Horse Pull

Horse pulling is a draft horse competition where horses in harness, usually one or two, pull a stone or weighted sled. The winner is the team or animal that can pull the most weight across a short distance. Fairgoers admire the sheer strength that these animals have and always enjoy watching their owners test their abilities.

There are different weight classes and strict rules to avoid animal cruelty. This is a competition they still put on today.

Image: Janet Photiou of Peabody, then 28, drives her team in the horse-pulling contest at the Topsfield Fair on Sept. 28, 1975. The object of the sport is for one team of horses to pull weight farther than the other.