Historic Pueblo

Pueblo has at least 16 horse tie down rings still intact in its curbs.  These horse tie down rings are made of solid iron and were used toward the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries. The purpose of these rings were to tie individual horses and horses pulling carts, carriages, and other devices. It has been written that these rings were particularly useful for keeping horses pulling fire carts in place. Currently there are 19 known rings within the city of Pueblo, most  located in front of 10 homes along the 900 to 1800 blocks of Lake Avenue.  Research indicates that 9 of the 10 homes were built prior to 1905.  

The iron rings were prominent not only in Pueblo, but other cities across the country. In the Historic Anacostia neighborhood of the nation’s capital the only evidence of horse tie rings is the iron anchor. In Rockport, Texas, there are no rings remaining.  The last known horse tie ring was removed in June 2009.  The city of Rockport has taken the ring and placed it in an archival vault.

The City of Portland has led the way in preserving their remaining rings after a concerned citizen fought to keep their remaining rings in place. The city (as with other cities) were removing them as they believed they posed a safety concern.  A concerned citizen worked to stop the removal of the remaining horse ties.  It is unknown how many ties the city of Portland has.

It is imperative that we preserve all of the horse tie rings within the city of Pueblo.  These are historic resources that are quickly disappearing across the country.

If you have a horse tie ring in front of your home,or know of one that we have not listed, please e-mail it to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..