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Cattle Breeders and Breed Pioneers

Hugh Watson of Keillor: The First Systematic Improver of Angus Cattle

A nineteen-year-old tenant began with six cows and one bull at Keillor and laid the base of the Aberdeen-Angus breed.

Who Was Hugh Watson of Keillor?

Ask a breed historian who started the Aberdeen-Angus and the first name you will hear is Hugh Watson of Keillor. He was born in Meigle, Perthshire, and lived to 1865. The Saddle & Sirloin Portrait Foundation profile calls him the first systematic and successful improver of Angus cattle.

The year of his birth is not settled. The Saddle & Sirloin page gives 1789, while a North East Aberdeen-Angus Club article lists him as 1780 to 1865, so sources differ. What is not in doubt is the work he did on a tenant farm in the glens of Angus.

A Tenant at Nineteen

Watson's family had been involved in cattle breeding since at least 1735, so he came to the job with inherited knowledge. In 1808, at age nineteen, he became a tenant at Keillor. He started with six of his father's best cows and one bull, stock the source describes as the blackest available.

By 1815 he was improving his cattle through line breeding and careful selection. The cattle were polled, meaning naturally hornless, and black, and Watson aimed to make those traits breed true while building flesh and quality.

Old Jock, Old Granny and the Foundation Animals

Two animals dominate Watson's story. His favorite bull, Old Jock, was given number 1 when the herd book was founded, which made him a symbolic first father of the registered breed. Old Granny was born in 1824 and had a recorded 25 calves. She lived to about 36 and died after being struck by lightning.

The foundation notes that many living Aberdeen-Angus cattle trace back to Old Jock or Old Granny. In a breed that now numbers in the millions around the world, that is a long shadow cast from one Angus farm.

Showing and Selling the Black Polled Cow

Watson first exhibited in 1829 and practiced fitting and showing more than other breeders of his day. He reportedly won more than 500 ring prizes. Those wins mattered commercially as well as for pride, because a champion ribbon helped sell bulls.

He also helped increase the popularity of black polled cattle throughout the British Isles. The later builders of the breed leaned on that groundwork: William McCombie of Tillyfour bought stock from Watson, and the Press and Journal article on Sir George Macpherson-Grant names Watson, McCombie and Macpherson-Grant as the three key figures in creating the breed.

The Key to Watson's Success

Watson's achievements rested on a small number of repeatable habits. They are drawn here from the foundation's record.

He started with the family's best stock and applied method rather than luck.

  • He started with six of his father's best cows and one very black bull.
  • He used line breeding and careful selection from about 1815.
  • He kept records of famous animals, and Old Jock became number 1 in the herd book.
  • He showed widely, starting in 1829, and reportedly took more than 500 prizes.
  • He fitted and prepared animals for the ring more thoroughly than most of his rivals.
  • He sold breeding stock to other improvers such as McCombie, who carried the breed forward.

How the Breed Grew After Watson

The North East Aberdeen-Angus Club credits William McCombie (1805 to 1880) with blending the native Aberdeenshire hummlies and Angus doddies into the Aberdeen-Angus, and with building a commercial brand through planning, management and marketing. Sir George Macpherson-Grant of Ballindalloch is named alongside them, as described in the club's history article.

The same article notes that the breed was at its height in the late 1950s and 1960s, when record prices were paid for bulls exported to North and South America. Popularity slumped in the 1970s and 1980s as market demand changed, then recovered from the 1990s.

Honors and the Glamis Memorial

The Aberdeen-Angus Cattle Society commissioned a memorial to Watson at Glamis Castle. Sculptor Roddy Mathieson created it, and it was unveiled in July 2017 during the World Angus Forum in Scotland. The Saddle & Sirloin portrait, by Robert Wadsworth Grafton, was inducted between 1920 and 1936.

For readers who want to see how Angus cattle fit into modern beef, farm.FM's ranching section is the natural next stop, and a farm.FM story about Angus cattle gives a ranch-side view.

Timeline

  1. 1735Watson family already breeding cattle, according to the foundation
  2. 1808Becomes tenant at Keillor at age nineteen
  3. 1815Improving cattle through line breeding and careful selection
  4. 1824Old Granny born
  5. 1829First exhibits cattle at shows
  6. 1865Dies
  7. 2017Memorial unveiled at Glamis Castle in July

Frequently asked questions

Who was Hugh Watson of Keillor?

Hugh Watson (1789-1865, though one source says 1780) was a Scottish tenant farmer at Keillor, Angus, and is described as the first systematic and successful improver of Angus polled cattle.

What was Old Jock?

Old Jock was Watson's favorite bull. He was entered as number 1 when the herd book was founded, and many living Aberdeen-Angus cattle trace back to him.

Who was Old Granny?

Old Granny was a cow born in 1824 at Keillor. She had a recorded 25 calves and lived to about 36, and she is another foundation animal for the breed.

Where is the Hugh Watson memorial?

The memorial is at Glamis Castle. Sculptor Roddy Mathieson made it, and it was unveiled in July 2017 during the World Angus Forum in Scotland.

Sources and further reading

Profiles are compiled from public sources and reviewed against them. See our editorial policy to suggest a correction.

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