Cowboys and Quarter Horse breeders have lost one of their very own
World renowned Quarter Horse breeder, always first a cowboy, Duane W. Walker, 87, passed away July 24, 2023, at his ranch near Canton.
Duane was born on December 18, 1935, at his Ellsworth County home in Carneiro to Raymond C. and Evelyn Mae (Sheridan) Walker.
One of 14 children, Duane acquired his love for horses from his father who worked as a ranch hand on the Fortner and CK Ranches at Brookville.
Duane met the love of his life, Arva Jo Janssen of Lorraine, at the Ellsworth County 4-H Fair in the summer of 1952. He didn’t see her again until later that year when he heard on the radio that she was in the hospital with polio.
Even though Jo was in isolation, Duane was determined to see her and decided to sneak in, with the help of the mail clerk, who was delivering get well cards. They were married on April 10, 1954, and remained inseparable for nearly 70 years.
The Walkers moved to Canton in 1958, where Duane was the manager of the Canton Grain Elevator for more than 40 years.
His passion for horses led him to purchase the gray stallion named Jackie Bee from a local horseman, which would change the course of Duane’s life.
His Tee Jay Quarter Horses, became a world renowned, breeding program, producing numerous American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) world champions, in multiple categories.
In 2008, Duane and Jackie Bee were both inducted separately into the AQHA Hall of Fame.
In addition to the AQHA, Duane was a member and leader of the Kansas Quarter Horse Association and the Kansas Livestock Association. He served as a trustee for the Canton Community Church and board member of Canton Township.
In 1999, Duane was named Stockman of the Year by the Livestock and Meat Industry Council at Kansas State University in Manhattan. He also was inducted into the Kansas Cowboy Hall of Fame at Dodge City in 2009.
Just a few weeks ago, Duane and Jo were honored at the ground-breaking for a new Animal Science Arena in their name at Kansas State University.
Among their many clients, Duane and Jackie Bee were an integral part of football star player Terry Bradshaw’s Quarter Horse operation for nearly 40 years. Duane considered Bradshaw a friend, colleague, and business partner with mutual admiration of Jackie Bee horses.
Also, among Duane’s nationwide friends and Jackie Bee fans and customers was world champion saddle bronc rider Bill Smith.
Affectionately referred to as “Gramps” by his family, Duane is survived by his wife Jo, and their four children, five grandchildren, and seven great grandchildren.
The funeral was July 29th, 2023, at The Countryside Covenant Church in McPherson with Terry Bradshaw as a eulogist. It can be viewed online https://boxcast.tv/view/funeral-fbaokgjjo35ktes6ajym…
Memorials for the following can be sent in care of Olson’s Mortuary Canton: The Canton Community Church or the Duane Walker K-State Animal Science Arena at Manhattan.
Duane Walker returned to the horse business in 1964, when his oldest son, Tim, needed a 4-H horse. Duane purchased Frosty Money for $300 and the Tee Jay Ranch, named after Tim and Jo, was formed.
Frosty Money went on to win multiple national championships and Duane sold her for $10,000 in 1967.
Later that year, Duane purchased Jackie Bee who that would become kingpin of the Tee Jay operation,
In the 1972 Kansas Quarter Horse Breeders Futurity, Jackie Bee’s foals won more than 50 percent of the purse paid in the halter classes. In five classes, his get won four firsts, one second, one third, and three fourth places.
“If Jackie Bee had been a man instead of a horse, he’d have been the kind of man you’d like to partner up with. The kind of man you’d be proud to call a friend,” Duane said of the horse he shared 23 years of life with.
Foaled in 1962, the gray stallion was sired by Jimmy Mac Bee by Sonny Day Bee and out of a Jack R mare named Jackie Diane. He stood 15.2 hands and weighed about 1,300 pounds at maturity.
Duane and Jackie Bee, with the help of outstanding foundation Quarter Horse mares, started a new family of Quarter Horses that were unique in their look and consistent in their size, structure, muscling, and color.
Duane saw the colt on the day he was born and made several offers to buy him but was turned down for five years. By the time Duane purchased Jackie Bee, the stallion was past the age for a halter career, but Duane was convinced the big gray was just the horse he needed to take his breeding program to the next level.
“We never won any halter classes with Jackie, but we did accomplish what we set out to do. We wanted to get him out before the public,” Duane said. “They liked him, they bred to him, and they bought his foals, and that enabled us to build up our breeding program and stay in the horse business.”
From the early 1970s to the early 1980s, Jackie Bee foals became a fixture in the halter showring. In the 1980s, Jackie Bee foals were sought for their performance ability.
“Jackie liked people,” Duane said. “He’d come up to anyone, anywhere, to be petted and scratched.”
Jackie Bee’s legacy came to an end in October of 1990. After Jackie Bee’s death, at the age of 28, Duane buried him in front of the pen that had been his home for most of his life.
+++30+++
