Thomas B. Wales, Jr. and The Brookbank Herd

Iowa City, Johnson County, Iowa, was home to one of the leaders of the Holstein breeders of the United States from 1881 to 1891 Thomas Beale Wales, Jr. (1839–1922) was a dairy stock breeder who is associated with the history of the Holstein breed of cattle in the United States and inventor of the first recording system for tracking animal pedigree. Many of his notable accomplishments occurred while his farm was established at what was then just east of the limits of Iowa City, in east Lucas Township, Johnson County, Iowa.

Wales’ primary achievements were raising, breeding, promoting, and cataloging purebred Holstein cattle. Wales was publisher of the Holstein herd book for twelve years, and as an aid to his process, he devised a card catalog not for library materials but for cattle.#fn1 A cow he bred won the world record in butter production.#fn2 Wales was lauded for his work during life and eulogized in trade publications at his death.#fn3Wales was a founding member and one of three vice-presidents for the Association of Breeders of Thoroughbred Holstein Cattle.#fn4He was a founding member and first secretary of the Holstein-Friesian Association of America, a position he held from 1885 to 1893#fn5 These organizations led to the current Holstein Association USA, which is primarily concerned with pedigree and promotion of Holstein dairy cattle.#fn6 Wales was president of the Iowa Holstein-Friesian association for a number of years.#fn7 Wales also listed himself as member of the Iowa Improved Stock Breeders Association, Aberdeen Angus Association, and Jersey Association and served multiple terms as president of the Holstein-Friesian Association of Iowa.#fn8

From a modern farm on the east side of Iowa City he raised a number of champion butter cows and breeder bulls. From an office downtown he cataloged breeding stock for the Holstein and Holstein-Friesian Association of America, and tirelessly promoted the breed to farmers across America, but especially the Midwest.

Early Life

Thomas Beale Wales, Jr. was born in 1839 at Boston, Massachusetts to Thomas Beal and Jeannette Maria “Mary” (Howe) Wales. Thomas had one known brother, Joseph Howe Wales (1839–1907).#fn9 Wale’s father was a successful merchant, as was his father before him. They were also involved in international shipping trade. The family lived in the fashionable ninth ward located just southwest of the Boston Common. The family was able to employ three servants. The subject Thomas B. Wales was the third person with the same name in an unbroken family line of five Thomas Beale Wales. Wales’ grandfather was Thomas Beal Wales. Thomas B. Wales, Jr. (1815–1877), the subject’s father and first T.B. Wales, Jr., was a wealthy merchant with real estate amounting to $30,000 and a personal estate of $45,000 in 1860—an equivalent approaching $14 Million in 2019#fn10 He was also a medical doctor, graduating from Harvard in 1847 and practicing in Boston.#fn11 

Thomas B. Wales, Jr., our subject, began his career as a clerk, probably working for his father.#fn12 In 1861, Thomas married Anna Kimball (1833–1911) in Boston.#fn13 Her given name was variously also written as Anne or Ann. Thomas listed himself as a merchant on the marriage certificate. Anna’s parents were Daniel and Louisa Keith Kimball. Wales’ great aunt was Louisa Wales Kimball. His grandmother was Anne Beal and mother Maria Smith Howe.

In 1862, Wales joined the federal army and fought in the Civil war. He enlisted at the rank of private and attended officer’s school as a cadet in May and June. He earned a commission as an officer in September that year.#fn14 He served in Company E, Massachusetts 45th Volunteer Infantry Regiment and mustered out in July 1863 with the rank of captain.#fn15 

Thomas and Anna then had four children: Maria Mable, Maude Howe, Robert Ware, and the eldest, Thomas Beal, Jr., who was born in 1864 All four children were born in Massachusetts. The family moved to Iowa around 1882 Thomas, Jr. or Thomas, 3rd as local press named him, in turn had a son—the fifth Thomas B. Wales. He was born in 1893 The local press named Anna a leading social figure.#fn16 

The children did not figure prominently in history, though Thomas B. Wales, 3rd, the fourth T. B. Wales, traveled to the Netherlands to purchase stock cattle for his father in 1883 and later, this arrangement was listed occasionally as Thomas B. Wales, Jr. & Son for stock show and auction purposes.#fn17 Robert Wales eventually took up breeding chickens at Blue Rock farm on the west side of Iowa City and attracted attention briefly in the local press for this.#fn18 He managed the family farm in Iowa for about a year before branching out on his own.#fn19 

Why Wales decided to become a stock breeder is unknown. He was recorded as a merchant living with Anna and their children in Brookline, Massachusetts in 1870, having amassed a small fortune of his own by that time ($15,000 real estate; $25,000 personal estate).#fn20 Wales began raising stock. The herd book records a cow he bred was calved in September, 1871#fn21 Given the time it takes to breed and calve cattle—around 283 days—Wales had to have been raising stock by November, or December, 1870.#fn22 He was recorded as a farmer twenty-five miles from his Ninth Ward boyhood home and living in Framingham, Massachusetts in 1880.#fn23 From the beginning, his breed of choice was Holstein cattle.#fn24 

Holstein Cattle

Holsteins are what many people think of when they think of dairy cows. Holsteins are large, robust animals with sharply defined black and white spots and the cows have noticeably large udders. The pelvis characteristically rises above the line of the spine in historic animals, but this is no longer the case. In the herd books of the nineteenth century, they were described as white with black spots or black with white spots. A recessive gene can produce a red color variation, something that was not well understood until the later in the twentieth century.

Establishing Holstein as a butter breed started with Wales’ cow Mercedes, who won the Breeder’s Gazette Challenge Cup in 1883 The position of champion butter cow was solidified by the end of 1887#fn25 Butter from a Holstein cow was awarded first prize at the Iowa State Fair in 1885#fn26 The next year a butter test at the Minnesota State Fair awarded all three prizes to Holstein cows, even though more Jerseys had been entered in the competition. The first premium for butter was awarded to a Holstein at the Chicago Fat Stock Show in 1886 In 1887, Holstein butter took two first premium prizes and won the sweepstakes for best butter cow of any breed. It was stated that Holsteins would average 15 to 20 pounds per week per cow at a minimum.#fn27

The origin of the name Holstein as it is used for cattle is somewhat enigmatic. The same breed has gone by many names, including Holstein-Friesian cattle, Holland cattle, Dutch cattle, andDutch-Friesian cattle. The name Holstein appears in a report by Winthrop Chenery, the first known breeder in the United States, that he wrote to the US Department of Agriculture in 1864#fn28 Chenery tended to use the term Dutch cattle prior to this date, but for unclear reasons he referred to the breed as Holstein beginning with that report. Citing growing popularity of the term, Chenery later said The United States Department of Agriculture preferred the Holstein name he had used in his report, and it stuck.

But the name is even more enigmatic than that. There was the perception among breeders in the United States that Holstein cattle had originated from a presumed superior breed of animals in the region formerly known as the Duchy of Holstein.#fn29 Holstein today is the north German political unit that is situated south of Schleswig at the southern base of the Danish peninsula. The area has been generally known as Holstein since the Middle Ages when it had a hereditary Duke as ruler. Political control of the Holstein area has since been variously with Denmark or Germany. It is now part of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein.

Despite the name, the breed is thought to have originated in an area somewhat broader, extending to the west of Holstein into the low countries of Northern Europe at the southwest corner of the North Sea.#fn30 This area would have included the Dutch provinces of North Holland, Friesland, and Groningen and included the west section of German Holstein.#fn31

A more colorful origin story of Holstein cattle is attributed in the historic trade literature to have been the apocryphal product of the Frisian and Batavian peoples who helpfully cross-breed their cattle that were respectively all white and all black. This happy event resulted in the progenitor to modern black and white Holsteins.#fn32 This story is reported to be mostly conjecture even in the primarily cited source of this story, which is a late nineteenth century history of the breed.#fn33 Later scientific descriptions of the breed in the twentieth century discount the authenticity of this story due to lack of data.#fn34 Despite this, the legend lives on today in the dairy industry and information provided by various agricultural extension services that cite the late 19th century account. As it happens, it now appears genetic studies only can confirm modern breeds such as Holsteins are genetically new and they are not genetically related to native northern European cattle for the most part. This is because of heavy selection for size and production. Around eighty percent of genetic traits measured are completely new compared to native cow breeds.#fn35 Much of this selection appears to have occurred in America, largely beginning in the late nineteenth century when competition breeding began to become common, but took a marked change in the 1940s with artificial insemination.#fn36 In actuality, Holsteins originally imported to America came from the northeastern part of the current day country of The Netherlands and were said to be from Holland or Friesland.#fn37 

The name of the cattle breed was in dispute among breeders for some time after Chenery’s 1864 report. Over the course of the next twenty years the name of the breed came back up at annual meetings with members advocating for the name Holland Cattle, though that was also inaccurate. An alternative of Dutch cattle, Chenery’s original name for the breed, became unavailable when the name was adopted by the Dutch-Friesian cattle association in 1877#fn38 For many years after the two principal cattle associations of this breed merged in 1885, the association was known as the Holstein-Friesian Association of America.#fn39 One might contemplate why Holland-Friesland was not chosen, which is likely where the mythical origins come in. Ultimately, Holstein prevailed as the name. Today it is the Holstein Association USA.

The Holstein stock breeders association had settled at least on the definition of what a Holstein was for certification of Holstein pedigree, if not on the name for the breed, by 1871 That definition read,

Thoroughbred Holstein shall be held to mean and refer to only those large improved black and white cattle already registered in the Holstein Herd Book and such as are descended from them in direct line both as to sire and dam and such large improved black and white cattle of the same breed imported from North Holland and the neighboring provinces as are proved by the affirmation of the breeder of the animal satisfactory to the examining committee and by the examination and report of the examining committee to be thoroughbred animals.#fn40

The concern over purity of stock for dairy cattle breeders since the late nineteenth century is related to the science behind how to get the highest milk and butter yields possible. Without genetics, there wasn’t really any other way to trace purity of the breed than the herd book. Since purity of the breed is what the breeders were concerned with, the herd book became very important in tracking cattle of high performance and from where they were imported, bred, bought, or sold. The herd book allowed the pedigree of each animal to be traced.

The first Holstein herd book anywhere was published by the Association of Breeders of Thoroughbred Holstein Cattle in 1872#fn41 This occurred even before one was published in the Netherlands, where the animals were imported from. The first Netherlands herd book was published in 1873, at the encouragement of Thomas E. Whiting of Concord, Massachusetts.#fn42

The Holstein breed is thought to have had some early imports to America in the seventeenth century, especially in the Dutch colonies. No herd book was kept and there is no register as to where and when animals were bought or how they were thereafter bred resulting in a lack of pedigree.#fn43 The assumption now is that those cattle lineages became mixed and lost to purebred status. Therefore, the modern American pedigree of Holsteins extends back to the imports of cattle by Winthrop Chenery. He first imported a single cow in 1852 and was so impressed by her milk production that he decided to take up breeding new dairy stock for American farmers. Toward that end, he had imported two more cows and a bull in 1857#fn44 Chenery experienced some difficulty in establishing his breeding stock. When he imported four more cows, they contracted a disease and out of all his cattle, only the bull survived. In 1861, Chenery imported a further four cows and a second bull and from there his stock grew.

Trade in Holstein cattle was nearly exclusive to Chenery through the 1860s.#fn45 As a result, Chenery dominated the first herd book in terms of sires (breeding bulls) and dams (breeding cows).#fn46 While eventually others, such as Wales, would also purchase their own Holsteins to import in the 1870s, Chenery clearly was the founding breeder of Holsteins in America and all the early members of the Holstein association were buying animals from Chenery through the 1860s and later.

Wales’ Recognition as a Champion Breeder

Wales’ established himself as a leader in Holstein breeding while living in Framingham, Massachusetts. He was recorded in the 1872 herd book as owner of one bull, Van Tromp 2d, bred by Chenery and two cows, Zuider Zee 9th and Maid of Opperdoes, also bred by Chenery.#fn47 Wales is known to have imported cattle directly from Holland for the first time in 1879#fn48 Wales also had two other bulls, Van Tromp 3d and Van Tromp 4th, that he had bred. He also was the breeder of a cow named Maud.

Wales’ Framingham herd earned him his reputation as an expert breeder. His herd was awarded first prize at the New England Fair in 1872#fn49 Wales and two other stock breeders exhibited their cattle the same year at the New York State Agricultural Society gaining recognition for Holsteins as “milk, butter, and beef cattle,” according to Gerrit Miller, writing in 1922#fn50 This was a point that Wales had made previously in newspaper columns on the breed in the last quarter of the nineteenth century while living in Iowa City.#fn51 “The great size of these cattle, surpassing the Short-Horns, coupled with good feeding quality, assures the owner of fair compensation for his grades and old cows when turn­ed out for beef,” Wales said. #fn52

Wales, along with four other breeders that included Chenery, Charles Houghton, C.C. Walworth, and William Russell, founded the Association of Breeders of Thoroughbred Holstein Cattle in 1871#fn53 Wales was directly elected an officer of the association. He was one of three vice-presidents in 1871 After he moved to Iowa, he continued to shape the association as Secretary and Editor of the Herd Book starting in 1881 with volume 5, also publishing a series of reprints of the herd book, which he continued to do through 1893#fn54 Wales was also involved in merging the association with the Dutch-Friesian association in 1885, serving on the joint Charter and Bylaws Committee to form the Holstein-Friesian Association of America.#fn55 He then became the first Secretary and Editor of the new association in 1885, continuing in that position until 1894#fn56 As this suggests, the larger contributions to the field made by Wales were following his move to Iowa.

While Wales brought many head of cattle to Johnson County, he was not the first to raise cattle there. Johnson County resident Legrand Byington is credited with the first herd of purebred cattle in Iowa and Carey R. Smith was first to raise Holsteins in Johnson County.#fn57 The local press thought much of Wales and his contemporaries in stock breeding. “Iowa City is the center of the largest and best fine stock district in the world,” the Republican wrote.#fn58 Wales visited Iowa City in the fall of 1880.#fn59 He placed a string of want ads for a domestic servant for his boarding room on North Clinton Street in 1881.#fn60 He moved his herd from Framingham that year.#fn61 An article describing his farm, Brookbank, appeared in a regional trade publication in late December that year.#fn62 A string of ads offering Holstein cattle for sale followed and continued until March 1882 in that publication. Articles began to appear in the Iowa City press extolling the virtues of Holstein cattle for beef, milk, and butter that year.#nfn63 That same year Wales brought forty-five head of Holsteins from Friesland via Massachusetts by rail.#fn64 Wales was selling a significant number of stock animals in Iowa and nearby, selling eleven bulls and eighteen cows and heifers while retaining fifty five head at Brookbank by winter 1882–1883.#fn85 

There is little doubt the location near a railroad was of importance to a person selling large animals in the last quarter of the nineteenth century and this likely weighed as a factor for Wale’s choice to move to Iowa City. For example, three Burton stock cars were used to bring in 53 head of cattle in 1883.#fn66 The Burlington, Cedar Rapids, and Northern railway spur into Iowa City crossed the north portion of the farm and the region was also served by the Chicago, Rock Island, and Pacific line. A move to Iowa City situated Wales with rail access in an expanding market for cattle.

The growing population of farmers, especially those raising dairy and beef cattle in the region had to also be a factor to move to Iowa, which in particular was then the home of a growing dairy and beef industry at a time when immigration of European Americans to the state was at its highest point. Along with Holstein cattle, Angus and Hereford imports were also high during the 1880s as farmers took up raising stock along with growing crops in a movement to diversify their operations as recommended by the State Agricultural Society.#fn67 Despite financial market collapses with repeated panics through the last quarter of the nineteenth century, farmers were experiencing an increased standard of living relative to other sectors of the economy and purchasing new stock was likely affordable.#fn68 

During his tenure in Johnson County, Wales not only attended to his stock breeding and the affairs of the Holstein association, but he was also financially and socially involved in Iowa City businesses and society. The 1883 History of Johnson County notes he was a member of the board of directors for the Iowa City Bank, which was founded in 1875 and later expanded as the Iowa City National Bank.#fn69 His fellow backers were a who’s-who list of many prominent Iowa City business leaders including former governor Samuel Kirkwood and early local entrepreneur Ezekiel Clark. Others included John N. Coldren and Theodore Sanxay.#fn70 The involvement with this circle is an indication of his influence in Iowa City.

Other society ties included the Fairall family and real estate seller C. M. Reno, who was the proprietor of the Reno Real Estate Exchange and his son, M. C. Reno was Wales’ son-in-law, to whom Maude Howe Wales was married. Reno would later sell the Wales’ farm.

Wales purchased the land for his farm from Mary Puesy Fairall, who appears to have been the mother of Samuel H. Fairall, a lawyer and politician who owned land just north of the Mary Fairall property that Wales bought. H. S. Fairall, possibly the son of S. H. Fairall, was an editor of the Iowa City Republican newspapers published in Iowa City.#fn71 Wales used local newspaper articles, especially in the several iterations of Iowa City Republican publications, in his efforts to publicize Holsteins and his stock breeding efforts to the community.

Wales was in the press frequently while living in Johnson County. He advocated the advantages of Holsteins in 1882 and 1883.#fn72 He was noted for what was called “Possibly the largest and finest impor­tations of stock ever brought into the State of Iowa.” in 1883.#fn73 He appeared in the paper not less than four times in 1882, six times in 1883, and multiple times each of the following years through 1888 Topics included importation of cattle, sales of cattle, attendance and results of stock shows, association business and new issues of the herd book. The loss of his prize cow Mercedes also became a press opportunity.#fn74

Wales’ advocacy for Holstein cattle extended further, encompassing the Midwest and dairy regions of the East. He wrote a circular to suggest the Chicago Fat Stock Show was an opportunity to showcase Holsteins that should not be missed in 1885.#fn75

DEAR SIR—I desire to call your attention to the fact that
there is to be held a great Dairy Show at the Exposition
Building in Chicago, Ill. on Nov. 10 to 19, 1885, in con-
nection with the Annual Fat Stock Show. It seems to me
that a most favorable opportunity thus offered us to
bring to the attention of the of our grand breed of dairy
cattle and I most urge you to contribute to this show,
and so to advancement of our interests, by sending at
least one of your finest cows for exhibition, and at least
one package of butter or cheese made from Holstein-
Friesian cows. Let the breeders of your State or County
or neighborhood stand together and join hands for
the general good by arranging to to this really
National Exhibition a car-load of dairy cattle. The
expense would thus be small compared to the great
benefit which would surely result. Prominent Short-
horn breeders are quietly and earnestly at work. They
propose to demonstrate that the Short-horn is the
best dairy cow, and that the butter from their cattle is
at best equal to any. Let Holstein-Friesian breeders do
something for interests in this matter. Send at once to
Col. Charles F. Mills, Secretary, Springfield, Ill. for pre-
mium lists. Entries close Nov. 1, 1885.

Thomas B. Wales, Jr.                           

While in Iowa City, Wales described himself in a library trade sales publication as the first person to put a library card catalog system in use for tracking cattle pedigree to assist publishing the Holstein herd book. Writing from Iowa City, Wales said the following.#fn76

In regard to the use I put your system of indexing I will
say that my attention was first drawn to it in the library
of the Iowa State University at this place in 1882 and the
idea of using it in the keeping of the registry of our cattle
for the Holstein-Friesian Herd Book was then conceived.
Each animal has its card on which is given the name and
number it takes in the herd book with the number of its
sire and dam, date of birth, name of its breeder, and
owner with their address….

I believe I am the first to put your system to use in the
keeping of herd book registry and would advise your
sending descriptive circulars to the office of every such
association….

Wales frequently used a combination of self promotion while passing on useful knowledge. To further not miss any opportunity to show off his farm, he hosted a demonstration of a new type of machine to lay agricultural drainage tile in 1883.#fn77 The quintessential gentleman farmer, Wales also commissioned a lithograph of some of his best-known animals and shrewdly gave a copy to the Iowa City Republican which printed the article regarding his artwork. A copy of that lithograph is in the Library of Congress and appears at the top of this article. The editors wrote a neat bit of promotion in response.#fn78

We are indebted to Mr. T. B. Wales, Jr. for a fine large
lithograph showing us the beauties of several of his
famous Holstein cattle. The artist, Mr. Palmer, has
done a creditable work, and has shown the good
points of the animal to good advantage. These
special favorites from the Brookbank herd, have a
world wide reputation, and famous for their dairy
qualities, but their beauties can only be realized by a
visit to Brookbank farm, where Mr. Wales will be glad
to show them to any who may call.

In addition to the farm, Wales controlled property in Iowa City. Wales’ office was listed at 214½ Clinton Street and a residence at 521 N. Dubuque Street may have been for his son, Thomas.#fn79 Multiple reports confirm Wales lived on his farm at Brookbank that was situated in the suburban fields of East Lucas Township.#fn80 The office was for maintaining the records to assist publishing the herd book for the Holstein-Friesian Association of America. In calling attention to Wales, the editors of the American Agriculturalist wrote, “Mr Wales office as Secretary of the Friesian Association is located in Iowa City where a small army of lady stenographers and writers are employed in recording transfers of sales etc. and making minutes of matters generally of interest to the Association”#fn81 Not much more is known about his office location other than the address matches the Whiteway Grocery building that was built in 1880 and destroyed by fire in 1999.

Brookbank Farm

Wales’ breeding and stock raising operation occurred at the farm, now in southeastern Iowa City not far from downtown. The farm eventually was bought by W. F. Main and became the planned factory village of East Iowa City, later annexed by Iowa City.

Wales selected an area of 220 acres that straddled the south fork of Ralston Creek and named the farm Brookbank.#fn82 The property stretched east from Muscatine Road to the point the road turns east and then extended another half mile. The north boundary of the farm was the road that ran along the alignment of current day Court Street. Current day 1st Avenue runs along the section line between Section 13 and Section 14.

Wales purchased the initial acres for the farm from Mary P. Fairall and others in 1881.#fn83 Wales had added the land of A. C. Purdy and his farm in East Lucas Townships encompassed the northwest quarter of Section 13 and the portion of the northeast quarter of Section 14 north of the road to Muscatine by 1889.#fn84

Wales Farmstead shown at red box with black arrow

It is unfortunate that we don’t know what the farm and outbuildings looked like, beyond plats and the lithograph of his cattle. The farm was described as containing a house, barn, and cattle yards. “In addition to a handsome and comfortable residence, Wales erected a barn and cattle yards that are models of comfort for his stock.”#fn85 The house reportedly was a block long and half a block deep, with a large barn and well house and located along current day Friendship Street.#fn86 W. F. Main purchased the former Wales property in 1895 and was living in the house, described as located at Garden and Friendship Streets, around 1909 and 1911.#fn87 A house matching this time period is located on Friendship Street today, not far from the corner of Garden Street. The surrounding properties are much younger. The Johnson County Assessor records state the date of construction as 1880. Although, the house is actually fairly modest in size, it is possible that the building had been described with a degree of poetic license, which was common in business promotion at the time, which always worked to show local businesses with an optimistic eye that wanted to reflect well on the community.

Press coverage through the 1880s further illustrate the appearance and the elevated sense of importance of Brookbank farm and herd in local and national press. A correspondent for Western Rural described the farm in 1881, saying “[Wales] has now upon his farm, near the city, the finest herd of Holstein cattle I have ever seen. This stock farm is also a model of simplicity and convenience.”#fn88 Three years later, the Iowa City Daily Republican wrote, “Mr. Wales has developed his busi­ness, as a breeder and importer of Holstein cattle, into very large proportions. His place, Brookbank, just on the east­ern outskirts of the city, is admirably adapted to his needs. His large barns and stables have been built after the most approved plans and afford facilities for giving his famous herd the best care.”#fn89 The American Agriculturalist described Wales’ herd and farm in 1886, writing “In the vicinity of Iowa City are to be found some of the choicest herds in the cattle growing state of Iowa…. His grounds comprise rolling prairie and are well adapted for breeding purposes while his buildings are very extensive and present a really picturesque appearance.”#fn90 The next year, The Iowa City Daily Republican wrote, “Mr. Wales has a model stock farm on the edge of Iowa City and his great herd has in it some of the most noted cattle in the world.”#fn91 and in 1888, the same paper wrote “Brookbank farm is already noted throughout the country for its fine herd of cattle, nor surpassed by any farm of a similar character in the United States. The herd of Holsteins which at present grazes upon its wide meadows will be the delight of all lovers of fine stock, and we are gratified at the fact that Johnson County is the centre of this interest in our country.”#fn92

It appears that much of Wales’ business interests were importing, showing, and selling cattle. He also occasionally bought animals imported by others for his own foundation stock. For example, he purchased Mink from Cary Smith of Johnson county.#fn93 Wales was the direct importer of a number of foundation stock animals, including Mercedes, Tritomia, Mahomet, and Friesland Maid. In addition to importation and other purchases, it is clear Wales was acknowledged by other cattlemen as a breeder of fine stock. Gerrit S. Miller wrote a letter to express his admiration for Wales, saying, “As a successful breeder and promoter of the best interests of Holstein cattle Mr Wales had few if any superiors.” Miller noted Wales’ bull Jaap Fourth won first prize and Mercedes 3d obtained the highest price paid at sale up to that point.#fn94

Thomas B. Wales, 3rd, was making trips to the Netherlands by 1883 to purchase additional breeding stock for his father.#fn95 About this time Wales had imported around 300 head of cattle.#fn96 Most of these animals were sold as livestock following the quarantine process.#fn97 Wales sold cattle to New York, Kansas, and Iowa.#fn98 Wales also had sales in Wisconsin and Nebraska and likely other states in the Midwest.#fn99 As part of his marketing strategy to increase his potential for sales, Wales participated frequently in state fairs and other stock show opportunities as well as conducting butter yield tests and publishing reports of his results.

Wales traveled extensively with some of the choice animals in his herd to stock competitions as well as county and state fairs and expositions frequently winning awards.#fn100 Local papers and industry publications chronicled Wales successes at the American Fat Stock Show of Chicago, Minnesota State Fair, St. Louis exposition, and Iowa State Fair.#fn101

Of Wales it was said, “he also did much to establish the fact that the Holstein cow can make more butter and the young stock more rapid growth than any other breed.”#fn102 The Brookbank herd was awarded first herd prize in 1882 at the St. Louis Fair. A three year old bull imported from Holland named Jaap won first prize for aged bulls. The prize for heifer calf also was awarded to Wales, and his son, “Master T. B. Wales, 3rd,” won the bull calf prize for his calf Kirkwood.#fn103 Jaap again won first prize at the Minnesota State Fair, Iowa State Fair, and the Chicago Fat Stock Show in 1883.#fn104At the Chicago Fat Stock Show 1885, Wales took home the first premium prize for best Holstein-Friesian butter. Thomas B. Wales, Jr. & Son took home the blue ribbon for their dairy bull, Solon Prince, and their cow Jepma won second place.#fn105 At the Kansas City Fair in 1885, Wales won several ribbons including first place for Holstein-Friesian bull two years and under three, and one year and under two, and two years and under three, and second prize for each of the categories two years and under and three, three years and over, and one year and under two. Wales also won the herd prize. The sweepstakes for cows of any age also went to T. B. Wales, Jr.#fn106 At the American Fat Stock and Dairy Show in Chicago in 1887, Tritomia won the sweepstakes prize and scored highest for butter.#fn107 Three hundred and eight animals were entered there.#fn108 Wales also took the sweepstakes that year at the Iowa State Fair.#fn109

In 1883, Wales’ foundation stock cow, Mercedes, won the Breeder’s Gazette Challenge Cup setting a world record for butter production.#fn110 The Breeder’s Gazette had offered a silver cup as prize for the greatest butter yield in any thirty consecutive days between July 1, 1882 and July 1, 1883 The two leading competitors were Wales’ cow Mercedes and Valency Fuller’s Jersey Cow Mary Ann of St Lambert, the former champion. Mercedes produced 99 pounds, six ounces and Mary Ann of St Lambert was just under two pounds less, producing 97 pounds, eight ounces of unsalted butter.#fn111 The feat was labeled the world record. Mercedes made Wales famous. Most accounts of his works recall the silver cup award. On the death of Mercedes, the Iowa City Republican stated, “She was the most celebrated cow in the world.”#fn112 From Mercedes came Mercedes Prince, who was one of Wales choicest bulls. His progeny included six cows that averaged one pound of butter from 1,632 ounces of milk. They tested at 16 pounds five ounces of butter in seven days.#fn113 The Brookbank Herd had twenty cows that averaged 20 pounds 63 ounces of butter over seven days. These cows were also the offspring of Mercedes Prince.#fn114 Foundation cow Mink tested at 29 pounds six ounces butter in 10 days.#fn115 Another foundation cow, Tritomia, tested at 25 pounds 88 ounces in seven days.#fn116 Twenty-nine cows from the herd at Brookbank averaged at 17 pounds 267 ounces of butter in seven days.#fn117 The tests were comparable to other breeders that year, all of which appear to have been regarded as remarkable achievements in the literature. Some of the other butter tests for one day totals include Rhoda, 895 pounds, Jantje 865 pounds, Brilliante 80 pounds, Lady of Jelsum 75 ½ pounds, Maid of Holstein 72 pounds, Friesland Maid 715 pounds of butter.#fn118

Wales attributed his success in part to the treatment of the animals—the number of times a day they were fed, what they were fed, and milking three times a day during trials. Discussing his cow Tonma’ine, Wales wrote,

The weather being very cold, often 20 degrees below zero
rather hard on a milch cow), I did not expect much from
her , but she proved equal to the occasion, run­ning up to
60 lbs of milk per day and over. We gave her a trial of seven
days as follows: She was milked three times a day; fed dry
hay, beets, corn and oats, chess bran and a little oil-meal.
The total amount of milk produced, 445 lbs 6 oz. Total
amount of fine, dry marketable butter from said milk,
34 lbs 13½ oz.¹¹⁹

He echoed these thoughts when quoted in another piece titled “The Hardy Holsteins and Great Producers of Milk, Butter, and Beef,” which ran in the local paper.#fn120

Mink finished her yearly record on the 15th of June. She has re-
ceived only good, ordinary dairy care. She has not made enor-
mous yield from air alone, but has had all she wanted of nutri-
tious food. During the flush of her yield she was milked three
times per day, but as soon as her bag would hold the milk she
was milked but twice, though we are well aware that her yield
would have been much increased by continu­ing to milk her
three times.

Importations and domestically bred cattle began to outpace the demand for purchases by dairy farmers after 1884.#fn121 This likely affected the ability to sell cattle, though Wales continued to hold auctions for the next four years. But within a few short years of achieving his notoriety, Wales’ herd was bypassed as the champions in butter production. A highly scrutinized butter test was held at the New York Dairy Show of 1887. The winners were two Holsteins, Clothilde and Clothilde 4th, owned by Smiths & Powell, Co, which won first and second prize unseating the Brookbank herd as champion dairy cows.#fn122 The amounts of butter produced in 24 hours: 2 lbs 75 oz for Clothilde and 2 lbs 0.25 oz for Clothilde 4d, and Clothilde also set a record for milk produced in a year producing over 26,000 lbs of milk.#fn123

Without citing a reason, Wales’ son indicated that his father had begun to disperse his herd. He focused solely on being Secretary of the Holstein-Friesian Association of America.#fn124 The first dispersion sale was held in Kansas City in September, 1887.#fn125 That was followed in May the next year in Cleveland, Ohio.#fn126 It’s not clear from the many ads, most of which were hard sales pitches, how this sale compared to others at the time. The ads state the sale would include more than 80-head. Similar ad campaigns had been run in 1885 for an auction at Brookbank Farm.#fn127 Those ads also were for 80 head of mostly “young cows and heifers.” It also can be noticed that Mercedes Prince had been offered, but not sold, between 1885 and 1888. The sales wrapped up with the “Grand Dispersion” sale in 1888.