2017 Cowboy Hall of Fame Banquet

Silver Concho Award - Congressman Steve Pearce
Outstanding Ranchers - Jeff & Jenna Decker

Working Cowboy - Chance Gainer

Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame Inductees

• Bennett Jackson Caudill (b. February 2, 1890 – d. April 1, 1972)

Born in Monkstown, Texas, Bennett Jackson “B.J.” Caudill moved to Lea County in 1930 where he established and operated the first feed store in Hobbs, the Derrick Feed Store (a subsidiary of Red Chain Feed in Ft. Worth).  B.J. and his wife, Etta Dee Phillips Caudill had six daughters:  Katherine Brothers, Geraldine Kersey, Mildred Carter, Daphna Williams, Gladys Jelinek, and Bennetta Holdridge.  From these six daughters came numerous grandchildren, one of which is the conductor of the Southwest Symphony, Mark Jelinek.  

The Caudill’s were devout members of the First Baptist Church in Hobbs.  Ben served as deacon and taught teenage boys in his Sunday school class. Having no sons, he unofficially “adopted” some of his students.  A few notable examples are William Brock, Dr. Williams Stone, and Kenny Shelton.  B. J. served on the Hobbs City Council for 8 years.  His appointment to the Buildings Committee yielded such prominent structures as the Hobbs City Hall (current police station) and the Hobbs Public Library. B.J. was also a proud member of the Masons.

            Caudilll contributed greatly to the ranching industry in Lea County through his livestock feed service.  When he arrived in Hobbs, there were no feed stores, and ranchers had to travel great distances (Midland, Clovis, and Seagraves) to procure livestock provisions. This created a substantial overhead for Lea County ranchers, not to mention the travel time involved.  B.J. would drive to Seagraves, Texas and bring back feed, delivering it directly to the ranches.  This service saved area ranchers a great deal of money and time.  Many of the ranchers (many are Hall of Fame inductees) were able to establish successful ranches, and many became the most prominent names in Lea County ranching.  Eventually, he did open a feed store in Hobbs after securing a building.  

B.J.’s ranching career was born by his generous payment terms that he offered area residents.  Some of them even paid with cattle, horses, eggs, and other miscellaneous items.  B.J.  had a secret shoebox (hidden from Etta Dee) of I. O. U’s.  Many of the prominent ranchers and 4H students had slips in the box – some paid and some did not. He said he never lost money with this generous system.

            

B.J. established several ranches in Lea County as a result of accepting livestock as payment as well as his own purchases.  A couple of them are still in existence. One is located near the Texas state line (Seminole Highway) and is still occupied by family members.  Another one of his prominent ranches, the 7K Ranch, is located south of Hobbs near the Prairie Haven Cemetery.  Part of the Hobbs Army Air Base belonged to B.J.  He also had a ranch near Monument.

                        

After retiring from Lea County ranching in 1941, B.J. became bored and volunteered to refuel B-17s at the Hobbs Army Air Base at night.  Eventually, B.J. moved to Odessa in 1947 and opened yet another Red Chain Feed Store and operated it until his final retirement in 1962.  B.J. returned to Hobbs in 1970 until his death in 1972.  B.J. and his family were always grateful for the opportunities Lea County offered them and for the many friends they made here through the years. 

• Jerry B. Clayton (b. March 3, 1901 - d. July 9, 1984)

Jerry B. Clayton was born March 3, 1901 in Lubbock, TX to R.M. and Josephine Roy Clayton.  He moved with his family to the Muleshoe Ranch in Borden Co., TX at the age of 12.  R.M. along with his partner, W.D. Johnson, acquired the Borden Co. ranch in 1913.  Jerry lived there until he was 19 at which time he became a cowboy at the U Bar Ranch at Hachita, NM.  He became wagon boss on that ranch at 21.

Jerry married the former Mary Dickinson in 1924.  It is said that shortly before the wedding Clayton sent Mary a wire saying: “Am shipping cattle; Stop; Will make wedding if can; Stop; Jerry.  He made it.  They bought their own place out of Silver City, NM in 1927 where they ranched until January 1938.  At that time, the Claytons moved to the Jornado del Muerte out of Las Cruces, NM.  In 1939, Mr. Clayton leased a ranch at Caprock, NM and moved his family to Rowell, NM.  Around 1943, Clayton bought the old McClure place at Lovington, NM.  After Mary’s death in 1956, Clayton married Daisy Chambers in 1959.  They ranched the old McClure place until Clayton’s death in 1984.

Clayton was an outstanding figure among the cattlemen and ranchers of New Mexico.  His greatest satisfaction came from improvements, whether in conservation, irrigation, or in the quality of his stock.  Clayton was a member of the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association.  Clayton was honored for his outstanding achievements in the ranching industry in 1979 by being named the Cattleman of the Year.  He served on the Foreign Trade Commission of the New Mexico Association.  Clayton also served as a Director of the Liberty National Bank.

• Mathias Willhoit (b. December 30, 1863 - d. September 18, 1952)

Mathais Willhoit was born on December 30, 1863, in Floyd County, Texas, near what is now known as the town of Floydada.  Growing up on the plains of West Texas, Mathias spend his days helping his parents establish and expand their land holdings and fledgling cattle business.  He and Christian Elizabeth Yates were married and that union spanned a lifetime, surviving good times and bad, prosperity and destitution, joy and sorrow.  The union would produce eight children, seven of whom survived to adulthood.  Those surviving children were Van Otto, Frank, Floyd, Ky, Brownie, Gladys and Lottie.

In 1905, the Willhoit family set out to seek their fortune.  Loading up the family’s covered wagon with supplies, they struck out across the plains.  Christian drove the wagon, and Mathias followed, bringing along their two horses, a few head of cattle, and some very large dreams.  It was not an easy trip.  At one point the lack of food became a major concern. Supplies were low, but the hardy pioneer family survived by harvesting and cooking mesquite beans.  To combat the resulting “scours” (more commonly known as diarrhea), Mrs. Willhoit created a concoction of flour and water which worked to end the affliction.

Eventually crossing into New Mexico Territory, the family staked claim to 160 acres west of what is now the Knowles community.  As time passed, the ranching family holdings grew to encompass 16 sections of land and a large herd of cattle.  The rosy future was interrupted by the droughts of 1916, 1917 and the great blizzard of 1918.  As the Willhoit’s struggled to keep their ranch together, the family received word that Van Otto, Mathias’ and Christian’s eldest son was killed in France, only six days before the Armistice ending WWI.  He is buried in Flander’s Field in France.

Still the pioneer family carried on.  Battling the winds, the lack of water, numerous small and large-scale disasters, they endured.  Never losing their faith, holding on to the strong beliefs and family values that had sustained them thus far, they endured.  Then, in 1929, the final blow to the ranching dream fell.  As the Great Depression swept the nation, cattle prices were at an all-time low.  Bank loans were non-existent.  With very few cattle left and no bull for breeding, Mathias was forced to make a life-altering decision.  Having located a bull for sale in Carlsbad, he put his land up as collateral again the price of the bull, never dreaming the unthinkable disaster would strike.  The morning Mathias returned with the bull, a white-face Hereford, the future of the ranch, was found dead in the pasture.

And so, it was, after 20 years of ranching, the Willhoit family once again packed all they owned and headed out, this time the fates leading them to the small community of Lovington.  Mathias built the couple’s new home himself, following the self-imposed guideline of “lots and lots of nails.”  It was at this time Mathias entered his new career in law enforcement becoming a deputy to Sheriff Sam Cain. He would also take on the responsibility of being the local jailer.  Christian opened and ran a small café known as “The White Way,” also providing meals to the prisoners in her husband’s jail.

Willhoit’s dedication to his job was legendary among the law enforcement community.  Once, when a Hobbs resident had been arrested and was accused of a heinous crime, Willhoit and Sheriff Cain transported the man to a place outside of Plains Texas before an angry lynch mob could gather at the jail.  While Mathias and the Sheriff moved the accused, Mrs. Willhoit was left to tend the jail.  When the mob, with torches and ropes, demanded justice, Mrs. Willhoit stood her ground, agreeing to allow three of the mob inside the jail to ascertain that the accused was indeed gone.  Her method of diffusing the situation was exemplary even by today’s standards and she stands tall as a strong and just helpmate for a strong and just man.  

Another incident involved two notorious cattle rustlers who shot at Willhoit and the sheriff, hitting the sheriff’s belt buckle but leaving both men unharmed.  Willhoit and Cain pursued the outlaws, with the lawmen in pursuit, the rustlers fled the region to avoid hanging and were never heard from again.

After a full, multi-faceted, and rewarding life, Mathias Willhoit died in 1952, at the age of 89.  Husband, father, rancher, lawman, he left behind a legacy of godliness, truthfulness, hard work, and dedication.