Pleasant Hill History Center

Jesse Beery

Jesse Beery was born near Pleasant Hill, June 13, 1861.  He was the son of Enoch and Mary Beery.  He married Almeda Coppock on December 25, 1889.  They raised two daughters and two sons.  He was recognized world-wide for his skill as a horse trainer.  He started the Beery School of Horsemanship.  He died on February 22, 1945.

More about Jesse from the Cemetery Walk.

I am Professor Jesse Beery.  I was born near Pleasant Hill, June 13, 1861.   My father, Enoch was a farmer.  He and my Mother, Mary Hatfield married in 1849.  I was one of seven children.  My mother died May 8, 1869, when I was seven years old.  She is buried in Sugar Grove Cemetery.  Later my father married Mary Coate who was a widow.  My youngest brother, Charles was born in 1871 (He is buried beside me.)

I discovered at a young age that I had a gift for training animals.  I’ve often been asked how did I choose such a dangerous profession?  Let me tell you about an incident that happened when I was still a young man living at home on the family farm.  One Sunday, I had an evening appointment with a young lady who lived on the adjoining farm to the east.  I planned to take her for a ride in my brand new buggy.  Early in the afternoon, I decided to try out the buggy.  I got off the buggy to talk to a neighbor and the colt took off for home.  I caught the horse and tried again.  The colt took off again in a cloud of dust.  The neighbor laughed at me.  As I neared home, I saw the buggy in pieces!  At home, I found the colt very excited with the torn harness dragging on the ground.

I resolved to teach that colt the meaning of the command “whoa”.  After an hour’s training, I hitched the colt to a buggy and went back to the same spot.  This time the colt stood there as I got out of the buggy and back in.  I kept my date with the young lady.

I ended up teaching the colt a number of tricks and people would come to watch it perform.

Before long, farmers were offering to pay my father, if I would break their horses of running away, biting, or any other undesirable habits.

My definition of horse training is the art of forming useful habits.  My experience has taught me how to handle every kind of horse, no matter what kind of bad habits it may have.

First, I have classified all horses by the shape of their heads.  I can tell you how to determine the natural disposition of any colt or horse by looking at its head.  Each disposition must be handled differently.  To train him right, you must understand his disposition.  During all my years on the road, giving public exhibitions, I never attempted to handle a single horse without first sizing him up, looking at his head both from the side and front view, so I would know exactly how to handle him.  As a result, I never tackled a horse I did not succeed in training.  I also invented an assortment of tools to better control the animals I worked with.  These included a collection of bits and bridles.

By the way, the date with the girl next door?  That turned out all right.  Miss Almeda Coppock and I wrote to each other all the years I traveled, and on Christmas day in 1889. I married her.  We had four children together; Ray, Ruth, Beecher and Lura.

In 1905, after 16 years of traveling, I began a new venture, determined to share my knowledge of horses by writing a practical guide to horse training.  In 1908, I began the Jesse Beery School of Correspondence in Horsemanship.  The correspondence school did very well and we began sending our publications around the world.  We even had and order from Mussolini!  I continued to give public exhibitions.  In 1910, I had my first Homecoming Exhibition in Pleasant Hill.  My second Homecoming was held in 1911.  In 1913 my final Homecoming was held at the fairgrounds in Dayton.  Thousands attended our exhibitions. 

On February 22, 1945, my death came as a result of a cerebral hemorrhage.  I was 83 years old.  In my life, I have had the opportunity to entertain, to teach, to build a fine home, to be proud of our four children, to enjoy a good game of roque, and to have a career doing something I loved.

1894 Map of Beery Property