The History of Misty of Chincoteague
by Amanda Geci

Misty was foaled July 20, 1946, on Assateague Island. Her sire was Pied Piper and her dam was the black and white tobiano pinto Phantom. Misty was a palomino tobiano pinto with the map of the United States on her side in reverse and a blaze shaped like the state of Virginia. She was sold at the annual Pony Penning auction to the Clarence (Grandpa) and Ida (Grandma) Beebe family of Chincoteague Island. Children's author Marguerite Henry had come to the island to seek a story for her new book. She met the Beebes and wanted to buy Misty to take back with her to be the model for her newest book. Clarence at first refused but sold her after Marguerite said she would include Maureen and Paul Beebe in the book, children of Harold Beebe, Clarence and Ida's grandchildren who where living with them at the time. Misty was sold for $150 and was sent to Mrs. Henry after she was weaned. Misty stayed with Marguerite for over ten years appearing for her fans at schools and movie theaters until she was sent back to Chincoteague to have her foals.

The first book, Misty of Chincoteague, was published in 1947. It is about the Beebe family and their grandchildren Maureen and Paul. The book is a best seller, a Newbery Honor Book, and has had over twenty hardcover printings. The second book, Sea Star, Orphan of Chincoteague, was published in 1949. It has the most fiction of the three. The third book, Stormy, Misty's Foal, was published in 1963. It is about the Ash Wednesday Storm of 1963 and the arrival of Misty's last foal Stormy. Misty was put into the kitchen of Ralph and Jeanette Beebe during the storm because her barn was flooded. All of the books are fiction but are based on real people, ponies, places, and events.

A movie called "Misty" was made by Twentieth Century Fox about the first book. Misty herself was not in the movie; she was too old to play the role of a young filly. A black and white foal called Emma, who had her coat bleached to match, played Misty. Most of the people in the movie were locals; there were only six professional actors in "Misty". At the premier of the movie on Chincoteague, Misty was lead down Main Street and put her front hoof prints in the cement in front of the Island Theatre, now called Roxy Theatre. Stories about Misty appeared in Life Magazine, June 10, 1957, May 23, 1960, May 26, 1961, and in National Geographic, December 1962.

Misty only had three foals; Phantom Wings, Wisp o' Mist, & Stormy. A chestnut pinto Chincoteague Pony, Wings, so named because a mark he had in the shape of wings, sired all three of Misty's foals. Phantom Wings, Misty's first foal and only colt, was a palomino tobaino pinto with markings of the map of the United States & wings like his sire. He was foaled on April 6, 1960, and died in 1964. Misty's second foal was a solid dark chestnut filly that was named Wisp o' Mist or Little Wisp. She was foaled March 21, 1961, and died in 1964. Phantom Wings and Wisp o' Mist tragically both died the same day after they had broken into a cow pasture and got sick off the cow's feed. Stormy, depicted in the book Stormy, Misty's Foal, was a chestnut and white tobiano pinto. She was foaled soon after the great Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962 on March 11 and died of old age in 1993.

Clarence and Paul Beebe had unfortunately died before the birth of Phantom Wings. Clarence Beebe died in June of 1957. Paul died in a car accident on Chincoteague in April of 1957 at age 21. Ida Beebe died in October of 1960. Maureen Beebe Hursh is still alive and is living on Chincoteague. Misty died on October 16, 1972 at age 26. She was stuffed and was put on display at the Chincoteague Miniature Pony Farm, formerly owned by Mr. Paul B. Merritt, for many years. Her heart was buried between Ida and Clarence Beebe on Chincoteague. After Stormy's death in 1993, she was also stuffed and put on display. The Miniature Pony Farm closed in 1996 and as of July 1999 both ponies are in the possession of Billy King Beebe, first cousin to Paul and Maureen.

Misty, Stormy, and Phantom Wings have been immortalized into Breyer models. Her great granddaughter Misty's Twilight, a successful dressage horse, was depicted in her own book by Marguerite Henry, Misty's Twilight, and was made into a model. Breyer also made Misty's last living granddaughter Misty II and two of her offspring, Black Mist, the first black pinto in the Misty line since Phantom, and Misty's May Day Twister, into models.

Misty herself only had three foals, but her descendants are much more numerous. Phantom Wings had only one known foal, Sandpiper, a colt out of Nora. Wisp o' Mist also only had one foal, Cloudy, a palomino who spent much of his life at the Chincoteague Miniature Pony Farm entertaining crowds with his many tricks. Stormy had six foals total, one stallion, the palomino Thunder by Lightning, and five mares the chestnut pintos Windy (1969-1998), Breezy (1972), Foggy Mist (1978), Misty II (1974-2000), and the solid dark chestnut Rainy (1973). Many of Misty's descendants have become successful show horses.

Misty may have left us, but she lives on through her books, her many, many descendants, and the millions of people who have read and will read her story.

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