274 THE PORTRAIT GALLERY 



A MIGHTY MISSOURIAN 



107. For over eighty years the name of Ravenswood Farm 

 has dominated the Shorthorn interests of the state of Missouri. 

 The acreage itself was acquired in 1825 by Nathaniel Leonard, 

 father of Captain Charles E. Leonard, the director of the 

 farm for over a half century. The original purchase of Short- 

 horns was made from George Renick of Kentucky, the year 

 Captain Leonard was born, and included the six hundred dollar 

 white bull Comet Star, and the five hundred dollar red heifer 

 Queen. 



Capt. Leonard was bom on Ravenswood itself, within a few 

 miles of the present town of Bunceton. After a course in the 

 Kemper School at Boonville he pursued studies at the Univer- 

 sity of Missouri. Following his graduation he returned to the 

 home farm, evincing an active interest in agricultural affairs. 

 Following his marriage October 22, 1872, to Miss Nadine N. 

 Nelson of a prominent family of bankers, he settled to Short- 

 horn promotion with a will. Under his direction, the entire 

 twenty-two hundred acres were utilized for the support of 

 Shorthorns, and many notable additions were made to the herd. 

 At the historic New York Mills sale in 1873, three imported 

 heifers were purchased, Charming Rose, Rosamond 8th, and 

 Rosette, an average of $4,000 being paid for them. The success 

 of the Scottish tribes in the hands of Col. Harris, made Capt. 

 Leonard an ardent supporter of the northern sort. He secured 

 Barbarosa from Senator Harris, at $1,000, and in the early 

 part of the twentieth century acquired the Lockridge-bred (112) 

 show bull. Lavender Viscount. His greatest breeding achieve- 

 ment lay in the production of the dam of Americus, that sold 

 in the Argentine in 1908 for $38,000 gold. 



Capt. Leonard was a notable judge of men and placed com- 

 plete confidence in those he charged with responsibility. He 

 afforded freest opportunity for his herd manager, Mr. Ed Pat- 



