Hartland Horsemen

By Gail Fitch

Saddle up for adventure with the horse-and-rider sets by Hartland Plastics, the small midwestern company that set a standard of excellence for mass produced, plastic figurines. Whether you like horses; collect toys, model horses, TV mementos or Western memorabilia; or just want to recall the days when heroes were good guys on horseback, this book will make you smile. Hartland Plastics manufactured about six dozen riders and 10 standing gunfighters, over 100 horses for the riders, and countless miniature accessories--and the fun they had shows. The quality sculpture by Roger Williams and Alvar Backstrand and fine attention to painted details give Hartland models a place in the history of American toys and the hearts of kids and collectors. Hartland expert Gail Fitch has assembled a guide loaded with color photography and valuable information for the collector, including current prices, data tables, and advice on care and repair of your models.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0764309471
• ISBN13: 9780764309472
• Release Date: October 1999
• Publisher: Schiffer Publishing
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 1.74 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 8.5" x 10.9"

Customer Reviews

Excellent book for Western and/or horse enthusiasts

Gail Fitch has done a superb job of putting together extrememly detailed and accurate information about all of Hartland's horse and rider figures, with lots of very nice pictures showing details that complement the text. This book has gotten rave reviews from non-Hartland collectors as well as all kinds of horse collectors, and they are well deserved! This is a book that can keep you happily absorbed for long periods of time and it's an essential reference for collectors. Hartland Horsemen is an excellent book, very professionally done, and I love it! Like someone else said, I can't wait until the Hartland horse book is done so I can buy it!

Review by a model horse collector

I love this book! I don't know what else the author could have included -- it is so complete. I especially like the fact that the book is broken into sections, i.e. the horses and riders, the standing gunfighters, the riders and the horses shown separately in other sections. I also enjoy the history section in the back, and the detailed written descriptions about the models and their variations. The quality of the color photos is superb and I would highly recommend this book to any Hartland collector. I can't wait till her book on the breed horses comes out!

A Must Have Book for Any Hartland Collector

I was really pleased when I received this book. If you are a serious collector and you want to know all about the wonderful Horse and Rider series that Hartland Company manufactured through out its existence then this is a must have book. I highly recommend it!

Loved by Serious Collector!

This book is a must for anyone serious about collecting model horses. Gail Fitch is well known in the hobby as THE authority on Hartlands, and her expertise shows as she thoroughly discusses the Hartland horses and riders. The author provides excellent photographs and shares details about the series that collectors will be able to use. Ms. Fitch is so meticulous about providing information to the extent that she includes photos of how to carefully remove the saddles so that the model is not damaged in the process. This book should be part of the basic library of each model horse enthusiast.

A Hartland collector responds

A terrific read! As the owner of numerous Hartland Western figurines and Hartland Baseball figurines, I really enjoyed the book. I thought for sure I saw the Lone Ranger and Tonto smile from their perch in my display case while I was reading. (They were my first Hartlands - gifts when I was 10 years old.)