of ceremonies. The ranch officially
came under the management of the state on July 1, 1932 and was operated by the University of California's College of Agriculture.
The ranch continued to operate much as before. Kellogg Arabians were shown in California and other states, winning many prizes.
Kellogg continued to be involved and encouraged research in animal husbandry. H.H. Reese, who had worked as the Kellogg Ranch
manager, continued in much the same capacity as an employee of the University of California. The Arabians also continued to
draw Hollywood stars and were featured in several films during the 1930s.
However, Kellogg was not pleased with how the University of California was operating the ranch and continued to contribute
funds toward its upkeep throughout the 1930s. After the United States entered World War II in December 1941, Kellogg endeavored
to have the University turn over the ranch to the Army Remount Service to support the war effort. The University Board of
Regents offered the War Department an option to purchase the ranch on March 20, 1943. The Army officially took over on October
28, 1943 and the ranch became known as the Pomona Quartermaster Depot (Remount).
Colonel F.W. Koester was assigned as Commanding Officer. Koester was also the officer in charge of the Western Remount Area
(Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, and California) and the headquarters moved from San Mateo, California to
Pomona along with the Colonel. Major Cecil Edwards was selected as Executive Officer and second in command. Under Koester's
command, the Army undertook a number of improvements to the property and much of the work was done by German and Italian prisoners
of war housed at the nearby fairgrounds in Pomona. The Sunday shows and breeding program continued.
The Army retained the ranch for three more years following the end of the war in 1945. On April 22, 1946, the depot received
several horses that had been seized by the Army from a Nazi remount depot in Europe. Among the these were 21 Arabians, seven
"Arab kind" (part Arabians), eight Lipizzaners, and one Anglo-Arab.
In 1947, Col. Koester was reassigned to a post in Stockton, California and Major Charles B. Team became the commanding officer.
That same year, the Army announced that it was abandoning its horse breeding program and the entire Remount, including the
Pomona depot, was transferred to the Department of Agriculture in April of 1948. Within a few months, the Department of Agriculture
found that it lacked the funds to continue to operate the Remount program and moved to sell off the Kellogg ranch and horses
that December.
The Department of Agriculture's decision proved to be unpopular with the public and deeply troubling to W.K. Kellogg, who
was by that time 88 years old. The planned sale was canceled under increasing public and political pressure. The ranch was
finally transferred to the California State Department of Education via the Kellogg Foundation in 1949 and became part of
the San Dimas branch of California Polytechnic College in San Luis Obispo.
The San Dimas campus had been established in 1937 as the southern satellite of Cal Poly. The campus was at the former site
of the Voorhis School for Boys and only a short distance from the Kellogg Ranch. By the end of 1949, the ranch was known as
the Kellogg Unit of Cal Poly and the university quickly integrated the Arabians and ranch into its curriculum. The first Sunday
show since 1948 took place on March 12, 1950 and over 3,000 attended. Veterinarian Dr. Gordon G. Stocking was hired as ranch
manager in 1951 and an Arabian Advisory Committee was established in accordance with the provisions of the ranch deed from
the Kellogg Foundation.
By the early 1950s, Cal Poly had outgrown the San Dimas campus and plans were made to move all instruction to the Kellogg
Unit. Construction of new buildings began in 1955 and the new campus—now called the Kellogg-Voorhis Unit—opened in 1956. In
addition to supporting the agricultural curriculum, the Arabians were featured in campus events such as the annual Poly-Vue
open house. The horses and breeding program were referred to as Cal Poly's Arabian Unit.
In 1963 Norman K. Dunn was appointed manager of what was then referred to as the Horse Department, a position he would hold
for the next 35 years. Under Dunn's leadership, the Department joined with the Arabian Horse Association of Southern California
to co-sponsor seminars and public clinics on horsemanship. These educational sessions proved very popular and the proceeds
were used to fund student scholarships. Dunn also introduced the tradition of the "Foal Pole" in 1967—when a foal is born
a pink or blue flag is run up the pole to announce the new arrival.
The Kellogg-Voorhis Unit formally separated from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo in 1966 and became
known as California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. The Pomona campus wished to emphasize its connection to the California
State University system, hence the slight difference in its official name.
By 1970, the University had begun planning the relocation of the horses to a new home. The original stables and show ring
were in the center of the growing campus and the construction of a new student union building was planned on a portion of
the site. The University applied for and was awarded a grant from the Kellogg Foundation in 1973 to build a new facility.
Construction of this new facility—the W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center—began that same year. The new center was located to
the east of the main campus and included stables, offices, tack rooms, two living quarters, a classroom, a shoeing shop; a
secondary stable area with breeding facilities and veterinary clinic; a facility for visiting horses; and a show arena with
seating for 900 spectators.
The last Sunday show at the old stables was held on December 16, 1973 and on February 23, 1974 the Arabians were walked through
the original entry arch, down the hill, and on to their new home. The W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center was formally dedicated
on April 6, 1974 and is still home to the Kellogg Arabians today. The old stables were later dedicated as Union Plaza and
serves as a center for student organizations.
In October 1976, the Arabian Advisory Committee formed an Equine Research Advisory Committee to explore the establishment
of a proposed Equine Research Facility. Private funds were secured and the Equine Research Center opened in 1980. It included
a research laboratory, conference room, and paddocks for animals involved in research programs.
The Arabian Horse Center partnered again with the Kellogg Foundation in 1979 to produce the film
The Kellogg Dream
. The film featured footage of the ranch from the 1920s, contemporary scenes of students and horses, and a narration prepared
by historian Mary Jane Parkinson. The film was presented before and after the Sunday shows and later made available on videocassette.
Never able to stay away from the spotlight for long, the Arabians were also used in the production of the 1984
Equestrian Video Library
, an educational series that covered various horsemanship topics. Nine years later, the Arabian Horse Center was featured
on an episode of the popular public television series
California's Gold
.
In 1984, the Advisory Committee recommended that the University establish an educational program in equine management. In
1990, the University established a continuing education curriculum known as the Equine Outreach Program and by 2000 the University
offered a bachelor's degree in Animal Science with an Equine Industry option. The active breeding program has continued as
a part of the curriculum and Sunday shows are presented to public October through May in the tradition of the Kellogg Ranch.
The collection includes files maintained for Kellogg horses, including pedigrees, photographs, veterinary records, sales records,
and correspondence; administrative records that document California State Polytechnic University, Pomona's operation of the
Horse Center including photocopies of the deed transferring the Kellogg Ranch from the Kellogg Foundation to the state of
California and subsequently the California State University system, correspondence, W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Advisory materials,
and horse show materials; records that document the period that the Kellogg Ranch operated as the Pomona Quartermaster Depot
(Remount), including correspondence, ranch inventories, and breeding records specific to the Remount; breeding records and
contracts from the Horse Center's operation under the University; audiovisual materials documenting the presentation of the
Kellogg Ranch to the state of California in 1932, the dedication of the W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center in 1974, and recordings
of members of the Arabian Advisory Committee; and realia and ephemera including stall signs for individual horses, horse show
tickets and programs, and the saddle used by the horse Jadaan in Rudolph Valentino's 1926 film
The Son of the Sheik
.
The collection is organized into the following series: Series 1. Horses; Series 2. Administrative Records; Series 3. Pomona
Quartermaster Depot (Remount); Series 4. Breeding Records and Contracts; Series 5. Audiovisual Materials; Series 6. Realia
and Ephemera.
A.J. Edwards Papers, Collection no. 0004, W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Library, Special Collections and Archives, University
Library, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
Cecil and Gladys Brown Edwards Papers, Collection no. 0005, W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Library, Special Collections and Archives,
University Library, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
The Kellogg Dream.
VHS. Pomona, CA: California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, 1983.
Letts, Elizabeth.
The Perfect Horse: The Daring Mission to Rescue Priceless Stallions Kidnapped by the Nazis.
New York: Ballantine Books, 2016.
Parkinson, Mary Jane.
The Kellogg Arabian Ranch: The First Sixty Years: A Chronicle of Events, 1925-1985.
Pomona, CA: Cal Poly Kellogg Unit Foundation, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, 1984.
Parkinson, Mary Jane.
The Romance of the Kellogg Ranch: A Celebration of the Kellogg/Cal Poly Pomona Arabian Horses, 1925-2000.
Pomona, CA: W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, 2000.
Pflueger, Donald H.
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona: A Legacy and a Mission, 1938-1989.
Spokane, WA: Arthur H. Clark Co., 1999.
Reese, Herbert H. (Herbert Harshman).
The Kellogg Arabians: Their Background and Influence.
Los Angeles: Borden Pub. Co., 1958.
The Romance of Pomona Ranch.
Pomona, CA: W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Ranch, 1932.
Smith, Linell Nash.
And Miles to Go: The Biography of a Great Arabian Horse, Witez II.
Boston: Little Brown, 1967.
Son of the Sheik.
Directed by George Fitzmaurice. Performed by Rudolph Valentino and Vilma Bánky. United Artists, 1926. Film.
United States Army. Quartermaster Corps.
Parade of Horses Recently Imported from Europe by the U.S. Army Remount Service: Sunday April 7, 1946.
Front Royal, VA: Aleshire Quartermaster Depot Remount, 1946.
United States. Agriculture Remount Service (Fort Reno, Okla).
Agriculture Remount Service Catalogue of Horses to be Sold at Public Auction: 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, May 25, 1949, Fort Reno,
Oklahoma.
Fort Reno, OK: The Service, 1949.
W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Library Photograph Collection, Collection no. 0018, W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Library, Special
Collections and Archives, University Library, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Library Postcard and Notecard Collection, Collection no. 0015, W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Library,
Special Collections and Archives, University Libary, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
The W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Ranch.
Pomona, CA: W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Ranch, 1930.
W.K. Kellogg Ranch Records, Collection no. 0019, W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Library, Special Collections and Archives, University
Library, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
The collection was processed by Alexis Adkins, Katrina Cossio, Elizabeth Hernandez, Elainna-Marie Herrera, Lissa Lopez, and
Neelam Patel in 2018. The finding aid was revised in September 2019 to correct selected folder titles and to remove two trophies
that belong to the Paul H. Husband Collection on the Horse Khemosabi.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center
W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Ranch
Pomona Quartermaster Depot (Remount)
United States. Army Remount service
Arabian horse