Legend has it that a Spanish ship carrying horses crashed close to shore. The horses that survived then swam to Assateague island. You can read about this legend in "Misty of Chincoteague."
It wasn't just a shipwreck, when they looked into the ponies ancestors they found many different kinds of horses so in the beginning the researchers thought that farmers took horses to Assateague to avoid taxes on the horses. It was a natural corral. Over time they adapted to the climate and other horses ended up on the island, they may have come from a ship or swam from mainland. There are hundreds of stories how the ponies got there but they are there and thriving.
Assateague Island National Seashore was created in 1965.
chincoteague is the populated yet smaller island while assateague is home to the ponies and much much bigger.
The Assateague Island is located in Delvara, Maryland, America. It is 37 miles long and is a barrier island. It is near Ocean City and near Chincoteague Island.
Yes.
The proper noun, a place name is Assateague Island (off the Atlantic coast).
Maryland and Virginia
off the eastern coat of Maryland and Virginia
Assateague Island is pronounced as "As-uh-teeg." The emphasis is on the second syllable, with a soft "a" sound at the beginning. The name is derived from the Native American word for "swampy land."
39,772 acres.
The Foster Horse Program is run through the Assateague Island National Seashore in conjunction with the Assateague Coastal Trust. The current cost (Fall, 2008) is $31.00 per horse. For more information, go to www.assateaguewildhorses.org. Hope that helps!
about 7 hours
In 2011, Assateague Island National Seashore had 2,105,419 visitors, and it averages 2. 1 million each year. It is governed by the National Park Service.