Legend & Lore

The mists of antiquity likely will hide the true origins of Ancient White Park cattle forever. There are very early mentions of white cattle in early Irish sagas including the "Cattle Raid of Cooley" and it may be that ancestors of our White Parks were the sacred cattle used in Celtic and Roman rituals. The wild white cattle added "park" to their name when the great estates were fenced, or emparked, in the 13th and 14th centuries. The Dynevor, Chartley and Cadzow herds that are still in existence today date back hundreds of years.

Preserving British Heritage

While there are stories of small importations of White Park cattle into North America dating back to the early 1900s, ours are believed to be the descendants of a group of animals exported from England just prior to the outbreak of World War II. The cattle, which were exported to protect them from possible Nazi invasion, were originally sent to the Toronto zoo and subsequently shipped to the Bronx zoo. The Bronx zoo determined that keeping cattle was not a long-term project for them and contacted the King Ranch in Texas to provide a home for the cattle.

The U.S. Story

The King ranch provided a home for the herd from the early 1940s until 1981 when the cattle were sold to the Moeckly family in Polk City Iowa. The Moecklys kept the herd separate from their herd of polled American White Park cattle and in 1985 imported a bull, Cadzow Ernest, from Scotland. In the late 1980's a few heifers were sold to Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, Iowa and a single heifer was sold to Joywind Farm in Maramora, Ontario. In 1989 the remaining females and Cadzow Ernest were sold to the B Bar Ranch in Montana. The herds at the B Bar and Seed Savers were nurtured and increased with all females being retained until 2003 to grow the herds.

The Breed Today

The Ancient White Parks have white coats with colored points (ears, feet and muzzles) that are usually black but occasionally red. Some of the cattle are solid black expressing a recessive gene for color that runs through the population. The cows frequently have upswept lyre-shaped horns similar to Ayreshires that continue to twist as the animals age. The bulls typically have shorter horns that curve forward with age in a flat arc. The cows are quite tall and very angular (resembling Texas Longhorns in body shape) with mature weights that range from 1000 to 1200 pounds. The bulls reach mature weights of 1500 to 1800 pounds. They are extremely active and alert cattle with large flight zones that require careful handling. The cattle are aggressive grazers and calve with exceptional ease.

The Future

B Bar Ranch and Seed Savers Exchange have grown the herds to a size that now allows for the establishment of new herds throughout North America. Through the Ancient White Park Cattle Society of North America we will be maintaining the registration of offspring and producing herd books at regular intervals in addition to the registrations maintained with the White Park Cattle Society in Britain. If you are interested in helping to insure the future of this magnificent, ancient breed, please contact us by email or phone.

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For sales information contact:

Wes Henthorne
Phone: (406) 932-4197
E-mail: weshenbt@mcn.net