WW1 US Horse Saddle?

[diddle0711]

My grandmother cleaned out a storage shed, and we found this saddle. We had a friend clean it up some, but it still needs some TLC. She says it was her father's. It has an "US" on the side, and I can't find any other markings on it. We want to find out roughly what it is worth, and if it is infact military; and then anything else helpful...

[Adrian Stevenson]

Hi and welcome to the forum!

It is US military. The marking confirms that.

Sorry, I cannot advise on value.

Cheers, Ade.

[RayG]

Not a saddle expert but the closest saddle I can find that looks like it in the book American Military Saddle, 1776-1945, is a packers saddle from about the turn of the century, pg 135. However your saddle could be a lot ealier then that because it has a raw hide covered seat only, the one in the book has a leather covered seat. Only raw hide covering was used generally in the 1800's. It also has the appearence of a Hope saddle but I couldn't find any info in the book on the Hope saddles. Maybe some other more knowledgable folks could help, Ray