American Hackney Horse Society Hall of Fame
Thursday, August 30, 2007
(Editor’s note: The following presentation was made on Monday night during the Kentucky State Fair World’s Championship Horse Show.)
Lee and Beverly Dunn
Beverly Myers Dunn spent most of her childhood in Monroe, Wisconsin. Her favorite place to visit was her neighbor’s farm where registered Shetland ponies were raised. It was there that she picked up a Shetland magazine, and an ad for breeder Joyce Morganthaler of Pickneyville, Illinois, caught her eye. After finishing high school, Beverly contacted Joyce and spent two seasons in Illinois caring for and showing Joyce Morganthaler’s ponies.
Meanwhile, in the early 1950s, Lee Dunn and his father Lowell saw Hackneys competing at a county fair in Marion, Illinois. They were so taken by them that they returned home, sold their numerous Walking horses, and began purchasing ponies. Lee and his father eventually had 110 ponies, consisting of both Shetlands and Hackneys. The first Hackney purchased by Lee and Lowell was the stallion Mastercraft’s Magic Prince that went on to become the foundation of the Dun-Haven program.
As fate would have it, Lee and Beverly met at an all-pony show in Rising Sun, Maryland, in 1959, and were eventually married four years later.
One of the first ponies shown by Lee and Beverly to attract national attention was a Canadian pony named Wing Commander, the 1967 World’s Grand Champion. He sired the 1972 Three-Year-Old Harness Futurity Champion, Merrywill’s That’s That, as well as many other outstanding get. Another noteworthy pony bred by the Dunns was Dun-Haven Starlet, the last pony Mrs. Alfred Wilson personally drove.
Dun-Haven So Rare put them on the map – undefeated as an In-Hand Two-Year-Old, he became a multiple World’s Champion cobtail pony for the late Isabel Robson.
Some of the ponies raised, brought out, and trained by Lee Dunn include Dun-Haven Desiree, Dun-Haven High Time (sired by Dun-Haven’s late, great sire Cadetson’s Choice), Dun-Haven Inspiration, Dun- Haven Daydream, Dun-Haven Awesome Creation, Dun-Haven Bandolier, Dun- Haven Flirtation, Dun-Haven Classic Edition, Dun-Haven Crescendo, Royal Manor Fanfare, Dun-Haven Supreme King, Dun-Haven King Lear, Dun-Haven Titleist, Dun-Haven Sheer Elegance, Mark Of Success, and Revelation (Mark Of Distinction).
A few years ago, Lee and Beverly followed their dream and moved to Ohio. They built a beautiful breeding and training facility, where they have continued their success in the show ring with both Hackneys and Shetlands. The Dunns’ dreams have come true. Lee quoted his major accomplishment as “LIVING and DOING what I like to do.”
Join us as we congratulate our 2007 American Hackney Horse Society Hall Of Fame inductees, Lee and Beverly Dunn.
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