History of the American Paint Horse Association

1519 Spanish explorer Hernando Cortes brought Paint horses to the New World (now North America)

Early 1800s Paints roamed the western plains, and because of their flashy colors and performance stamina they became a quick favorite of the American Indians.

1962 APHA founder, Rebecca Lockhart and close friends dedicated themselves to preserving both the color and stock-type confirmation of the American Paint Horse by organizing the American Paint Stock Horse Association (APSHA).

August 11, 1962 Ms. Lockhart recorded the first APHA pedigree. The horse was named Bandits Pinto, owned by Flying M Ranch of McKinney, Texas.

1963 After 150 members and 250 registered horses in 1962, APSHA hired their first Executive Secretary, Ralph Morrison, and moved to Amarillo, Texas. The first regional club was also formed in 1963, The Gulf Coast Paint Horse Club.

1964 The Association moved back to Fort Worth. By the end of this year the Association had registered 1,269 horses, had 1,005 members, six regional clubs, and hosted its first National Show. This National Show laid the ground work for what is now known as the World Championship Paint Horse Show.

1965 The American Paint Stock Horse Association merged with the American Paint Quarter Horse Association to form what is now known as the American Paint Horse Association.

1974 The AjPHA was formed.

Today, approximately 80,000 people in 40 nations and territories are active members of the APHA and nearly 953,000 Paint Horses have been registered. The association registers about 30,000 horses per year. AjPHA has over 6,900 active members from all over the world.