About Our Horse & Cattle
Breeding Program

1960s-70s

By the late 60s and early 70s, Dale had expanded the operation and wanted to continue developing his herd of Hereford cattle. By this time, Dale’s son Gordon had also joined him in the family operation. They both wanted to find genetics that improved the maternal and performance traits of their cattle. 

Through a series of events, they met Max Fulscher, a prominent Hereford breeder from Colorado. He introduced Dale and Gordon to L1 Hereford cattle, a line of Herefords developed by the USDA research station located in Miles City, Montana. Dale and Gordon were astounded by the maternal and performance traits of the Fulschers’ cows, and in 1971, they purchased a group of half-L1 Hereford cattle. At that time, L1 Herefords had been performance tested longer than any other cattle in the industry, which was of great interest to Gordon.

By 1975, the entire Jamison cowherd was L1, and the operation had committed to L1 genetics. This decision was critical, as it positioned the program for national prominence beginning in the 1980s.

Over the years, Cooper Herefords in Willow Creek, Montana and Holden Herefords of Valier, Montana became the primary seedstock source for the operation. In 1975, Dale and Gordon bought CL 1 Domino 350 from Cooper Herefords for $8,000. This was the ranch’s first major L1 herd bull purchase. They were so pleased with the bull that they made another significant purchase in 1978 that solidified the ranch’s place in Hereford history with CL 1 Domino 75901 from Coopers for $37,500. 

The ranch later sold interests in the bull to Indian Mound Herefords of Born, Texas and Barkley Herefords of Missouri for $75,000 a piece, in addition to selling over $150,000 worth of semen. 75901 bull calves became the talk of the Hereford industry and topped sales throughout the country for several years. This was due in part to the performance and pigmentation that the bull consistently bred.

1980s

In 1984, the operation made the second major purchase that would help establish the cowherd as one of the top maternal herds in the nation. With partners Pruett Ray from Arizona and Harding Brothers from Missouri, Dale and Gordon purchased CL 1 Domino 386 for $100,000 from Cooper Herefords. 386 became known for breeding performance, pigmentation, and greatly increasing milking in Hereford cattle. He paid for himself many times over in semen sales, and a large number of the current JH cowherd goes back to him.

Dale and Gordon would both say that the reason the operation survived was due to the success of 75901 and 386. During those years, interest rates were high and the farming economy was difficult, and the ranch needed a boost to maintain economic viability. By the late 1980s, the Jamisons were consistently selling 200 bulls annually through a production sale and private treaty.

In the early 1980s, Gordon’s brother Rusty joined the operation. By this time, Gordon had taken over most of the day-to-day management. Dale was still heavily involved but also spent time traveling and working on behalf of his local and national church congregation.

1990s-Present

In 1991, the ranch sold a large number of mature Hereford cows to the Veladi Ranch located in San Antonio, Texas. Up to that point, it was the largest transaction of Hereford cows the operation had been involved in and further increased the ranch’s prominence and name recognition.

In 2007, Dale passed away at the age of 87. This was an enormous loss to the operation as Dale had been active at the ranch up until the last 12 months of his life. 

In 2010, A major Hereford cow dispersion sale was held, which resulted in the Hereford operation moving from a sole owner herd to a partnership arrangement. During this era, major strides were made in moving the Hereford genetics forward and staying at the cutting edge of Line 1 performance and maternal standards.

In 2013 and 2014, Gerald and Merle High were introduced to the Jamison family through a mutual friend. Due to a shared interest Christian values, purebred livestock, and the ranching way of life a friendship was forged. Gerald and Merle’s sons began starting colts for the ranch production sale around 2015. As the relationship progressed, involvement with the horse program deepened. 

In 2021, Another Hereford cow dispersion sale was held. In that sale, a nucleus of core Hereford females was purchased and this has become the brood cow base to take the Line 1 program into the future. 

In 2024, Operations of the ranch were taken over by Gerald and Merle High in August of 2024. Gordon Jamison remains a partner and consultant in the Horse and Cattle Program and is active in our marketing program.

We highly value our ranch’s legacy and strive to continue upholding the same integrity, quality, and reputation that the generations before us built to meet the needs of commercial cattlemen.

Most of all, our goal is to honor God, who created it all, through providing the highest quality livestock to our customers coupled with an experience that exemplifies Christian values and principles.