The Third 25 Years

SPECIAL SECTION The stockyards, seen here in 1976, were the destination for adventurous young men who traveled to the National Western in rail cars with their livestock. FROM GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY TO DIAMOND JUBILEE: The National Western Stock Show, Rodeo and Horse Show – 1956 to 1981 Keith and Cheryl Chamberlain up as she remembers. “We visited all the turned itself over to the Stock Show. animal exhibits including the rabbits. I Everybody talked about it at school; NOTE: This is the third in a series of four bought one and the person gave me a everybody wore western clothes for a articles recounting the colorful history of the shoe box and we poked holes in it and I week. It was just really a big deal.” National Western Stock Show, Rodeo and carried the little baby bunny rabbit home Summing it up for many, Denver Post Horse Show, which celebrates its 100th on the city bus.” It was the start of a four- columnist Red Fenwick wrote in 1958, anniversary in 2006. year rabbit raising venture and a life long “Don’t you just love Stock Show time? Old affection for the Stock Show. Denver’s always all a ‘twinkle and Gussied ots of folks have a special Renee, whose business these days up like a schoolmarm at the Saturday childhood memory from the includes running horse shows at the night shindig. It’s wonderful. It’s Western.” National Western. For Renee National Western, isn’t alone in her One way the city gussied up was by L Elkins it’s a bunny in a shoebox. “I fondness for the show. Recalling Denver’s keeping the Christmas lights burning at was 12 years old and had gone down to reaction to the January extravaganza in the Civic Center, a tradition begun in 1945 the National Western with my 1950s, Sandy Dennehey, a longtime horse that continues today. The Denver grandfather,” she says, her eyes lighting exhibitor here, says, “The city sort of Chamber of Commerce ran special Stock 2005 NATIONAL WESTERN STOCK SHOW • 1 Show trains from Colorado from his family ranch in Springs and Cheyenne and Manning, Iowa, recounts the businesses welcomed out-of- time his crew got caught in a town guests with special sales. snowstorm in McCook, According to a fanciful news Nebraska. “It held the train up report of the era, local eateries for a day and that was a cold welcomed stockmen by putting ride. My brother and I learned more hat racks in the lobby, an awful lot on that trip. Thanks more shot glasses on the bar and to a few other people who were more ketchup on the tables. freighting out by rail we were Chefs cut down on the salads able to get some warm coffee and whomped up more French and into a warm place once in a fries. It was said that the high- while.” Stanley Stout’s crew booted guests didn’t care about brought “plenty of blankets, a price, they wanted their meat in very, very heavy coat and a lot of chunks right off the critter and longhandles.” served thick and rare. For the Some fortified themselves in Stockmen’s Ball, Denverites other ways. “We always donned their fanciest western brought a half-gallon of wine get-ups to mingle with their ‘cause water could freeze if you rural cousins. Inaugurated in got in one of them storms,” 1957 with Montie Montana and says Seibert. “You didn’t want Rex Allen entertaining, the ball to be without something to was a highlight of Stock Show drink.” Arrival in the yards was season for 15 years. exciting. Rex laughs and tells of a friend whooping it up. “He Ridin’ the Rails was up in the engine with the Sitting on a bale of straw in a engineer, driving that thing stockyards pen and soaking up and pulling levers and making the brilliant January sun, they it whistle and really making smile when they recall riding the rails Yearling Hereford bulls from the powerhouse our arrival noticeable.” Outfits that sold with their cattle in days gone by. Kenneth C-K Ranch parade before watchful eyes in all their cattle at the Stock Show could Eppers, who began traveling with the the yards in this 1959 scene. “ride the cushions” going home. Paul Northern Pump Company’s show string Peterson of La Jara, Colorado, recalls in the late 1950s, recalls, “We would load an old time icebox that you’d put a his first caboose ride. “I was just a little on Saturday noon and the railroad would chunk of ice in and it would be good for boy and it was all night. Oh, I was switch us around until sometime during two or three days until we needed tired! Those old guys smoking cigars Saturday night. We were always in the another chunk. We even had a gas and drinking a little and it was all the Denver stockyards ready to unload on generator and an electric skillet. We were old ranchers from down there [at the Monday morning.” Stanley Stout, a top kind of the envy of the guys on the Stock Show].” SPECIAL SECTION auctioneer at the National Western these railroad,” he says with a smile. Seibert’s In spite of the rigors, Gene Wiese days, had a two-day trip from Brookville, crew used a car battery to power lights says, “it was still a lot of fun and I’ve Kansas, with C-K Ranch bulls. during the long evenings. “We also had loved the railroads ever since.” Stout Another C-K hand, Rex Seibert, our water barrel up there with a faucet so sums it up for many of those young explains the particulars of traveling with we could water the cattle. We always men when he says, “These guys on the livestock. “We always tied the cattle to carried our own sleeping bag and that’s roads today never got to do that and I’m the right-hand side of the boxcar. That where we slept. You know, you’d be very fortunate that I did. It was a free way we could keep the left-hand doors surprised, you’d ride on them rails and spirit way to travel.” wide open [to keep the cattle from bouncing and everything, it just put you getting too hot]. We just put some boards to sleep.” Busy Times in the Yards across there in case the cattle got loose. “Most of the time it was very, very cold About the first thing long time They couldn’t get out and we couldn’t fall going across Iowa and Kansas,” exhibitors will tell you is how big and out. We fed in the boxcar, we carried remembers Eppers. Merle Mills, recalls, busy the stockyards were half a century most all of our own grain and some hay.” “Oh, it was just cold in there. You could ago. “These yards were really loaded,” An elevated wooden deck at the front ride in the caboose, but in a lot of cases it recalls Paul Peterson, who’s been of the car provided living quarters for the was colder there than it was in the car coming to the Stock Show since he was crews. Stout and his companions, who with the heat of the animals.” Gene a boy of 10. Perry Blach, another traveled an extended show circuit, “had Wiese, who railroaded bulls to Denver veteran, says “When I started bringing 2 • 2005 National Western Stock Show SPECIAL SECTION Perry Blach, right, had good reason to smile in 1967 after selling 51 Hereford bulls to power shopper E. Paul Waggoner, left. Dale Richardson, commission agent for John Clay and Company, helped smooth negotiations. Photo courtesy of Perry Blach. bulls to Denver in 1952 there would be Rex Seibert. “For five or six years they that Northern Pump meant business. from 2,500 to 3,000 head come in for had grand champion loads.” Rex worked Their first two carloads of yearling bulls private treaty sales.” for the C-K Ranch of Brookfield, Kansas, came to Denver in 1957 and one placed Denver was “the place to be,” for the another legendary competitor. seventh among 62 carloads. Northern Wiese family, who have been selling at the Then there was John B. Holly’s Pump showed until 1977, winning two Stock Show for 55 years. “This is where Northern Pump Company. Holly got his carload grand champions, one of which business took place and that was the start making bombs and bullets for the was the first from east of the Mississippi, purpose of coming– to conduct business.” Navy in World War II, but it was stumpy and many other honors as well. “The Gene calculates his family has sold over a cattle that got him into the Hereford National Western was our basic,” says million dollars’ worth of cattle, semen and business. In the 1940s and ‘50s the goal Eppers. “That was the only place that we embryos here. Three generations of Mark was to produce animals with short legs so showed carloads.” Mills’ St. Francis, Kansas, family have sold less growth was wasted on unmarketable Bull buyers at the National Western Hereford bulls at the show. “We’ve missed body parts. Holly was appalled by the ran the gamut from modest, family- only two years since 1920, and since 1930 occasional dwarfism that resulted. owned ranches to gigantic corporate we haven’t missed a year.” he says proudly. Kenneth Eppers, who showed bulls for operations. “In those days the ranchers “Nobody down here can touch that.” They Holly at the National Western for 20 would come in with their calves or brought big strings, with a single-year high years, explains: “He bought some heifers yearlings for the market and after they of 98.

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