George Knight, Jr., Memory Honored By York Holstein Club * JOYCE BUPP York Co. Correspondent THOMAS VILLE (Yoik Co.) —The late George M. Knight, Jr., is the newest induction into the York County Holstein Hall of Fame. The honor was awarded to the Knight family during the asso ciation’s annual meeting and din ner, held December 12 at the Thomasville Fire Company hall. Featured on the program was a tribute to the late Holstein breeder by Dr. Alan McCauley, Elizabeth town veterinarian, along with a slide show highlighting the Knight family and some of their best known Woodbine animals. George M. Knight, Jr., was a Harford County, Maryland, na tive, son of a family of Guernsey breeders. He began showing cattle at an early age, an avocation that would continue throughout his life. In November 1954, he mar ried Priscilla Day, a childhood friend. Two months later, the Priscilla Knight, light, accepted for the Knight family an engraved tray marking the induction of the late George M. Knight, Jr., Into the York Holstein Hall of Fame. Cindy Knight Hall and Paul Knight display one of the mementos of the family’s cattle breeding accomplishments, a portrait of Northcroft Ella Elevation and her Gold Duster son. Recipients of the York Holstein club's junior production awards Included, from left, front, Cory Thompson and An gle Beshore, and back, Michelle, Brad and Greg Walker. Holstein meeting were awarded to cousins, from left, Jus tin Hall, Chiistl Knight and Shane Hall. Knight dairy bam was leveled by fire, which also destroyed 78 head of the milking cattle and ended the era of Guernseys at the family farm. In 1959, George and Priscilla purchased Woodbine Farms in southern York County, along with the highly-regarded registered Holstein herd bred and developed by owner John Murphy. From that herd, Knight bred Woodbine Ivan hoc Mollie, the first EX-97 classi fied cow in the state and the first 97-point bred-and-owned indivi duals in the. nation. Her ac complishments and sought-after sons brought buyers and visitors from around the world to the southern York County herd. Woodbine’s Osbomdale Ivan hoc daughters put the farm to the forefront of the Holstein breed and won numerous stale and national show championships, and All- American honors, in the late 1960 s and early 19705. At one Among the members of the George M. Knight, Jr. family attending his posthumous induction Into the York Holstein Hall of Fame are, from left, front, Trisha Knight, Shane Hall, Priscilla Knight and Cindy Hall, and back, Paul Knight, Justin Hall and Christ! Knight. Absent from the photo were the families of James and George Knight 111. time, the herd included as many as 60 of the famed Ivanhoes and claimed several consecutive years of get-of-sire honors on the show circuit The herd truly gained interna tional fame after Knight’s acquisi tion in 1976 of Northcroft Ella Elevation, a two-year-old pur chased at the Wintercrest sale in New York. Though she nearly died from a displaced abomasum after calving, several months of tender loving care nursed her back to health and onto a long career of outstanding show and genetic ac complishments. As the highlight of her show career. Ella was named Supreme Champion of the Central National Show in 1980, later was classified EX-97 and ultimately named All- Time All-American Aged Cow. In 1981, the Knights sold half-inter est in Ella to Romandale Farms of Canada, though she remained housed at Woodbine. Following her tremendous accomplishments, Ella was retired from show travels and enjoyed her own barn at Woodbine, providing a source of embryo genetics for the breed. Ella produced 124 offspring and her 75 sons have transmitted the cow family’s influence around the globe. Her production records were equally impressive, with lac tations over 48,000 pounds milk and 1100 fat, and averaging over her lifetime a daily production of 100 pounds of milk. George Knight, Jr., died in March 1985 of lung cancer. Woodbine Farms continues to operate under the management of Priscilla and their four children. Sons George m, Paul and James are all employed full time, while daughter Cindy Knight Hall helps part time with the milking and cat tle records. Several of the seven Knight grandchildren are active dairy 4-H participants and con tinue to keep the Woodbine cattle showing tradition alive and suc cessful. York County junior Holstein club members were honored dur ing the program for 305-day lacta tion production accomplishments by their cattle. Two-year-old cow honors were split by Michelle Walker, Thomasville, and Angie Beshore, New Cumberland. Mi chelle’s Walk-Le Signal Buffy was high for fat and protein with a first-lactation of 24,317 milk, 923 fat and 772 protein. Angie’s Be shore Adan Juniper-ET took the honors in milk production with 24,511 milk, 856 fat and 731 pro tein. Greg Walker, Thomasville, swept the three-year-old class with his Walk-Le KG Misty, fin ishing with 26,291 milk, 871 fat and 764 protein. His brother. Brad Walker, repeated the sweep in the four-year-old category with Strawberry-Acres EDQM Kelly and a lactation of 28,312 millk, 969 fat and 916 protein. In the five-year-old category, fat and protein honors went to Coredale Logic Cory Dimples, owned by Cray Thompson, Wells ville, wrapping up a lactation with 30,527 milk, 1076 fat and 1018 protein. High milk production five-year-old was Coldspring Unity Ashley, owned by Greg Walker, finishing with 30,861 milk, 910 fat and 910 protein. Additional recognition went to Greg Walker for 30,000 records completed on two animals. Walk- Le How-El Sandy-Twin com pleted a 5-03 record with 31,529 milk, 860 fat and 935 protein, while Walk-Le KQ Misty com pleted a full lactation at 3-01 with 30,761 milk, 1019 fat and 894 pro tein. Junior progressive breeder Advanced Computer Record Keeping Class Offered FREDERICK, Md. - The University of Maryland Cooperative Extension Service, Frederick County office, will be conducting a workshop on the advanced uses of the Quicken program for farm business com puter record keeping from 6:30 p.m. until 9 p.m. Mondays Jan. 12 at Frederick Community College. Cost for the workshop is $l5 per farm or business (up to two people per computer). recognition went to both Brad and Michelle Walker for production and type achievements on animals they bred. Christi Knight, Airville, was named county winner, and Justin and Shane Hall, Airville, were both honored, for their com pilations of distinguished junior member recordbooks. Several of the club’s youth members were recognized as 1997 Junior All-Pennsylvania winners. Named All-Pennsylvania spring yearling was JCY April Starfouck- ET, owned by Amy Trimmer, East Berlin. Daphne Doll, Glen Rock, received the reserve All-Pennsyl vania honor for her senior three year-old Dar-Dale Vanguard Val. Honorable mention All-Penn sylvania winners included Cory Thompson’s spring calf, Coredalc Broker Cutie, L & J Dandy Nina, owned by Kathlene Doll. Hanov er, Walk-Le Encore Amy, senior two-year-old owned by Greg Walker. Daphne Doll’s Dar-Dale Skybuck Melissa, a junior three year-old, and the senior three year-old Woodbine Elijah Vemia, owned by Christi Knight, Airville. Three new directors were elected to the county club’s board, each for a three-year term. Elected to those positions were Dan Hush on, Delta, Brad Walker, Thomas viUe, and Jenelle Boyer, Glen Rock. They replace retiring direc tors Tom Taylor, Delta, Bridgetle Bortner, Seven Valleys, and Nor ma Lucabaugh, Spring Grove. Preregistration is requested by Monday Dec. 29, and checks should be made payable to Frederick County EAC and sent to Frederick County Extension Service, 330 Montevue Lane, Frederick, MD, 217,02., Participants are encouraged to bring a diskette containing their data if they want to ask specific questions related to their operation or program setup. For more information, call (301)694-1594 ext. 3578.
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