I have mentioned or talked at great length on several of these topics but I would be greatly at remiss if I didn’t go into some detail. We raised cattle and hogs mainly. There was a time dad and I went into the sheep business for a few years and I have told of mom and I being partners in the poultry business. (Mom sold out while the market was at its best.) As a very young boy dad had milk cows but by the time I was involved in the operation of our farm we had gone strictly to beef cattle and we raised swine from 30 pounders to 210 pounds or shipping weight. We raised a good many head each year and were turning a nice profit. But I have left out quite possibly the most important part of this operation and that was who supplied us the animals to raise in the first place. My dad could travel the area and buy and sell on his own a little but in the early 60s my sister Peg was teaching at Felicity school and one evening told Dad that another teacher by the name of Jaunita Taulbe had said her husband was now in the livestock business and Peg thought Dad might give him a try. So we connected with that man and that man only who from then on supplied us and also hauled to market all our animals. That was Weldon Taulbee. Weldon was a jack of all trades man who I doubt anyone could was a better judge of livestock than he was, at least in my neck of the woods.
Weldon farmed and raised a little tobacco and custom baled hay for many farmers and as time passed by became the majority of the farmer’s representative at the stock yards who was given the complete freedom to buy or sell, as he knew their buying limit and would never allow a customer to get burned on a sale.
Since I was a young boy with literally no background in the trading of livestock, finding this man who not only had the ability to deal but also was known as maybe the most honest man in the countryside was a huge relief. I can’t tell you how many times Weldon would contact me to stop by his house and he would show me cattle he had bought that day. He then would show me the sale bill and what he paid for them and offer them to me for two dollars a head more.
I have never seen another cattle trader do that and I also knew that when it was time to sell them he would be the man to haul them and of course he got paid then. Never did I see a down side to dealing with Weldon. He was as honest as the day was long.
Along with farming and livestock trading Weldon was a Franklin Township Trustee for over twenty years and he and my dad served in their respective townships. Again, Weldon showed his integrity and eagerness to work to help Franklin Township be a better place to live in. I doubt there was a person in that township who didn’t know his name or reputation. In the late summer he could always be found at the Clermont County Fair at the livestock barns but no more noticeable than the day the animals were sold. He would line up probably the majority of the bidders and help the 4H kids collect as large of a sale possible for each child’s animal. He worked tirelessly for this cause because he just wanted to see the kids do better than OK, he wanted them to do great. He was in the church and the Businessmens’ Association and every other group that would help better the area.
He eventually became the regional sales manager for beef for the Producers Stock Yards in Hillsboro. So it is safe to say many more farmers learned his name and reputation. With all the credentials he continued to add I can say I never questioned the purchase or sale of one head of livestock transacted by Weldon. So if I look at the other suppliers we used and lay out their attributes this page would be never ending as almost all were good honest men. I learned early from my dad that if you became doubtful about a person it was time to look around and find another.
In 1988 Sharon and I bought a new home and in April we moved into that home. I didn’t own a truck to move with and really didn’t have any help to move us. With literally no options left I went to Weldon and ask for the loan of his truck. He of course said sure and keep it as long as you need it. Moving went slow, as I said I really didn’t have help and I ended up keeping his truck close to three weeks. Whenever I would run into him I would mention it and he said he didn’t need it and don’t worry. One Saturday morning a knock came to the door and it was Weldon and he ask if he could borrow the truck. I said why of course you can. “By the way Weldon you might want to think about buying one of these” to which he laughed and returned it about noon and told me he had filled the gas tank for me. It is very safe to say our farm ran so much smoother with Weldon Taulbee being a major part in our operation.
Rick Houser grew up on a farm near Moscow in Clermont County and loves to tell stories about his youth and other topics. He may be reached at houser734@yahoo.com.