Shorthorn cattle predominate among 

 the beef breeds in English-speaking 

 countries. So extensively have Short- 

 horns become distributed that they have 

 been termed the "universal intruders." 



Among Shorthorn cattle no family in 

 its past history has received so profound 

 attention, none has sol'd at such high 

 prices as that known as the Duchess. 

 There have been other famous Shorthorn 

 families, and perhaps better ones. Who 

 knows? But certain It is, never has 

 greater fame ever come to a family of 

 any breed of cattle than to the Duchess 

 of the Shorthorns. 



Tradition has it that for 200 years cat- 

 tle of this particular strain had been 

 bred on the estate of the Duke of North- 

 umberland in northeast Kngland. But 

 this is tradition onlj'. History, however, 

 takes us back to 1737, to a red bull 

 calved that year, later known as James 

 Brown's Red Bull (97). In 1784 Charles 

 Colling bought in Darlington market a 

 cow which he named Duchess. She was 

 from the Stanwick estate of Sir Hugh 

 Smithson, who later became thS Duke 

 of Northumberland. She was also known 

 as the "Stanwick Duchess" and the 

 "Stanwick cow." It is claimed that she 

 was sired by James Brown's Red Bull, 

 which from the years intervening is very 

 questionable. This cow was later mated 

 to Hubback (319), and from her came a 

 heifer and a continuation of Duchess 

 blood. This stock seemed to meet the 

 approval of Thomas Bates, who at that 

 time was in the early stages of his 

 career as a Shorthorn breeder. In or 

 about 1804 Bates purchased for about 

 $500 from Colling a granddaughter of 

 the Stanwick Duchess, named Duchess, 

 by Daisy Bull (186), 4 years of age, and 

 out of a cow by Favorite (252), and in 

 calf to Favorite. 



Duchess, by Daisy Bull, did not pro- 

 duce any heifers while owned by Bates. 

 In 1805 she dropped the bull calf Ketton 

 (709), that later became famous. She 

 had, however, left a heifer in CoUing's 

 herd at Ketton. This was bred to Comet 

 (155), a son of Favorite, and from which 

 resulted a heifer calf, that was first 

 named Young Duchess. 



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