Livestock Marketeers Induct Three Into Hall of Fame
The Livestock Marketeers — An informal fraternity of livestock fieldmen, auctioneers, sale managers and related livestock business leaders met for their 54th Annual Banquet at the National Western Club on January 19th. The event was hosted by American Live Stock; master of ceremonies was J. Neil Orth, Executive Vice President of the American-International Charolais Association and 1984 Hall of Fame inductee.
The Livestock Marketeers group was formed in 1965 by Harry Green, Ross Miller and Claud Willett. Their purpose was to establish a fraternal organization of livestock professionals, and to make annual awards to encourage younger members of the industry to succeed in their chosen profession.
Tommy Barnes
Tommy is a graduate of The University of Tennessee where he received a bachelor’s degree in Animal Science. Directly out of college he took a job with T.E. Mitchell and Son in Albert, New Mexico. The ranch raised both registered and commercial Hereford cattle along with registered quarter horses. After that he began his nine year career with the American Hereford Association. He initially travelled the states of Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois after which he serviced Oklahoma. When he finished his tenure with the AHA he moved directly into his career as an auctioneer. He serves as an auctioneer for several elite purebred operation all over the country.
Stuart Wilson
Stuart Wilson grew up on a purebred livestock and grain farm near Findlay, Illinois, where he raised Shorthorn cattle and Poland China hogs. He was active in both 4-H and FFA showing at the local, state, and national levels. He was a member of the 1966 Illinois State FFA winning livestock judging team which placed second in the national contest at the American Royal.
Stuart graduated from Western Illinois University in 1971 with a BS in animal science. While at WIU, he was the founding president of the Alpha Gamma Sigma fraternity, and a member of Block and Bridle. He was on Western’s highly successful livestock judging team in 1970. Graduate work followed at the University of Missouri.
In 1971, Stuart began his career as a field representative for The Shorthorn World. He was the publisher of the magazine at the time it was sold in 1976. In 1972, he became an insurance agent for American Live Stock Insurance Company/Harding and Harding. In 1973, he formed Stuart Wilson Sale Management which managed cattle sales throughout the United States and Canada for over four decades.
In 2006, Stuart joined American Live Stock Insurance Company/Harding and Harding as the manager of the cattle department. Today he is the manager and head underwriter for the Livestock Division of American Live Stock, a subsidiary of Markel Services, Inc.
Stuart and his wife, Ann, reside on the family farm near Findlay, Illinois. They have a daughter, Robyn, and a granddaughter, Avery. Stuart and Ann have been married 45 years, and they are both active members of the Findlay United Methodist Church.
Fred Stivers (Posthumous)
Fred Stivers was a sought-after ringman for over four decades and regarded by many as the best livestock photographer in the business. Growing up in Ohio, Fred was competitive in the show ring with Angus, Shorthorn and Hereford steers, winning the Ohio State Fair and Champion Shorthorn in Chicago. Fred’s livestock marketing career began with the Charolais Way and continued with the Simmental Register and then the Drovers Journal. Stivers portraits of the ideal bull and cow for several breeds were featured in Herman Purdy’s book “Breeds of Cattle”. While Fred did not have any immediate family, his extended family of cattle people covered the entire country.
