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Cattle Breeders and Breed Pioneers

John Hewer: The Herefordshire Breeder Who Set the White Face

With his father William, John Hewer used line breeding to set the color and type that define the modern Hereford.

Who Was John Hewer?

John Hewer lived from 1787 to 1873 and is counted among the foundation breeders of Hereford cattle in Great Britain. He worked with his father, William, and the pair built a herd whose cattle helped define how a Hereford should look. The Saddle & Sirloin Portrait Foundation page describes him that way and lists his portrait as inducted between 1920 and 1941.

Sources on Hewer himself are limited. This page therefore keeps its claims about the man to what the foundation record supports and adds sourced context about the Hereford breed in his era.

Fixing the White Face and Red Markings

The most specific claim in the record is also the most memorable. Hewer used line breeding to fix the color and type that define the modern Hereford, including the white face and red markings. Line breeding means mating related animals that share the traits the breeder wants, so that those traits show up reliably in the calves.

Anyone who has seen a Hereford pair on a western range knows how recognizable that look is. The foundation credits Hewer with helping to lock it in.

Letting Bulls for a Season

Hewer also let bulls for a season. Hiring out a bull let other farmers use good sires without buying them outright, and it spread the Hewer bloodlines to herds across the district and beyond. The foundation notes that the practice helped the breed spread quickly.

It echoes the leasing practice of Robert Bakewell in Leicestershire a generation earlier, though the foundation page does not draw that link directly.

Exports and the Royal Show

Hewer exported many cattle, including to Australia. The portrait page also mentions Cotmore, a champion Hereford bull at the first English Royal Show in 1839. The page does not say explicitly that Cotmore came from Hewer's herd, so this entry notes the bull only as context.

What the 1839 date does show is that national competition was just beginning. The Herefordshire Through Time page on Hereford breed promotion says national competition began with the Royal Agricultural Society of England in 1839.

The Key to Hewer's Success

Hewer's reputation comes from a short list of documented practices.

They are worth reading closely because each remains in use among cattle breeders.

  • He worked with his father, William, which gave the herd continuity across two generations.
  • He used line breeding to fix the white face and red markings.
  • He let bulls for a season, spreading his bloodlines.
  • He built a herd that included some of the finest cattle of the era, according to the foundation.
  • He exported cattle abroad, including to Australia.

The Hereford Breed Around Hewer

Hereford breeding was becoming organized during Hewer's lifetime. The Herefordshire Agricultural Society was founded in 1797. In 1800 the Duke of Bedford invited local breeders and dealers to dine with him and planned Hereford herds at Woburn Abbey and on Lord Berners's Midland estate. The first Hereford Herd Book volume appeared in 1846, listing 551 bulls from 75 breeders.

Interest from America grew in the 1870s and 1880s, especially from far western prairie ranch areas, and the Hereford Herd Book Society was incorporated in 1878, five years after Hewer's death.

Honors and Further Reading

The foundation lists the Hewer portrait among its beef cattle honorees, painted by Ernest Sigmund Klempner (1867 to 1941).

For where Herefords went after Herefordshire, visit farm.FM's ranching section, and a farm.FM story about Hereford cattle for a ranch view.

Timeline

  1. 1787Born
  2. 1797Herefordshire Agricultural Society founded
  3. 1800Duke of Bedford hosts Hereford breeders and plans herds at Woburn Abbey
  4. 1839First English Royal Show, where Cotmore is champion Hereford bull
  5. 1846First Hereford Herd Book volume published
  6. 1873Dies
  7. 1878Hereford Herd Book Society incorporated

Frequently asked questions

Who was John Hewer?

John Hewer (1787-1873) was an English foundation breeder of Hereford cattle who, with his father William, used line breeding to fix the breed's white face and red markings.

What did Hewer do for the Hereford breed?

He used line breeding to set color and type, let bulls for a season to spread his bloodlines, and exported cattle, including to Australia.

Where did Hewer's cattle go?

The Saddle & Sirloin profile says he exported many cattle, including to Australia. It does not list destinations in more detail.

When was the Hereford Herd Book first published?

The first volume appeared in 1846, published by T. Eyton of Wellington, Shropshire, and listed 551 bulls from 75 breeders.

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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