The organization also houses the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame and Museum and sponsors educational programs.

The American Quarter Horse Association was born at a meeting on March 15, 1940, in Fort Worth, Texas.

The original idea had come from articles published by Robert M. Denhardt during the 1930s about the history and characteristics of the quarter horse.

[1] About seventy-five people met in Fort Worth to discuss the proposals, with the eventual decision being to form a non-profit stock holding association in Texas to be the registry.

Other disputes included the fact that AQHA only allowed stock owners to vote, and some breeders felt that this arrangement kept too much power in too few hands.

This group mainly was concerned with the operation of racetracks and their registration efforts were limited to what was needed for identification for racing purposes.

[4][5] Individuals who believed AQHA was too restrictive in its registration and membership policies formed the National Quarter Horse Breeders Association (NQHBA) in December 1945.

Horses in the "appendix" registry can "earn" their way into the main stud book by completing an extensive set of performance requirements in either racing or some form of show competition and receiving what the Association refers to as a Register of Merit (ROM).

One reason was lack of a full understanding of equine coat color genetics (For example, people did not know that Palomino is an incomplete form of the cremello dilution gene) and the other was a legitimate concern about a condition called lethal white syndrome, which was not fully understood at the time.

Today, modern DNA testing has now made verification of parentage possible, and also permits the detection of certain genetic diseases such as lethal white syndrome.

Thus AQHA now allows registration of "high white" body markings typical of the sabino gene and other pinto spotting patterns.

Because the genetic mechanism that creates palomino is also understood and has been found to have no connection to lethal white, cremello and perlino coat colors are also allowed.

[8] Currently AQHA recognizes achievement by American Quarter Horses and their owners with a number of awards.

Accumulated points result in annual awards to the top competitors and certain lifetime achievement recognitions for both horse and rider.

The annual AQHA World Show, the largest AQHA-sponsored event, is held in November of each year in Oklahoma City.

The Bank of America Racing Challenge currently offers nearly $6 million in purse and bonus awards.