Missouri Neighbors

Lincoln Hough got a jump start on a lot of cattlemen his age when he bought his first three heifer calves in 7th grade. They were Herefords, and he named them after three girls he was in school with. “I started AI-ing them right off the bat,” he explained. Sara, one of them, is still today one of the most productive cows he has. “She’ll have a calf every 10 months, like clockwork,” Lincoln touted, with a smile.

"We had always come to this area for Bennett Spring State Park. I used to be an avid fisherman, but it was more a get-away weekend place,” Bob Hall said, explaining their move from Edwardsville, Ill. Now married 30 years, Bob and Nancy Hall came to live in Laclede County after the tragic loss of their young son, Andrew, to kidney disease.

The phrase, “There’s no time like the present,” applies indisputably to Curtis Throne and his ambitious vision for the future. With hopes of running a herd of Red Angus cattle someday, this 13-year-old looked for an out-of-the-box solution to get a head start on his future plans.

Anyone who has ever tried to keep up with kids in baseball and softball leagues, scouts and church activities knows the meaning of the word challenge. Now double that and throw in 840 acres of grassland, 100 head of Limousin and Limousin-cross momma cows, a few Brangus bulls and a full time 40-hour-a-week job in town, and that describes the  challenges of Greg and Jennifer Fry. Located between Stoutland and Montreal, Mo., the Frys calve their cows in March, wean them in December and feed a 15 percent ration until the grass pastures are ready. "We keep them on grass until they are 700-800 pounds,” Greg explained. Greg works his cattle on his own land and another 500 acres belonging to his brother.

Lane Shumaker has three jobs. The first is facilitating his own battery store, Battery Outfitters, located in Golden, Mo. Second, is his life on the farm raising Brangus-cross beef cattle. Then he’s also a tournament bass fisherman. That’s a full schedule, and just how Lane likes it.

Singne Arthur refers to herself as a blessed woman. The mother of five mostly grown sons and a new wife, she and her husband, Gary Arthur run Peaceful Valley Ranch, an Angus and quarter horse operation in central eastern Laclede County.

Donna and Norman Corkle encouraged their two daughters to join 4-H in 1995, never knowing it would mean a continuing devotion to dairy goats for the family. Donna explained, “When the girls were little bitty, they decided they needed animals, preferably horses. But our property wasn’t conducive to horses – it’s very hilly and rocky, with lots of brush and shrubs. So after talking with some friends who suggested goats would be ideal, we did some checking around. At the time, my husband worked with a person who raised dairy goats. We took our two daughters to look at her stock, and she told the girls she’d sell them each a goat at a reduced price for their 4-H projects. So we took home an Oberhasli and a pygmy goat.”

Some cattlemen raise cattle with the consumer in mind, while others focus on the feedlot operator, and still others have their own family in mind.  Lonnie McWilliams is a little of everything. Lonnie’s ranch, KD Gelbvieh, is located just west of Sheldon, Mo. KD used to stand for Katie and Dad, and it still does, although “Dad” is the main operator now. When she was in 4-H and FFA, Katie had a lot of success showing their cattle and crossbred hogs. Now, Katie’s kids have their own calves to show. Lonnie and his wife Lora run about 70 cows on their 270-acre farm. Their herd is mostly Registered Red Gelbvieh, though they have a few Charolais and some balancers. 

Bob Dotson was born into farming. He still owns the 190 acres and the home he grew up in, as well as two other land parcels of 80 and 20 acres, where he keeps approximately 50 cows. He has a mixed breed herd of mostly black Angus. He also puts up 400 bales of hay each year.

In 1919 Alfred Friend bought a farm in Dade County, Missouri, bordering Stockton Lake, from the Sloan family. It was just under a section of land, at 640 acres. At Alfred’s side during the purchase was his son, J.A. Friend. Together the two began to farm the bottom land. They raised cattle, hogs and row crops of corn, wheat and beans. Alfred lived in one house on the farm and J.A. in another house down the hill.