Short History of the Breed 



By W. Arthur Simpson 



Seeing that this publication will most probably reach many 

 people who heretofore had little opportunity of knowing much 

 regarding the origin of the breed, it is considered that it may not 

 be out of place to refer shortly to a few interesting facts regard- 

 ing the history of Shorthorn cattle. 



During the earlier decades of the eighteenth century a class 

 of cattle of considerable reputation existed on both banks of the 

 river Tees, as it divides the counties of Durham and York in 

 North England. Although this was long before Herd Book 

 record days, it was spoken of as the Teeswater breed, later be- 

 coming known as the Shorthorn, as distinguished from the Long- 

 horn breed, and becoming known in the earlier days of their 

 introduction into America as Durhams from one of the counties 

 in which they originated. They were known to have been large, 

 strong boned, rather flat sided cattle that arrived at maturity 

 rather slowly, but attained to great weight. It is generally un- 

 derstood that the cows of the breed were good milkers. This 

 breed of cattle was one of the first to receive systematic and 

 widespread attention along pure breeding lines and can lay claim 

 to being one of the oldest breeds of "improved" livestock. As 

 early as 1750 the breed had begun to attract the attention of all 

 the progressive farmers, feeders and grazers of the country side 

 both far and near. Each of those who took pride in cattle vied 

 with the other in the exhibition of good specimens of the Tees- 

 water type ; and we can imagine with what absorbing interest 

 these breed builders compared the relative merits of their stock 

 and with what satisfaction they noted the progress being made. 



Charles and Robert Colling, whose influence was felt soon 

 after 1780, were the first noted improvers of the breed although 

 it would be incorrect to describe them as its founders. They 

 adopted a system of persistent in-and-in breeding with superior 

 animals, specially selected and mated and thus fixed the charac- 



