Highland Cows: From Scotland to Clarno

In 1959 at age seven, I went to Clarno with my mom, Nedeau Chase, and her friends, Margaret Grabenhorst, Jean Jackson, and Mrs. Jamieson. Mrs. Jamieson was Margaret and Jean's mother, who came to the United States from West Kilbride, Scotland in 1911. The reason for the trip to Clarno on the John Day River was to see the Highland cattle that had recently arrived from Scotland. Of the five people making their way to Clarno that day, Mrs. Jamieson was the only one who had ever seen a Highland cow.

As I recall, we headed back toward the schoolhouse, which still stands, guided by a man who worked on the ranch. There were three of the "coos" with their shaggy ginger hair covering their faces.

While I wanted to write a story about them, that's as far as my knowledge about the Clarno Highlands went, but that changed a few weeks ago when I was standing in front of the Fossil Merc visiting with Cistie Shaffer. I knew Cistie's mom's family, the McRaes, lived at Clarno, so I asked if she knew anything about the Highland cattle. I was so excited when she said, "That was my grandpa's place!" and proceeded to tell me how the cattle made their way to America and Clarno.

Cistie's mom, Vera McCulloch, was the daughter of Donnie McRae. Donnie's sister, Catherine (Kay) Dillard lived at Clarno, and when the road from Antelope to Clarno was being built, she met a man in charge of the road project, Frank Dillard. After Kay and Frank married, it was her dream to add Highland cattle to their herd, and that meant a trip to Scotland.

So Katherine traveled to Scotland and returned with a Highland bull and two heifer yearlings. The bull's name was Corrieyairack (nicknamed Charlie) and he was entered in the Pacific International Livestock Show, probably in the early '60s, where he won grand champion.

I wasn't able to locate a photo of the Highlands, but again it was Cistie to the rescue. She contacted her aunt, Alison (McRae) Nidever, who found this photo in a big box of pictures that every home seems to have.

A couple of interesting footnotes to this story: Frank Dillard was Milt Boring's uncle. Milt is known to many of us as a teacher in Kinzua and principal in Fossil. The other note is that Cistie's WHS biology teacher, Dale Johnson, was traveling back to Fossil via Clarno one evening, just as it was getting dark. He reported to his class the next day that he thought he saw three mastedons at Clarno!