Instrumental in the advancement of American Herefords.
1901-1996 | Artist: Thomas Embert (“Tom”) Phillips (1927-2005)
Impact & Accomplishments
William “Bill” Adams was born in Odebolt, Iowa, and earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1933.
Under the business name Adams Brothers & Company, Adams operated his family’s farm—the largest in Iowa. Historically a grain farm, Bill Adams expanded the Hereford herd on Adams Farm (also known as Fairview) in 1946. In 1963, he moved the operation to Kilgore, Nebraska.
Adams served as director of the Iowa Hereford Association, the American Hereford Association, and the International Live Stock Exposition (1960-1974).
Did You Know?
The Adams farm was an example of a “Bonanza farm”. This term is a term associated with large-scale agriculture, especially in North Dakota and the Red River Valley. In the late 1800s, there were more than 100 of bonanza farms from the Dakotas to the Canadian border, with most in North Dakota and some in Minnesota.
Photo courtesy of The Adams Ranch Story 1872 - 1964 compiled by Sandra Kessler Host. For ordering information click here.
When Adams moved his cattle ranch in 1963 to the Nebraska-South Dakota border northwest of Valentine, Neb. the land had been owned by the St. Francis Mission for 77 years and the sale had to be approved by the Vatican.