For the last two weeks hundreds of Wyoming folks with prized ranch and farm animals flocked to Denver, Colorado, to attend what is historically known as the Denver Stock Show & Rodeo, either as a participant or spectator.
The 2025 119th National Western Stock Show (formerly Denver Stock Show) doors opened on Saturday, January 11, and stayed open through Sunday, January 26.
The annual western lifestyle event features the infamous “Super Bowl” of livestock shows where grand champions are crowned along with world-class horse shows and 30 professional rodeo performances.
Historically, livestock from Wyoming have been at, or close, to the top of the field in judging at this show.
In the early 1900s, Wyoming ranchers were gaining a national reputation for producing some of the finest cattle in the nation.
One of the hot spots for production of quality registered Hereford Bulls was the Upper North Platte River Valley between Saratoga and Encampment.
At the January 1916 Denver Stock Show, three registered Hereford bulls bred, reared, and shown by L. G. Davis of Saratoga not only took championship honors, but also brought record prices. All the bulls were sired by the Davis Ranch herd bull Beau Carlos II.
“Wyoming,” a registered Hereford bull from the Davis ranch, was judged grand champion plus the senior yearling animal sold in the Denver sale for a then-record amount of $5,000.
Also at the prestigious event, two registered Hereford bulls bred, shown and sold by Davis, topped the pair’s sale, according to an article in The Saratoga Sun. The pen of two bulls brought $6,425 at auction.
Of course, such news was the top headline and lead story in the local weekly newspaper.
$5000 BULL
The L. G. Davis Thoroughbred Hereford
“Wyoming” is Grand Champion
Thus blasted a headline in the Jan. 27, 1916, issue of “The Saratoga Sun” announcing the news that a local bull had topped the market at the Denver Stock Show. Below is the news item:
“Wyoming,” the 28 months thoroughbred Hereford bull, owned and raised by Capt. Davis of this city, was awarded the Grand Champion prize at the Denver stock show, winning over all comers from some of the finest herds from Iowa to the Pacific coast.
“This bull was immediately purchased by one of the biggest breeders of the state of Iowa for $5000. It was not the intention of Capt. Davis to dispose of the bull when he took him to Denver, but the offer was tempting, as well as the fact that Mr. Davis has many bulls on his Hereford ranch on the river just south of Saratoga, including the sire and dam of ‘Wyoming.’
“It is a fact, so stated by some fifty people from this valley who visited the stock show, that the Saratoga valley was the best represented of any portion of the West, and our entire exhibit would have done credit to any state.
“Henry Flohr, up on Beaver creek, even has a car of hogs that made an excellent showing. Hunter, Casteel & Hunter took the biggest steer in the world from this valley, which attracted much attention. Canary & Sons took a fine car of bulls that were a credit. The car of heifers which Capt. Davis took, besides one of two other bulls, made a fine exhibit. Mr. Davis got from $300 to $600 for the heifers, while one other bull brought $1450.
“Those who attended the show can not say enough in praise of it, which was much larger this year than ever before and bids fair to equal the once famous Chicago show.”
The Sun also quoted the former Wyoming Governor B. B. Brooks who told the Cheyenne Tribune, “I was indeed proud of Wyoming when the beautiful 28-months-old Hereford bull ‘Wyoming,’ raised and owned by L. G. Davis of Saratoga, was awarded the grand championship over all competitors, including the stock of the famous McCook herd of Montana.”
CAPT. DAVIS PROGRESSIVE RANCHER
Captain Davis established the JX ranch, eight miles south of Saratoga, on the North Platte in the late 1880s. (He was known as “Captain” after returning from serving with Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders in the Spanish American War . . . . but then, that’s another story).
Enterprising and energetic, Davis experimented successfully with irrigation and the raising and feeding of alfalfa and native hay. Irrigation ditches he plowed at the turn of the last century are still in use today. His Hereford cattle gained a national reputation and in addition to topping the Denver sale, he also received the highest price paid for a carload of steers at the Kansas City market in the 1920s.
When he established the valley’s first herd of over 100 registered Hereford cattle, the Laramie Boomerang newspaper reported that he had started a Hereford breeding revolution: “The cattle were a departure from those of the past—heavier bone, shorter legs, longer barrel, and heavier weight,” all of which contributed to greater meat development.
A natural leader, Capt. Davis was president of the Saratoga Valley Stock Growers Association in 1900 when the organization’s first action was the printing of a brand book.
When the Saratoga State Bank was chartered on April 1, 1899, Davis was a founding director for the Cosgriff Bros. When the Cosgriffs sold out in 1920, Davis became bank president. He held that office until 1926 when the bank was sold. At that time, he also sold his ranch to R. J. Spears and then retired to Kansas City, Missouri
Presently the ranch is part of the Kelly Cattle Co. Over the years it was also known as the Lazy River and McIlvaine’s Lazy CJ.
Dick Perue can be reached at rrichardperue@gmail.com
