World Agriculture Directory: the home of the world's largest agriculture database. Fastest way to find events, farms and agribusiness that suit your needs. Agriculture Event Directory

Cattlemen Hall of FameBeef cattle barons, cowboys, breeders and builders from around the world

Veterinarians and Animal Scientists

Warren Lale Blizzard: The Animal Husbandry Leader Who Built Oklahoma's Livestock Program

A Kansas-born animal husbandman led Oklahoma A&M's livestock department for more than two decades and helped build the state's cattle industry.

Who was Warren Lale Blizzard?

Warren Lale Blizzard was born on April 8, 1888, in McPherson, Kansas, and died in 1954. He became one of the people most associated with livestock education in Oklahoma, leading the animal husbandry program at Oklahoma A&M College, now Oklahoma State University, for decades, according to the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.

His name appears in two halls of honor: the Hall of Great Westerners, to which he was inducted in 1958, and the Angus Heritage Foundation, which recognized him in 1983.

Early life and training in Kansas

Blizzard earned a B.S. in Animal Husbandry from Kansas State College in 1910. The Saddle and Sirloin Portrait Foundation notes that he first worked at Kansas State as an animal husbandry assistant, which put him in the classroom and the show barn early in his career.

After a series of farming and education positions he moved to Oklahoma. He joined the Oklahoma State A&M College Animal Husbandry Department in 1915, when the state's livestock industry was still in its infancy.

Leading the animal husbandry department

Blizzard became head of the department in 1919 and held the post until 1943. He then served as dean and director until 1953. A 1950 newspaper photo caption identified him as dean of agriculture at Oklahoma A&M, according to the Saddle and Sirloin Portrait Foundation.

Under his leadership the department gained national recognition, including a championship livestock judging team. The museum's biography says his teaching emphasized character, integrity and hands-on experience. His successor in the deanship is recorded in Oklahoma State's own history: Albert E. Darlow was selected in 1953 as dean of agriculture, as noted in an Oklahoma State Cowboy Journal article.

Choosing herd sires and coaching champions

Blizzard was known for choosing outstanding herd sires. The Saddle and Sirloin Portrait Foundation credits that skill with helping Oklahoma grow into a leading livestock state within about twenty years, and notes that he coached the first of Oklahoma A&M's national championship livestock teams and built a strong record in the grand champion steer competition.

By the 1930s, the state ranked among the top in livestock income. Blizzard promoted the idea that superior animals were more economical and profitable, spreading it through college herds and through local 4-H and FFA livestock shows.

The Angus connection

The American Angus Association inducted Blizzard into its Angus Heritage Foundation in 1983. Its biography says he led the agriculture college at Oklahoma State University for many years, was one of the first college faculty members to hold livestock feeder days, and recognized Angus cattle as superior meat animals, helping spark interest among Oklahoma breeders.

He was also a leading judge of steers at major shows. The Angus record lists his initials inconsistently and gives no dates for his tenure, so the dates in this profile come from the National Cowboy Museum.

The Key to Blizzard's Success

The documented record points to a teacher who treated cattle as an economic question. He believed better animals paid better, and he built a program to prove it in public.

The records here are summaries, so they say little about difficulties or controversy, and this profile does not add any that the sources do not show.

  • He taught by doing: the museum's biography stresses hands-on experience alongside character and integrity.
  • He used the show ring as a classroom, coaching livestock judging teams and building a record in steer competition.
  • He held livestock feeder days, an early example of taking research to producers.
  • He worked through 4-H and FFA shows so that young people saw the value of superior animals.
  • He stayed: roughly four decades at one institution from 1915 to 1953 gave the program continuity.

Legacy and honors

The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum inducted Blizzard into the Hall of Great Westerners in 1958, four years after his death. The American Angus Association added him to its Heritage Foundation in 1983.

Oklahoma State's animal science program continues from the department he led. For more on livestock education and ranching, see the education section of farm.FM and a farm.FM story about livestock judging.

Oklahoma's livestock industry in his time

When Blizzard arrived in 1915, Oklahoma's livestock business had only recently moved from open range toward organized breeding. The grazing lease era on the Cherokee Outlet had ended in the early 1890s, and later generations of ranchers and farmers began choosing herd sires and feeding cattle for market.

A college department that taught judging, sire selection and feeding gave that new industry a trained workforce. The 4-H and FFA shows Blizzard supported linked the campus to farm families across the state.

Timeline

  1. 1888Born April 8 in McPherson, Kansas
  2. 1910Earns B.S. in Animal Husbandry at Kansas State College
  3. 1915Joins the Oklahoma A&M Animal Husbandry Department
  4. 1919Becomes department head
  5. 1943Becomes dean and director
  6. 1953Dean tenure ends; Albert E. Darlow selected as dean
  7. 1954Dies
  8. 1958Inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners
  9. 1983Inducted into the Angus Heritage Foundation

Frequently asked questions

Who was Warren Lale Blizzard?

Blizzard (1888 to 1954) was a Kansas-born animal husbandman who led the animal husbandry department at Oklahoma A&M from 1919 to 1943, then served as dean and director until 1953.

What honors did W. L. Blizzard receive?

He was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in 1958 and into the American Angus Association's Angus Heritage Foundation in 1983.

What is Blizzard known for?

He is known for building Oklahoma A&M's livestock program, selecting herd sires, coaching national championship livestock teams and promoting superior animals through 4-H and FFA shows.

Sources and further reading

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

More from the hall