Look Back with Fondness

By Melissa Hart

On the cover of the recent Michigan Dairy Cattle News is a photo of the Wolverine Purebred Livestock Sales Pavilion, a massive sales arena that sat on Grand River between Williamston and Okemos in the 1950s and 60s.  This same photo was on the cover of the 1955 Holstein Michigander, the predecessor of the Michigan-Indiana Holstein News and the Michigan Dairy Cattle News.

I put that photo on the cover because it harkened back to a time when the Registered Holstein business was thriving in Michigan.  There were sales in every corner of the state and Michigan Holstien genetics were sought after by breeders from across the country.

The Wolverine Sales Pavilion was built by Clarence B. Smith after World War II who came north from Kentucky as an auto worker.  His love for cattle led him to manage Baynewood owned by E.M. Bayne at Romeo, MI. There he developed the great Royal Ormsby, the 141^st cow of the breed to produce over 1000 pounds of fat in one year.  He presented her and her son at the 1929 Royal Brentwood Sale where Winterthur Farms bought mother and son. They paid $6300 for the cow and $10,100 for the calf – and added an important link in their breeding program. Later Smith managed a Guernsey herd at Pinconning, Michigan.

This auction hotspot served as a hub to not only monthly sales, but special sales throughout the year.  The Wolverine Classic, the Michigan Holstein State Spring Sale and many herds were dispersed through here including the Rayulmn herd.

In their January 1955 ad they touted that Michigan Holsteins had three nominations for All-Americans, nine grand champions, five senior champions, 14 junior champions, 62 first place winners and 102 other winnings across the country.             The Wolverine Sales Pavilion was the hotbed of registered livestock that flowed through from around the Midwest. 

From that cover of the magazine, I had two gentlemen contact me to let me know what they bought from that auction site.  One bought a Registered Holstein bull that he used in his herd and the other bought a heifer and spouted off her full name, in amazement that he could remember something as obscure as that from a half century ago but struggled to remember recent history.

In the 1950s and beyond the Michigan Holstein Association enjoyed a bountiful membership full of people who shared a passion for Holstein genetics. They had classes of 50 and 60 animals at their State Black & White show often held at McCurdy Park in Corunna and the district shows were active with hundreds of head being shown.               

The complexion of the Holstein business has changed in Michigan, and while the old days seem like good ones, keep in mind that today will be the yesterday we long for tomorrow. Live in the moment and drink up the feeling of being present so when you look back it will be with fondness, not regret.