Expansion and Assets of the SBL Operation ~ 1971

In the minutes of a director's meetng of SBL held at Cardston on August 20, 1971 a motion was made and carried to purchase land from 4 Southern Alberta land owners: V.J. Zemp, G.D. Beazer, R.H. Jensen, and O.J. Jensen. The total purchase price was listed as $206,750.00.

In October 6, 1971 minutes, the directors proceeded to reorganize SBL Inc. (an American company) which had been organized at a prior time.

Soon thereafter, because of differences in vision and expectations, the directors of SBL decided to explore selling the SBL Canadian company. In a three-page folio (apparently prepared by Travers), SBL was described as:

The assets listed on the attached sheet have been put together as a result of an idea or dream to give service to the cattle industry in North America. The main objective in mind was to breed and select the highest producing beef cattle possible, using as a base the cattle available on this continent to introduce the Simmental from Europe.

We have a program that has developed over the past five years to the point where we have a fair size facility in Switzerland and two men working for us there full time, including Mr. Hans Ulrich Sr., one of the outstanding cattlemen in Europe. Mr. Ulrich selects the cattle for us and manages the facility. This year we had 65 head of cattle pre-selected in the station but the demand was so great we should have had over 200 animals for the 1971-72 importation. We were able to select a total of over 110 head of calves for ourselves and other importers. We feel this program is of great value to this company now and will continue to do so in the future.

After the middle of December, 1971, the ranch operation we have developed will consist only of half blood Simmental females. This program has a two fold purpose. One is for evaluation of our sires, and the other is to select only the best of the high producing females to use in an upgrading program in accordance with the rules of both the Canadian and American Simmental Associations. With the opportunity of selecting and culling from such a large number of high producing animals, we will come up with some outstanding sires for semen production.

To aid in our sire evaluation program, we have two large herds of commercial cows in the State of Montana that have been bred A.I. using semen from all of our sires. The results of this program will provide us with sound information as to our sires standing as herd improvers.
Our purebred program is gaining impetus, and we will have about 22 to 24 head of females to calve this coming spring. As a result of our import work, we will have approximately 50 head of purebred calves born in the spring of 1973. Due to our sire evaluation program, we feel we can produce in the near future far better bulls from this purebred herd that we can obtain in Europe, because we are beginning to find out what our cows and sires can really produce. We foresee that within four years we will have well over 100 head of purebred Simmental cows.

Our promotion has included newspaper and magazine advertising and the printing of a four color brochure that has created a great deal of interest. A new brochure, listing additional bulls, has now gone to press. We have exhibited some of our top bulls in shows clear across the United States.

Our large mailing list contains the names of persons who are interested in using Simmental. This is a real asset to our business.

We feel that overall we have a first class management team carrying on our business and ranch operations. This group of people would be an asset to any organization and they are informed of the objectives and hopes of a continuing Simmental breed program at SBL.

It is our opinion that, with a combination of the various programs outlined herein, any company acquiring this business would receive a boost in the cattle breeding industry which they could not obtain by any other move.

A “Statement of Assets ...” formed the third page of the folio:

SBL Newsletter Notes ~ 1971, 1972

From undated copy: (Nov. or Dec. 1971):

We ordered new hats at S.B.L. when five Parisien steers won the 1971 National Beef Futurity Show at Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Ten breeds were represented in groups of five. The average slaughter age was 441 days. The Parisien steers had the highest carcass weight per day of age. The second place group were also Simmental crossbred steers out of the S.B.L. bull Sultan. …

From March 1972:
Bidding was keen at the Fort Worth, Texas “Simmental Saturday Night Sale” on February 5th. The following is a summary of the sale results:

6 Purebred bull calves—avg ....... $ 27,100.00
1 Bred ¾ Heifer .................. $ 12,500.00
23 ¾ Open Heifers—avg......... $ 6,374.00
7 ½ Blood Cows with ¾ calves—avg... $ 5,264.00
80 Bred ½ Blood heifers—avg...... $ 1,833.00
9 ½ Blood Open Heifers—avg..... $ 1,250.00

We are proud to announce that we received $53,000.00 for our purebred bull calf which sold to Houston, February 25, 1972. This calf was sired by Beat out of Petula, May 22, 1971. The two ¾ blood heifers which we sold averaged $7,000.00.

With results like this, who can afford not to “Breed ‘em all Simmental”!!

Last December, SBL sold their commercial cow herd and our ranch operation now consists solely of percentage Simmental females. This program has a two-fold purpose. One is to furnish data for evaluation of our SBL sires, and the other is to select only the best of the high producing females to use in an upgrading program. To assist us in this program, we are using a comprehensive computerized record system to store and evaluate data obtained in our program.

Where the bulls were ... (1971)

The Simmental Shield magazine, October 1971 (pp. 62-4) gives a comprehensive listing of where the Simmental bulls were toward the end of 1971. A red dot makes those belonging to SBL.

from Simmental Shield magazine, October 1971, pp. 62-64

Show Circuit ~ Summer/Fall 1971

The hand-written notes are in Travers’ handwriting and perhaps indicate potential or actual attendance numbers at each show.

More Travels & Promotion

Travers continued his trips to Switzerland to research and select cattle as import permits were issued. Three of the trips that can be documented are:

 June / July 1970 – France, Switzerland, and Germany. (Post Card: June 26/70, & Passport: July 1, 1970)
 June / July 1972 –Switzerland, Germany, and England with Hans Ulrich. (MSA Newsletter: June 27, 1972)
 April / May 1973 – France and Switzerland on cattle business (accompanied by three of his children).

Travers’ greater contribution, however, was as he travelled from town to town and farm to farm in both Canada and the U.S. promoting the remarkable Simmental. He also attended many events at which he often spoke. He was a regular attendee at the annual meetings of both the American and Canadian Simmental Associations, ranging from Denver to Fort Worth to Regina Saskatchewan and beyond.

The Simmental Scene, March 1974 gives some idea of the passion Travers had for Simmental.

… After the arrival of Parisien in 1967, Travers devoted endless hours, days and weeks to the promotion and development of Simmental throughout North America. It was because of his tireless efforts that the nickname Travelling Travers was tacked on this forceful, dynamic man. Wherever Travers could find someone who would listen, he expounded on the value of Simmental. He presented talks all over the continent; around kitchen tables with pictures projected on the wall to mass meetings with several hundred in attendance. Travers was instrumental in the formation of the Canadian Simmental Association and was one of the men whose signature appears on the application for incorporation under the Canada Pedigree Act. Travers served as First Vice President on the first [interim] Board of Directors and on August 2nd, 1969 was elected President of the Canadian Simmental Association. He served as a director for three years. (p. 13)



SBL ad from Simmental Shield magazine, October 1971



More Imports ~ 1971-1973, Travels, Promotion

The 1971/72 Simmental imports (in quarantine till Spring 1972) were ten in total:

Bulls:	Date of Calving
Vic MM3796 (SBL 004B; ASA 46164; CSA )	7 Dec 1970
Brut MM 834 (SBL 005B; ASA 46163; CSA )	27 Dec 1970

Heifers:	Date of Calving
Rea	n/a
Lady	n/a
Netta	n/a
Pfau	n/a
Gerdrut	n/a
Donau	n/a
Themse	n/a
Bona	n/a

In 1972/73, ten heifers were imported (in quarantine till 1973).

Association Directors ~ 1971

In the Simmental Shield magazine, October 1971, p. 4, the officers and trustees of the Simmental associations were listed as:

cover of meeting agenda

CSA ~ 2nd AGM Report

~

from Cattlemen: The Beef Magazine,
January 1971, p. 20

Where the Bulls were ... (1970)

~
Red dot on left indicates an SBL bull.

from Simmental Shield magazine, August 1970, pp. 16-17

Bull Stud Services

~
Before SBL finally decided to build its own bull stud (USSL,1974-75), its bulls were scattered in various bull studs at various times and semen available through contracted distributors.


Curtiss Breeding Service ad in
betterbeefbusiness July 1970



from Simmental Shield magazine August 1970, p. 45

SBL ad in betterbeefbusiness October 1970

Performance Reports ~ 1970

The 12-page SBL promo brochure for circa 1970 was full of b&w pictures and performance stats. Here are pages 8-11:

Imports selected ~ 1970

The 1970 Simmental imports (in quarantine till Spring 1971) were six in total:

Bulls:	Date of Calving
Donald MM3254 (SBL 70A; ASA 10144; CSA )	4 Dec 1969
Romeo MM5967 (SBL 71A; ASA 10146; CSA )	13 Dec 1969

Heifers:	Date of Calving
Elsbeth  (CSA  217)	n/a
Meta  (CSA  218)	n/a
Blosch  (CSA  219)	n/a
Margreth  (CSA  241)	n/a

However, in the SBL 1971/72 brochure, there is another bull import listed for 1970, being Rex (Dar 1A) CSA # 165, ASA #10142, born December 8, 1969 and weighing 1565 lbs. on Sept. 2, 1971. His captian reads: "Considered by many to be the most impressive bull imported in 1971-72. Rex was one of the two bulls selected by SBL from the group of 70 selected by the Swiss Federation. [Donald was the other.] The captian for Romeo reads "SBL's selecion from our performance tested group of 15 head in Switzerland."

More Progeny Performance Reports

~

from betterbeefbusiness, january 1970, p. 19

1969 CSA flyer

Congratulations Shinrone! was the focus of a Curtiss Breeding Service ad in the Simmental Shield of November 1971, p. 11. The ad showed Browarny photos of Sultan (Second Place Sire Group), Parisien (First Place Sire Group) and Firn (Sixth Place Sire Group) ~ all SBL owned bulls. The clip below explains:

The Simmental Shield magazine, October 1971 (p. 6) also reported the Shinrone story and added:

Simmental-sired cattle also placed well at the recent Nebraska State Fair. The Sultan bull sired the Grand Champion steer, and another Simmental Breeders Cardston Ltd. bull, Galant, sired the Reserve Grand Champion.

Testing & the Test Facility in Europe

Travers’ fascination with facts to back his enthusiasm resulted in early testing of SBL bulls and in the establishment of an SBL test facility in Europe. In speaking of SBL’s commitment to performance testing, Don Jensen is again quoted:

The 2,000 head [of SBL cattle] included a test herd of 700 cows used to test the genetic potential of the bull battery. We didn’t want the maternal side to influence the test results so Travers brought up Red Angus-Hereford cows from Nebraska. Each of the seven bulls we had by this time were bred to 100 cows and the results gave us factual information on the bulls that we offered to our customers. / … Hans Ulrich was one of the people involved in the operation then and his father lived in Switzerland. SBL built a test facility over there and hired Hans’ father to manage it for them so they could pre-select the calves they brought over. They would buy about 200 calves, put them on test, then select only the top 10% of those to import. The operation became something on a very far-reaching scale. (SC:Aug1987:44)

With its European test facility, SBL was soon able to provide performance data on their imports even before importation took place. In their brochure of 1971-72, entitled, “Simmental from SBL,” they wrote:

As owners and directors of SBL, we are pleased to present our 1971-72 Simmental Beef Sire brochure. This marks our fifth year of importing from Europe and our third year of performance testing in Switzerland. / We are not aware of any other testing program to evaluate Simmental cattle for import to North America that compares with the SBL program. Mr. Hans Ulrich Sr., a reputable Swiss cattle breeder, is employed full time by SBL and carries out our comprehensive system of selection. / These pre-selected calves are then placed on a 100-day feed test. Following the test, the calves are indexed, measured and carefully scrutinized. Only the very best meet or exceed SBL’s requirements. (IFC)

SBL was also promoting its ability to select import animals for other breeders who wanted to import from Europe with a minimum of worry and a maximum of assurance for quality. In a 1971 SBL newsletter, they wrote:

S.B.L. has provided service in selecting animals in Switzerland, France, Austria and Germany; but only in Switzerland do we have an S.B.L. selection and testing program. / In our opinion Switzerland still remains the number one Simmental seed stock country of the world. Switzerland provides the greatest number of animals to select from. / S.B.L. in co-operation with the Swiss Breeders Federation have set up their own selection and testing program in Switzerland. Cattle breeders from Canada and the United States who have visited Switzerland have been high in their praise of the S.B.L. Swiss program. We have endeavored to provide the best possible animals for our customers …

SBL ad in betterbeefbusiness ~ June 1970

Words in Print

B. Travers Smith
June 2, 1972

During this decade, Travers published an article called, “Selecting the First Canadian Simmental” in the Simmental Shield, October 1970, and another called, “New Dawn for the Cowman” in the August 12, 1972 issue of the magazine, Commercial West (pp. 49-50).

In the Simmental Shield article, Travers wrote:

Our story has grown as we have traveled from place to place and met with ranchers with down-to-earth experiences, and spent from one hour to three hours at each meeting, sometimes with one man, sometimes with 40 or 50. In meetings with college and university students there have been upwards of a hundred in a group. Future Farmers of America and 4-H groups with their leaders, the university groups and their professors along with them, all seem anxious to hear the story and take the good tidings to someone else. One meeting we remember in particular was held at Augusta, Mont. where 30 ranchers met together for three hours. At the end of the meeting, one of the ranchers said that it was the best time he had had in years. We picked up a lot of good, practical information from management practices of ranchers and other experiences told at meetings and to others.

So our story has grown—not just on Simmental alone, but a story of the cattle industry and how we can improve it from one end to the other. ...

We have also been privileged to tell the story at other conventions of cattlemen, such as P.R.I. at Sheridan, Wyo.; on two occasions at Dr. Ensminger’s Beef Science School in Phoenix; a program shown at the Curtiss booth at the livestock show in Denver; Western Stock Growers’ Convention at Calgary, Alta., and a Beef Science School at Banff, Alta. We have also given presentations at A.I. technician schools back and forth across the land, but most of all the story has spread by word of mouth. People have seen the calves that have been dropped from Simmental matings with almost every breed you can imagine in the United States and Canada – from Austin Rugge’s Shorthorn cows at Garnett, Kan., to Adam Schweitzer’s Simmental-Hereford crosses at Geyser, Mon. People have seen our own calves here in southern Alberta, the purebred heifers here, and also the bulls at the A.I. studs.

All of these things spread the story, and it keeps being told over and over. We are so enthused over the possibilities of this breed that we will keep telling the story, and those who have calves on the ground and others who are interested will continue to tell the story for us. (p. 10)

For a time, SBL also produced a newsletter about the successes of Simmental. SBL’s belief in the value of Simmental was borne out time after time in performance testing programs, as well as in carcass weights. Several grand and reserve championships were won by 4-H members and by others who participated in showring and other competitive events.

SBL Employees

Besides the irreplaceable Beatrice Tolley who had been hired as secretary in 1969, and Don Jensen (SBL's first employee in 1967 and Parisien's chief handler while touring), other valuable employees were brought in like Ron Gibson as Director of Ranching Operations (January 1971); and when Ron assumed the position of General Manager of SBL in February 1972, Howard Traweek took over as Director of Ranching Operations. Both had come from the U.S. Range and Livestock Experimental Station at Miles City, Montana. Ron was an honors graduate of Montana State University and had worked at the Miles City Station as the Assistant Superintendent.

These key employees as well as many others played a major role in the efficient management and incredible growth of SBL. Don Sylvester in “SBL means Simmental” observed:

In addition to the emphasis on top quality cattle, there is little doubt that another of the major reasons for the success of SBL is the emphasis on top quality people in both the management and the operation side of the business … / … “Our whole program is more of a people program than anything else,” says [Ron] Gibson. “We couldn’t do any of this without the quality of people we have.” (Nov.1974:34)

A Good Investment

Because Travers’ reception in his native country of Canada was so skeptical and cool in the beginning, most of his efforts had been focused on promoting Simmental in the United States where the cattlemen seemed ready for change. But as the winds of this new phenomenon began to blow northward, the Canadians finally caught on and “Exotic” became the watchword. Those impressive calves on the ground could no longer be ignored. As Ted Pritchett put it:

For semen sales, the golden year was 1970-71. Travers went on the road selling semen and total sales were over $1 million that year. Everywhere, cattlemen, that had for years scorned crossbreeding, AI and any hint of a change of breeds, were jumping in. Much of it was to take advantage of the unbelievable prices being paid for the halfblood females, but many were drawn for the same reason which drew Travers and his original followers to the breed. There was a definite economic advantage to crossbreeding with these cattle and it meant more money in the fall at sale time. (BTY’77:87)

SBL had proven a valuable investment even in the space of a few short years. Four of the initial investors, Williams, Williams, Bingham, & Bowlby had had a falling out early on and in the buy-out of their shares negotiated in 1970 (paid in semi-annual installments from 1970 to 1974), some received upwards of a 270-fold increase on their initial $500.00 investment. (Ref: BTS notes)

By October 21, 1971, a statement of assets set forth a value of $4,800,000.00 for SBL assets which is all the more remarkable considering that SBL was just 5 years old—and that initial investors had bought in for $500.00. One old cowboy in the Pincher Creek, Alberta area who had rejected Travers’ call to invest lamented some years later:

Can you imagine! I could’ve been a part of Parisien for 500 bucks. A million dollar bull and I could’ve been in on it for $500.00. (BTY’77:78)

Ted Pritchett wrote:

Today, Simmental is a “rags to riches” story — the Cinderella of the cattle industry. Starting in 1967 it was laughed at, put down and even during the boom years, told the bubble would burst and it would be left sitting in the cold. The fledgeling Association, started on a shoestring in 1969, has grown in a few short years, to become the fastest growing breed Association in Canada. (BTY’77:87)

About this rapid growth, Don Jensen is quoted as saying:

When I started working for Travers, I really didn’t know who was going to sign my first paycheque and in the space of three years, the outfit had grown to an operation with 10,000 acres and 300 cows. (SC:Aug1987:44)

Jack Ball wrote:

It was a time we’d never seen before and doubt if I’ll ever see again. Every one was buying “time.” Everyone was trying to get the first ½ blood, the first ¾, then the first Purebred … / … it was the most changing and exciting time. Many, many new products and techniques which we take for granted today were developed at that time. For example, how many rubber ear tags, goose neck trailers and embryo transfers did you use before 1967? (SC:Aug1987:114)

In part, because of Travers’ aggressive approach to grasping opportunities as they came, SBL soon had in excess of 12,000 acres of leased and deeded land with 25 employees and 2,000 head of cattle. (Ref: CLJ:Jul11’78-Bain & SC:Aug1987:44)

On Tour ~ The Show Circuit

One of the great SBL promotional tactics was to tour Parisien to the various shows where his impressive size and unique appearance were guaranteed to attract attention. Don Jensen, SBL’s first employee and a man whom Travers greatly admired for his expertise and dedication, was Parisien’s chief handler. Don, a fine cattlemen in his own right, logged tens of thousands of miles with Parisien. With all the travelling required, Don sacrificed much in the cause of Simmental and the SBL men were immensely grateful for his loyalty and dedication.

The premier showing in the U.S. took place in December 1969, when Don and Parisien travelled to the 1st Annual International Cattlemen’s Expo in Las Vegas. In January 1970 they continued on to the Arizona National Show in Phoenix; and the National Western Show in Denver. (ref: BBB:Nov1969:3; WLJ:Jan.1970:68; CU:Dec.1969) The circuit took them also to Dallas, Fort Worth and many other places. The most convincing part of the Simmental story was told by Parisien himself. Fenton Webster recalled:

That first year, in Denver [at the National Western Show], there were hundreds of people going by the main pathways. Hereford and Angus breeders would go by in a big group. You could spot them coming by their badges and hat bands. They’d laugh and poke fun, but later they’d come back, one by one, to have a closer look and ask questions. Travers could really get that job done, because he was about as converted a Hereford man as you could find anywhere.¹

As the enthusiasm for Simmental spread, it was not long before Parisien found himself being transported via freight elevators up to the top floors of grand hotels where he would be escorted into packed ballrooms of cattlemen—to be gazed upon by the admiring and awestruck dinner guests. It was the beginning of an incredible golden age in the cattle industry.

The Phoenix Gazette of January 1970 reported on this first tour as follows:

NEW BREED FOR U.S.Simmentals To Be Seen At Livestock Show Here
When they tell you there's something new at the Arizona National Livestock Show Jan. 5-11 … you’d better believe it.
It’s a brand-new breed for U.S. shows … the Simmental.
Harold Watson, a director of the Simmental Breeders of Cardston, Alberta, Canada, was the first arrival for the 1970 show yesterday at the fairground.
He brought along three head of pure-bred stock and two cross-bred heifers. …

At year’s end (1970), they were again at the International Cattlemen’s Expo in Las Vegas, and in January 1971, they continued on to other shows and events such as the ASA 3rd Annual Convention in Denver where Parisien was a star attraction. By February they were at the Fort Worth Stock Show, the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, and the Houston Show. Travers’ second son travelled some on that circuit and received page 2-F coverage in the San Antonio News of Friday, February 19, 1971. The report claimed that 5-year-old Parisien had netted SBL some $1,200,000.00 in semen sales since he was purchased in France in 1967 [1966].

Don and Parisien were on the road again in the summer of 1971. From Travers’ Daytimer, we read that on August 25, 1971, Parisien cleared the border on his way to Colorado.

Although Parisien got much of the press, other SBL bulls, like Gallant, Granit and Mars, as well as some females, were also taken on some of the show circuits, usually accompanied by Don Jensen. A listing of the SBL Show Circuit for 1971 shows that between August and November, bulls were shown at major fairs in Montana, Iowa, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, and Wyoming.

From two interviews with Fenton Webster and Don Jensen, respectively (reported and written by Ted Pritchett), we read:

Parisien became the most travelled and talked about bull in the cattle industry. “It was remarkable how well he travelled—he seemed to enjoy it.” … / “Don and I [Fenton Webster] were in Kansas City and a local TV station had us on for a half-hour show. That went out to over 35,000 people in the immediate area and we had an old fellow come down to the barn on crutches. He’d been in hospital and seen the show and got his doctor talked into letting him out so he could come down to the barn. He said he just had to see that bull!” (BTY’77:84)

… Everywhere he went, Parisien was the talk of the barn and attracted huge crowds. It was an exciting time in the cattle business. / “He enjoyed it. It didn’t matter how many times a day you got him up, old Parisien would look his best for the people and never batted an eye. After 10 days at a show, he’d sense when you were packing up to leave and he’d get restless. I [Don Jensen] remember once when we were packing, we had the trailer close by so we just let him go and he walked over to the trailer, went up the ramp, and walked in all by himself.” (SC:Aug’87:44)

In a small publication celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Simmental in Canada, entitled, Simmental Breeders: 1992 Special Feature (Simmental Digest 1992), Gaylene Groeneveld wrote:

Jensen recalls on one occasion, he had the bull [Parisien] at the Denver Stock Show and took him outside the building to show him off a little. The crowd that gathered for that two-hour period never stopped flashing their cameras. The response was unreal. (p. 20)

From Ted Pritchett:

Don [Jensen] admits other bulls could have done what Parisien had done, but feels there has not been another bull to do it overall so well. / “Fortunately for all of us, he was good in all the important traits for getting a new breed off the ground. He was an impressive bull that liked to be on display and we received excellent press coverage everywhere we went. At three years, he was 2,500 pounds and that was about 500 pounds bigger than anything else and you didn’t have to be an expert to see he was something special. Just the size and eye appeal endeared him to a lot of people. Then after that, he was an easy calver that dispelled the notion you couldn’t get a Simmental calf out of a commercial cow.” (SC:Aug1987:48)

The SBL “Fullblood Cow, Bred Heifer Dispersal and Bull Sale” catalogue of April 21, 1981 gives a brief history of the pioneers of SBL and makes these references to those travellin’ days:

The late Travers Smith, President of S.B.L., was the “Daddy” of the Simmental breed in North America. … / Don [Jensen] and Travers traveled thousand of miles convincing cattlemen of the merits of Simmental. Parisien himself traveled over 100,000 miles, Don reckons, attending all major State fairs in the U.S. Travers would stand in front of the display for 18 hours straight until his ankles were like stove pipes explaining the advantage of Simmental to anyone who would stop even for an instant. He would then invite anyone showing sincere interest to his room to see slides that were taken in Europe of Simmental cattle and halfblood calves at the ranch at Cardston. / Travers was dedicated to the expansion and betterment of the breed across North America. The greatest evidence of this was his determination that everyone should have the opportunity to use the best Simmental bulls. (IBC)

There were others also, besides Don & Travers, who did some touring and promotion at the shows and meetings: chiefly, Fenton Webster, Harold Watson, and sometimes Dale Lynch.

1st Progeny Export ~ Amor 1A

August 1970 proved a high-profile month for SBL, with Tuesday, August 11th also being an historic day in U.S. cattle history. That was the day that Amor 1A, a year-old bull sired by Parisien, crossed the Alberta-Montana border as the first fullblood Simmental import into the United States. He had been sold by SBL to a private U.S. syndicate called Simmental Breeders of North America comprising Oklahoma (1) and Texas (6) cattlemen for a record price of $154,000.00 U.S. It was a great day in the rapidly unfolding story of Simmental in North America.

The story with picture was covered by the Lethbridge Herald (Lethbridge, Alberta) in the August 12, 1970 edition, second section, p. 15.

Sale of Amor - August 11, 1970
L to R: Ruben Reyes, Albert West, Jesse Malone, Travers Smith
Photo © Lethbridge Herald - used with permission
(ownership & copyright retained by Lethbridge Herald)

ad in Simmental Shield magazine, August 1970, p. 18
Bert Reyes & Travers Smith with Amor

 

 

Bea Tolley

Beatrice Tolley was hired as SBL’s secretary in May 1969. She lived west of Mountain View, Alberta and commuted to the small, unpretentious SBL office on 2 Ave West—just off Cardston’s main street. Her hiring was long overdue for the amount of work had become overwhelming. SBL director Fenton Webster recalled:

Letters began flooding the SBL office at the rate of over 110 a day. “We were working 18-20 hours a day trying to keep up with the correspondence. It was an exciting time. The term “Breed ‘Em All Simmental” came out of our office at that time. We were putting an ad together, and needing a headline when Bea Tolley said, “Breed ‘em all Simmental.” We liked it, and it stuck.” (Beef Today Yearbook’77:86)

Beatrice was a valued and indispensable employee. She helped keep the SBL head above the flood of correspondence, telephone inquiry, scheduling, administrative matters, etc. that were overwhelming the new company. She was highly efficient with whatever was required of her; and her quick-witted “Breed ‘em all Simmental” has become a catchphrase in the industry.

The picture below is from the last page of a 12-page brochure produced by SBL in the year 1970—the first real SBL brochure. It replaced a folio of photocopied pages and series of photo albums used at information meetings prior to 1970. The brochure was full of black and white pictures and performance testing results. The only spot of color was in their logo as seen below. However, interest and income were picking up rapidly and by about 1971 SBL was into full-color, professional brochures.

(address and phone number above are no longer valid for SBL)