Before gas engines, before big steam powered machinery, before trains, tractors or any number of modern inventions, America relied on — was really built using horses, mules and oxen. They were critical on farms, road building, canal building, pulling logs out of forests and most important, pulling freight. The draft horses came from Europe. The Clydesdales bred in Scotland, The Shires in England, Percheron in France. And as America spread west, the work horses were there every step of the way. But by the 1940’s, the internal combustion engine and new tractors, trucks and road building equipment nearly ended this legacy of the big animals. Old timers still remember draft teams bought and sent to slaughter — not needed anymore. Some were saved. Of course Budweiser still used Clydes. And Amish farms used draft horses.

But Across America, you still find many other people keeping the traditions alive. One of the legendary teamsters — Nolan Darnell — of Corning, California, helped organize a gathering of the horses, mules and old equipment — just to help teach about the past.

Over the years he and others have collected all sorts of road grading and building equipment. Perhaps the most important is called the Fresno Scraper, invented nearly 150 years go, it changed everything. In our special report, Nolan and his group give us a look back to those days — when America was built by The Work Horses.