Wow…it’s been a busy month of November.  I’ve had to transition from Livestock Auctioneer to Antique Auctioneer back to Livestock, to Ranch Equipment to Real Estate and back to Livestock all in a 3 weeks time! 

Following the Burlington Quarterfinal, we held a large 2-day Western Memorabilia auction.  The merchandise was owned by Leonard and Spunky Llewellyn of Martinsdale, MT, and included an original Charles M. Russell letter, a book signed by General George Custer, 12 Bob Scriver bronzes, original western art and many one-of-a-kind historical items.  Cary Aasness, 2005 International Auctioneer Champion from Dalton, Minnesota, and his wife Anita, lent us a hand for the weekend.  It turned out to be a phenomenal couple of days with over 500 registered bidders; everything sold very well.  Beyond the monetary aspect though, the auction was one of the most memorable experiences of my life.  To stand in the presence of four simple pieces of paper, knowing that Charlie Russell himself penned the script, sketch and signature, was absolutely incredible.  The Custer book came out of his personal library at Fort Lincoln, Dakota and was signed in pencil with several marks throughout the book where Custer, in his genuine arrogance, corrected the author’s grammar.   Most importantly, we became very good friends with some people we may have never met, had it not been for the auction business. 

Leonard was born and raised in the small rural community of Martinsdale.  He went on to fly over 150 air combat missions in Vietnam and then piloted Air Force One for Presidents Kennedy and Johnson.  He was literally a living book of  U.S. and western history and quite willing to share the knowledge he had gained in his years of life.  He’s also proof that no matter where we come from, anything is achievable!  Leonard passed away one week following the auction, but we all will cherish the relationship we had with him forever.

The following week we had a large ranch equipment and hay auction, just an hour south of us in Harlowton for the historical Muir Ranch.  The ranch sold recently and this was a liquidation of the equipment and 700 ton of hay.  We got lucky on the weather and had a beautiful day for the auction.  It only warmed up to about 25 degrees, but there was little wind and we had over 300 buyers registered for the sale.  There was plenty of interest in the tractors, feed pickups and Haybusters and again, everything sold very well including the hay, which averaged $57/ton for straight grass. (Considering the fact that hay is in abundant supply in central Montana this year!)

That is a brief update of my most recent endeavors.  From here on out I should have a little more free time to update more frequently.  I apologize for the gap in my posts.  Until we meet again, Happy Thanksgiving and God Bless!