A History of Double K Black Hereford Farm

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The farm is located in North Alabama, and the house pictured was originally built in the early 1800s as a cedar log structure. The Neill Patterson family originally occupied the property, and a handwritten note confirms the acquisition of 80 acres west of the house by Neill's son, Jacob Biffle Patterson in 1850 for the sum of $500.  A son, John Wesley and the father of Annie Virginia, farmed the property until his death in the early 1900s.  Annie Virginia received as her share of the estate the house and 188 acres of land. She  later married William Edwin Knight from South Alabama and they continued to farm the land. Their oldest son John Edwin farmed the land and raised cattle until his death in 2006. The property then passed to the only son John Jr.

The original cattle herd was comprised of Jersey milk cows crossed with Hereford bulls. As the generations passed, the continued use of Polled Hereford Bulls on the offspring resulted in a herd of cattle (even though not registered) that looked like Herefords. In the mid-1950s, John Jr. bought a registered bred heifer from the Weeks farm in Hanceville, AL. The first calf was a heifer; and as a part of the purchase deal, Mr. Weeks offered to breed to the same bull for a second calf. As luck would have it, this also was a heifer calf. These three females formed the nucleus of the registered herd; and by the late 1970s, all the grade animals were dispersed, leaving only a quality group of registered animals. Some AI breeding in the 1980s benefited the herd as a focus was on mothering ability and calving ease. After the death of John Sr., a decision was made to pursue the Black Herefords. An Angus bull was purchased, and several F1 females are currently in the herd. The first Black Hereford purchased was 3C's D15 of JB Classic Smith in 2017. D15 is a son of JO Bull Classic Smith 2008 HB003736. A photo gallery below highlights some current animals.

Pictured in this Photo Gallery are several animals currently in the herd and scenes around the farm. Also pictured is a very spoiled Poodle named KoKo.