Chincoteague drill team member came up with idea to make ponies the official state pony of Virginia

BY KATIE CASTELLANI
STAFF WRITER
THE CAPITAL NEWS SERVICE

Chincoteague ponies are known as the beloved and wild equines who graze Assateague Island and were made famous by the book “Misty of Chincoteague.” But for pony drill team member Sophia Gallivan, they’re familiar partners who can march in a parade one day and give children a ponyride the next.

Gallivan proudly leads parades while riding a short, brightly colored copper pony named Misty’s Red Dawn, or Dawn as she is known in the barn. Gallivan and Dawn bring cheer while performing choreographed riding routines with fellow members of the Chincoteague Pony Drill Team.

The drill team is the only one of its kind. Its leader, Kendy Allen, keeps the largest herd of Chincoteague ponies at her farm nestled in the small town of Bloxom on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. All of the ponies, including Dawn, are descendants of the world-famous Misty of Chincoteague, the star of Marguerite Henry’s beloved children’s book, Misty of Chincoteague, which was published in 1947 and adapted to film in 1961. Henry encountered Misty the foal while visiting the Chincoteague island and the story continues to draw worldwide attention to the island.

Whether it’s performing a carefully coordinated pattern for tourists, or marching their way through downtown Richmond, Allen’s ponies have seen it all, she said. No matter where they go, they always have a cheering section.

They can sometimes be mischievous, but the talents of Chincoteague ponies go beyond their acclaimed history and drill team. The ponies hold their own as backyard companions or against competition horses neatly soaring over fences in arenas. They can turn on a dime in barrel races and gallop over jumps to victory at eventing competitions – all formidable feats for the petite equine participants.

“I think they’re the best pony breed in the world. I think they’re one of the best-kept secrets,” Allen said. “I just don’t think there’s anything that they can’t do.”

It was on her way home from a competition last year with a pony in tow when Gallivan came up with the idea to designate the Chincoteague Pony as Virginia’s official pony.

“I was like, ‘why aren’t Chincoteague ponies being recognized more in the legislature?’ I mean they should be the state pony,” Gallivan said. “It’s a really feel-good bill, it’s not very political and it doesn’t alter anyone’s life or health, but it’s just something that I think all Virginians should be proud of.”

That’s when Gallivan got to work contacting her representatives, Del. Robert Bloxom, R-Accomack, and Sen. Lynwood Lewis, D-Accomack. Bloxom and Lewis introduced matching bills that nearly unanimously passed the Virginia General Assembly. Seven house members voted against the legislation – most of them favoring the wild mountain ponies of Grayson Highlands.

“This is probably the most important bill of this legislative session, this is the main event,” Bloxom said earlier on the House floor. “It is time the commonwealth pony-up and give Chincoteague heritage the recognition it deserves.”

The Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Department cares for the wild herd of Chincoteague ponies and has supported the idea since North Carolina designated the Spanish colonial mustang as its official state horse several years ago, John Hunter Leonard, a department spokesman, said.

Naming the Chincoteagues as the official state pony will only add to the already immense influence they have on the island, from fueling the tourism economy to serving as the high school’s mascot.

“The pony impact is really hard to even measure, just about anything we do has ponies involved,” Leonard said. “It’s amazing how much support that they get just being the ponies that they are.”

The fire department began caring for the ponies in 1925 after they hosted a successful carnival during the annual Pony Penning to raise funds for fire equipment. The Pony Penning, which takes place annually in the last week of July, is the biggest fundraiser for the firefighters.

The Saltwater Cowboys round up hundreds of wild ponies and guide them as they swim across the channel from Assateague Island, which is split between Virginia and Maryland, to the shore of Chincoteague. The ponies have inhabited Assateague Island, which is an undeveloped National Wildlife Refuge, for hundreds of years but get their name from the closest populated town of Chincoteague.

The ponies are then welcomed by tens of thousands of fans who over the years have traveled to the island from across the world to see them. Aside from Henry’s world-famous book, the ponies are also notable for their mysterious origins. Among the many legends, the most popular theory is that they swam ashore as survivors of the shipwreck of Spanish galleons.

To help control the size of the herd, dozens of the wild foals are then auctioned off to new homes, aside from a select few “buyback”’ foals that are donated to the fire department to help maintain the herd.

Just about everyone on the island gets involved during Pony Penning, including the drill team, which puts on a performance and has an area for people to meet the ponies.

Allen credits the fire department with keeping the legacy of the ponies alive.

“They’re the root of it all,” Allen said. “They do a marvelous job with those horses, if it wasn’t for the Chincoteague fire company there would not be any team to keep breeding.”

Taking care of the ponies is a year-round job for the firefighters, who among other duties conduct spring and fall roundups for the ponies to be checked out by veterinarians. Leonard said firefighters are grateful for their mutually beneficial relationship with the herd.

Katie is a student who covered the General Assembly for the Capitol News Service this session.  We were pleased to share her story.