Setting Sun (

foal A foal is an equine up to one year old; this term is used mainly for horses, but can be used for donkeys. More specific terms are colt for a male foal and filly for a female foal, and are used until the horse is three or four. When the foal ...

ed 1952) was a

Tennessee Walking Horse The Tennessee Walking Horse or Tennessee Walker is a breed of gaited horse known for its unique four-beat running-walk and flashy movement. It was originally developed as a riding horse on farms and plantations in the American South. It is ...

stallion who competed in his breed's World Grand Championship three times. On his first attempt, in 1956, he placed third; he won the Reserve World Grand Championship in 1957 and the World Grand Championship in 1958. He was trained by Sam Paschal. After his wins, Setting Sun made nationwide television appearances. He died in 1976 and is buried near

Newport, Tennessee Newport is a city in and the county seat of Cocke County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 6,945 at the 2010 census, down from 7,242 at the 2000 census. The estimated population in 2018 was 6,801. It is located along the Pigeon Riv ...

Life

Setting Sun was a

chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelate ...

stallion sired by the notable breeding stallion

Midnight Sun The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon that occurs in the summer months in places north of the Arctic Circle or south of the Antarctic Circle, when the Sun remains visible at the local midnight. When the midnight sun is seen in the Arctic, ...

, and out of the

mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than f ...

Alice Carver. He was foaled in 1952 and bred by W. H. Webb of

Carthage, Tennessee Carthage is a town in and the county seat of Smith County, Tennessee, United States; it is part of the Nashville Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,306 at the 2010 census. It is located on the Cumberland River, which was importan ...

. He was owned by the industrialist M. M. Bullard of

, and trained by

Sam Paschal Sam Paschal was a Tennessee Walking Horse trainer from Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Paschal trained three horses who won the breed's World Grand Championship. Career Paschal operated a training stable in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Paschal's first nota ...

Murfreesboro, Tennessee Murfreesboro is a city in and county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 152,769 according to the 2020 census, up from 108,755 residents certified in 2010. Murfreesboro is located in the Nashville metropo ...

. Paschal showed Setting Sun at the

Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration The Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration (TWHNC), sometimes known as the Celebration, is the largest horse show for the Tennessee Walking Horse breed, and has been held annually in or near Shelbyville, Tennessee since its inception in 19 ...

for the first time in 1956. They placed third in the World Grand Championship. The following year Setting Sun was the Reserve World Grand Champion, and in 1958 he finally won the World Grand Championship. After his World Grand Championship, Setting Sun made nationwide television appearances in the United States. He had 159 wins in 160 shows, and was estimated to be one of the most widely known Tennessee Walkers of the time. Setting Sun retired from showing in the mid-1960s. His last public appearance was at a horse show in

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...

. Following retirement from the show ring, he was used for breeding. He died of a

kidney disease Kidney disease, or renal disease, technically referred to as nephropathy, is damage to or disease of a kidney. Nephritis is an inflammatory kidney disease and has several types according to the location of the inflammation. Inflammation can ...

in September 1976 and was buried in a formal funeral on Bullard's farm. TV personality

Stan Brock Stanley James Brock (born June 8, 1958) is a former American football player and coach. He played as a tackle at the University of Colorado at Boulder and in the National Football League for the New Orleans Saints and the San Diego Chargers. B ...

read the eulogy at the ceremony.

References

{{Reflist Individual Tennessee Walking Horses 1952 animal births 1976 animal deaths World Grand Champion Tennessee Walking Horses