Graham Stratford

Last updated

Graham Douglas Stratford (died 2019) [1] was an English farmer, local politician and agriculturist from Alton, Hampshire. He was an international breeder of pedigree Hereford cattle, and was the first Town Mayor of the Alton Town Council.

Originally a successful agricultural auctioneer, Stratford began farming in 1979 (after claiming four Hereford heifers abandoned at his auction), and progressed to full-time farming in 1987. He was called "non-traditional" in his approach, and "dedicated to breed improvement," pioneering the cross-breeding of English cattle with Canadian stock. [2]

He was chair of the World Hereford Council for six years, was president of the Hereford Breed Society (now Hereford Cattle Society) in 1996, [3] and was awarded the Bromham Cup by its subsidiary the South of England Hereford Breeders Association for best herd in 1994, 1995, 1999 and 2006, in which year he also won best individual stock bull. [4] [5] In 2008 he continued his international work to develop the breed by successfully arranging the sale of a large consignment of Canadian-influenced English Hereford stock to Dutch breeders. [6] [7]

Stratford attended Churcher's College in Petersfield (graduating 1948) [8] and went on to National service in the 1950s as second lieutenant (taking a posting in Singapore). [9] [10] He was a vice-president of the Alton RFC and a Master Mason. [11] [12]

Throughout his career he held an active presence in the community, working often with local schools (especially in agricultural outreach programmes), [13] sponsoring the Alresford Show, [14] and serving repeatedly as a local politician. Stratford was a former Chairman of the old Alton Urban District Council, served as the first Town Mayor of the newly formed Alton Town Council in 1974, and regularly sat as a Councillor for both bodies. [15] [16] [17] [18]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Texas Longhorn</span> American breed of cattle

The Texas Longhorn is an breed of beef cattle, characterized by its long horns, which can span more than 8 ft (2.4 m) from tip to tip. It derives from cattle brought from the Iberian Peninsula to the Americas by Spanish conquistadores from the time of the Second Voyage of Christopher Columbus until about 1512. For hundreds of years the cattle lived a semi-feral existence on the rangelands; they have a higher tolerance of heat and drought than most European breeds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aberdeen Angus</span> Scottish breed of beef cattle

The Aberdeen Angus, sometimes simply Angus, is a Scottish breed of small beef cattle. It derives from cattle native to the counties of Aberdeen, Banff, Kincardine and Angus in north-eastern Scotland. In 2018 the breed accounted for over 17% of the UK beef industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alton, Hampshire</span> Human settlement in England

Alton is a market town and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England, near the source of the River Wey. It had a population of 17,816 at the 2011 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hereford cattle</span> British beef cattle breed

The Hereford is a British breed of beef cattle originally from Herefordshire in the West Midlands of England. It has spread to many countries – there are more than five million purebred Hereford cattle in over fifty nations worldwide. The breed was first exported from Britain in 1817, initially to Kentucky. It spread across the United States and Canada, through Mexico, to the great beef-raising countries of South America. Today Herefords dominate from Australasia to the Russian steppes, including Israel, Japan, continental Europe and Scandinavia, temperate parts of Australia, Canada, the United States, Kazakhstan and Russia, the centre and east of Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, and New Zealand, where they make up the largest proportion of registered cattle. They are found all over Brazil and in some Southern African countries, notably South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holstein Friesian</span> Breed of dairy cattle

The Holstein Friesian is an international breed or group of breeds of dairy cattle. It originated in the Dutch provinces of North Holland and Friesland and in Schleswig-Holstein in northern Germany. It is the dominant breed in industrial dairy farming worldwide, and is found in more than 160 countries. It is known by many names, among them Holstein, Friesian and Black and White.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Brahman</span> American breed of indicine cattle

The Brahman is an American breed of zebuine-taurine hybrid beef cattle. It was bred in the United States from 1885 from cattle originating in India, imported at various times from the United Kingdom, from India and from Brazil. These were mainly Gir, Guzerá and Nelore stock, with some Indu-Brasil, Krishna Valley and Ongole. The Brahman has a high tolerance of heat, sunlight and humidity, and good resistance to parasites. It has been exported to many countries, particularly in the tropics; in Australia it is the most numerous breed of cattle. It has been used in the creation of numerous taurine-indicine hybrids, some of which – such as the Brangus and Brahmousin – are established as separate breeds.

Breed clubs are associations or clubs with activities centered on a single, specific breed of a particular species of domesticated animal. The purpose of the association will vary with the species of animal and the goals and needs of the members of the association. Breed associations or clubs may vary in their goals, activities and nomenclature from country to country, even for the same breed. Most domesticated animals, whether they are agricultural animals such as cattle, llamas, poultry, sheep and pigs, or companion animals such as pigeons, horses, cats and dogs, have breed clubs associated with the breed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Angus</span> Breed of beef cattle

The Red Angus is an international breed of beef cattle characterised by a reddish-brown coat colour. It derives from the Scottish Aberdeen Angus population and, apart from the coat colour, is identical to it. Red Angus are registered separately from black Angus cattle in Australia, Canada, and the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Sparks (Nevada politician)</span> American politician

John Sparks was an American politician. He was the tenth Governor of Nevada, and was nicknamed Honest John. Like his predecessor, Reinhold Sadler, Sparks was a cattleman and his rise to political power was evidence of the decline of the mining industry and the rise of the ranching industry in Nevada. He was a member of the Silver – Democratic Party. In 1958, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afrikaner cattle</span> Breed of cattle

The Afrikaner, also known as the Africander, is a breed of taurine-indicine ("Sanga") cattle indigenous to South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Limousin cattle</span> French breed of cattle

The Limousin, French: Limousine, is a French breed of beef cattle from the Limousin and Marche regions of France. It was formerly used mainly as a draught animal, but in modern times is reared for beef. A herd-book was established in France in 1886. With the mechanisation of agriculture in the twentieth century, numbers declined. In the 1960s there were still more than 250 000 head, but the future of the breed was not clear; it was proposed that it be merged with the other blonde draught breeds of south-western France – the Blonde des Pyrénées, the Blonde de Quercy and the Garonnaise – to form the new Blonde d'Aquitaine. Instead, a breeders' association was formed; new importance was given to extensive management, to performance recording and to exports. In the twenty-first century the Limousin is the second-most numerous beef breed in France after the Charolais. It is a world breed, raised in about eighty countries round the world, many of which have breed associations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog</span> Dog breed

The Australian Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog or Stumpy is a naturally bobtailed or tailless, medium-sized cattle dog similar and/or related to the Australian Cattle Dog which is commonly referred to as a “Heeler”, whereas, the Stumpy is not. The Australian Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog was developed in Australia to herd cattle, and descends from crosses between European herding dogs and the Australian dingo. The name is spelled both with hyphenation, and without, and while the shorter name Stumpy is sometimes applied, the name Heeler most often refers to the Australian Cattle Dog.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chianina</span> Breed of cattle

The Chianina is an Italian breed of large white cattle. It was formerly principally a draught breed; it is now raised mainly for beef. It is the largest and one of the oldest cattle breeds in the world. The bistecca alla fiorentina is produced from its meat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glamorgan cattle</span> Breed of cattle

Glamorgan Cattle are a rare British cattle breed. Once common in the counties of Glamorgan, Monmouth, and Brecon, the breed was thought to have died out, until a remnant herd was found in the 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shetland cattle</span> Breed of cattle

The Shetland, known natively in the Scots language as Shetland kye is a small, hardy Scottish breed of cattle from the Shetland Islands to the north of mainland Scotland. The cattle are normally black and white in colour but there are smaller numbers in grey, red and dun.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pie Rouge des Plaines</span> Breed of cattle

The Pie Rouge des Plaines is a modern French breed of dairy cattle. It was created in about 1970 by cross-breeding the traditional Armorican cattle of Brittany, in north-western France, with red-pied cattle of the Dutch Meuse-Rhine-Yssel and German Deutsche Rotbunte breeds.

Thomas Duckham was an English farmer, cattle breeder and Liberal politician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hereford Hog</span> Breed of pig

The Hereford Hog or Hereford is an American breed of domestic pig. It is named for its color and pattern, which is similar to that of the Hereford breed of cattle: red with a white face.

The World Hereford Council is the international breeding authority on Hereford cattle, existing for the promotion of breed excellence and the cultivation of global trade in Hereford genetics. Originally based in England, at the Hereford Cattle Society, the Council was established in 1951 as a response to the increasingly widespread international export and breeding of Hereford cattle, and the need to maintain a global authority connecting Hereford cattle to the original English herd book.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alton Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Alton, Hampshire, England

Alton Town Hall is a municipal building in the Market Square in Alton, Hampshire, England. The structure, which is the meeting place of Alton Town Council, is a Grade II listed building.

References

  1. "Graham Stratford | Deceased Estates | the Gazette".
  2. Duckworth, Barbara. British Producer Draws from Canadian Well, The Western Producer. 9 November 2000
  3. Farm-School Link Forged... Farmers Weekly 22 August 1997
  4. Padfield, Emily. Winner of 2006 South of England Hereford Breeders Herd Competition Announced Archived 25 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine Farmers' Weekly. 31 July 2006
  5. Bromham Cup Winners Records, South of England Hereford Breeders Association
  6. Lawrence, Christina. Herefords go Dutch Farmers' Weekly. 9 February 2008
  7. Farmers Guardian. Consignment of pure Hereford cattle sold to Netherlands. 15 February 2008
  8. Churcher's College Old Churcherians Spring 2015. p.27
  9. The Straits Times, Nurse Marries Officer.16 January 1955, Page 13
  10. The London Gazette. National Service List 22 July 1955. p.4221
  11. Alton R.F.C. Life Vps
  12. Sutherland, Mark. Happy 275th Archived 25 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine , Freemasonry Today. 1 March 2009
  13. Archive Article: 1997/08/22 Farmers Weekly 22 August 1997
  14. The Alresford Show. Show Sponsors Archived 25 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine , 2015
  15. Alton Town Council. Minutes of the Annual Town Meeting Archived 25 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine , 22 May 1975
  16. Alton Town Council. Minutes of the Annual Town Meeting Archived 25 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine , 31 March 1977
  17. Alton Town Council. Minutes of the Annual Town Meeting Archived 25 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine , 28 March 1985
  18. The Alton Society. Business Plan 2012–15 – the Alton Society: "The Society might wish to register the key roles played in these negotiations by the late Ewart Ings, the last Clerk to the AUDC, and the then Cllr. Graham Stratford, a former AUDC chairman, later Alton's first Town Mayor." p. 8, footnote 2. (2012)