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The Bradley Brothers Story | Merlin Bradley In 1933, Campbell and John Bradley took over their family farm which is situated north west of Swift Current in the Cantuar area. They took over their mother’s herd of milking Shorthorns. However, they decided that there must be an easier way to make a living than milking cows, so they moved form a milking herd to a beef herd. They first used Hereford bulls over their Shorthorn cows but were not impressed with the resulting calf crops. Next they used Angus bulls. John realized that there was a need for a breed of beef cattle which were hardier and better foragers than traditional breeds. In the mid 30’s he read of the research work which was being carried out at the University of Saskatchewan. This work was concerned with crossbreeding and involved the use of grade Galloway cattle. The performance of the Galloway persuaded John that this was the breed that he had been looking for. In 1941, Campbell and John expanded their farming enterprise with the purchase of Legs Laird Ranch, west of Beverly. In contrast to the flat land of the family homestead, this ranch was rough country with hills and coulees. This was the type of land which would suit Galloway cattle. In the fall of 1946, Campbell and John went up to visit Andy Wallace at Spitzie Ranch near High River, Alberta. They were first taken to see a group of Galloway bulls which they weren’t very impressed with. Next they were taken out to see the cow herd. It was a cold day, -20°F with snow on the ground and the cows were out grazing on the crested wheat grass. The cows still had their calves and despite the cold, were looking very contented and in good condition. Both Campbell and John were very impressed with what they saw. That was the kind of cow herd that they wanted. Before they left they asked Andy Wallace to pick out 2 bulls and to send them down to them the next year. They used the Galloway bulls over the Shorthorn cows. The first outcross turned into good replacement cows. At the Swift Current feeder sales they topped the market 2 years in a row with their Galloway X Shorthorn calves. The first purebred cows were bought from Andy Wallace in 1955. One of these first three cows was a ten year old cow Hussar Neva. She lived to be 18 years old and produced calves which were to be part of the foundation of the Bradley Galloway herd. The first purebred calves, one heifer and two bulls, were registered in 1956. Eight heifers were bought from Spitzie Ranch in 1956. John Bradley made the trip to Scotland in 1958 where he bought 3 Galloway Bulls. One bull died before reaching Canada. The two bulls imported were Grange Minstrel and Good Reward of Craigadam. In 1959 more cows were bought from Andy Wallace. These cows had Forest Range breeding. From this group of cows came a large portion of the base herd. One of the first calves from this group was Rosemary from which was established a major line in the herd. One of the first herd sires was Troy, who was by Good Reward of Craigadam and his dam Riss was by Grange Minstrel out of Hussar Neva. Some of his calves topped the Saskatoon Test Station. A son of Troy, Yam who was sold to Dean Bollman, sired a high gaining group of calves at the Saskatoon Test Station, with one bull, Antelope Lake George gaining 3.99lbs. per day. Throughout the 1960’s Campbell and John seeded a lot of their cropping land to grass and expanded their commercial herd which by now was a Galloway crossbred herd. At its peak their herd had 500 breeders of which over 100 were purebred Galloways. During this time they also ran a few buffalo. In 1970 the operation was taken over by Campbell’s sons. The purebred herd became Globe Galloways which has since exported cattle to Australia, Mexico, Scotland, USA and West Germany. The commercial herd continues to be Galloway cross cows using various breeds as terminal cross bulls. This operation is now run by Dennis, Brent and Barry Bradley since Campbell’s retirement and the death of John in 1970. A few purebreds are still kept and these are run together with Campbell’s herd of Belted Galloways. The Seward Belted Galloway herd was started in 1980 with the purchase of 2 cows and a bull from Eastern Canada. In 1984 Campbell imported Mochrun Murdo which he had purchased from Miss Flora Stuart, Scotland. Merlin has moved to Australia where he is running a commercial and purebred Galloway herd. Globex Galloways Wodonga, Victoria, Australia Galloways have been part of the Bradley family's farming enterprise since the 1950s. At Swift Current, Saskatchewan, Canada, the GLOBE Galloway herd produced many world renowned Galloways. Merlin sold his first Galloway overseas to Scotland in 1983, when Globe Magnum went to the Glenturk Galloway herd at Newton Stewart, Scotland. Merlin exported Galloways from Canada to Germany, Mexico and Australia. Globe Titan 1T was sold to Andrew McConchie in Scotland, and Titan's first son sold for 13000 £ sterling. A quarter semen share was sold to Diamond B Ranches, Saskatchewan and many descendants have won shows and been exported around the world. Another quarter semen share was taken to Australia and used with great success at Globex Galloways. At the 1985 Globe Dispersal in Canada, Globe Powderkeg and Globe Rosemary with Globe Traveller at foot were exported to Dr. & Mrs. Mastell in Germany. The descendants of these animals have had an impact on the Galloways in Europe. In 1979 Merlin bought a property in Victoria, Australia where he started the GLOBEX Galloway Herd. Here he combined the bloodlines from Australia with imported bloodlines from Canada. From Australia, Merlin has exported Galloway semen and embryos to Canada, Scotland, Germany, USA and Russia. Merlin served on the Board of Directors of the Saskatchewan Galloway Association and the Canadian Galloway Association. He was the Galloway Representative when the Canadian Western Agribition was first formed in 1970. Since immigrating to Australia he has continued to be very active in the breed and is presently Vice-President of the Australian Galloway Association Inc. Over 100 Galloway females are run on the Globex property just outside Wodonga on the Victoria / New South Wales border. The Bradleys breed mainly Blacks and Duns but also have a few Whites. As a very enthusiastic Galloway breeder Merlin enjoys visiting herds around the world. He says that being a member of a Galloway Association is like being a member of a world-wide social club and he has made many friends around the world through Galloways. During Merlin's visit to Scotland in 1982, a young female in the Galloway area caught his eye -- but this one was not bovine! After many return visits, Merlin took the plunge in 1984 and imported her to Canada and then to Australia as his bride. Jane Bradley (nee Austin) grew up on a farm at Gatehouse of Fleet. Her father and brothers still farm in the area. In the 1990s, Globex, along with Southern Cross and Amberley Park, exported semen and embryos to Chita, Russia. Merlin returned to Chita in 2007, to find the Galloways doing well and the Russian farmers very interested in Galloways and other beef cattle. Jane assists Merlin with the Globex herd and became more involved with the Galloway world when she took the position of Executive Officer for the Australian Galloway Association Inc from 1998 to 2007. Showing Galloways has filled a large part of Merlin's life and he has brought out many Royal Show Champions and exhibited many Carcass Competition winners. He was assisted in the show ring by his children, Jenna and Joldy. Globex retired from the show ring in 2008. With family in Scotland and Canada, travelling for Merlin and Jane has been made easier -- however, grandparents are now insistent that the grandchildren come also. |
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