Q: A pyramid-shaped, limestone monument in Victoria, Kan., includes the sculpture of a Black Angus bull on top. This monument is dedicated to the man who introduced the Black Angus breed of cattle to the state. What’s that man’s name?
Christopher Helt, a businessman and now rancher in Cherryvale, Kan., feeds his Angus cattle (August 2009). (Flickr Photo Courtesy of U.S. Department of Agriculture)
A:
George Grant transported four Aberdeen Angus bulls from Scotland to the Kansas prairie in 1873. They were part of his dream to start a colony of wealthy, British cattlemen in the new town he named Victoria. Unfortunately, Grant died five years later. But the solid black and hornless Angus bulls he brought with him remained… and made a lasting impression on the American cattle industry. Before his death, Grant had crossed his bulls with native Texas longhorn cows and produced a large number of calves that survived well on the winter range. Grant’s Angus bulls became famous and remain a favored breed today.
Grant is buried in a cemetery in Victoria. Near his grave is a monument that commemorates the arrival of the first Aberdeen Angus cattle to America on May 17, 1873. The Aberdeen Angus Breeders Association held a re-dedication ceremony on May 17, 1973, and added the replica of the Angus bull capping the monument.
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