Let’s visit a birthplace – not of a president or a general, but the birthplace of a cattle breed. Today we’ll learn more about an innovative family that helped develop a new breed of cattle in rural Kansas.
Last week in this column, we met Dirck and Natalie Hoagland of J&N Ranch near Leavenworth. Dirck’s parents, Joe and Norma Hoagland, bought the place near Leavenworth in 1985 and have expanded operations since. For years, they raised registered Hereford cattle.
Hereford cattle are recognized for having a white-colored face and a red-colored body. During the 1990s, the Hoaglands and their friend John Gage had the idea of trying to breed Herefords that had the traditional white face but were black in color.
To traditional cattle producers, the name black Hereford might sound like an oxymoron – a contradiction in terms, like jumbo shrimp or single option. Yet these breeders wanted the carcass quality and market premiums of black Angus, while retaining the hardiness, docility and versatility of the Hereford breed.
They did so using the same process as that used by other breeds; namely, by introducing Angus genetics and then selecting for black hair color in the descendent generations.
When Joe Hoagland’s friend, John Gage, passed away from cancer, Joe purchased cattle and records from his estate and established the Black Hereford Registry in the barn office at the J&N Ranch in 1999. Joe and Norma registered the first black Hereford and purchased the first membership in the American Black Hereford Association.
