Fifty years ago this month record numbers of weaner calves and horny bullocks were pouring into yards across the Richmond Valley under the proud banner of a combined agency sale, the likes of which this district had never seen.
The man behind those events was Kevin Clark, a young auctioneer, locally born and schooled, with flair, ambition and an eye for value.
The young man's zest for enterprise kept him on the move whether it was selling weaners in the dark at Woodenbong - the cattle illuminated by vehicle headlights - or on the phone convincing buyers in South Australia and Victoria to pay up front for weaner calves and plan a trip to Casino come autumn to collect them.
Mr Clark's vision involved a week of blue ribbon weaner sales, the first of their kind on the North Coast, that included agencies Smith Iverson at Urbenville and Woodenbong, with Ern Smith and Sons at Kyogle - agencies that eventually came under the control of Barnes and Clark.
"Prior to that a lot of producers sold privately out of the paddock," said Woodenbong grazier and agent Neil Reid, then employed by Smith Iverson.
He recalled Mr Clark's attitude when given a broom on his first day of work at Lance Nicholls' local agency. 'I didn't come here to sweep out', he told his new boss. It wasn't very long before the boy from Greenridge was in charge.
"Kevin was a wonderful auctioneer. If you're good enough at selling, buyers get confident. He had an instinct for the value of cattle and he had control over the job."
Recently retired State Member for Lismore, Thomas George, was a fresh faced kid of 22 at the time. Book skills already learned in the bank and with the McCormack family agency, in Casino, gave him a good grounding.
"I had no cattle experience - no rural upbringing but Brian Lewis from McCormacks taught me how to do the books - write down and remember it - phone numbers, prices. Those who had an ability never lost it."
One thing he never forgot was the drive shown by Kevin Clark.
"When you consider where Kevin came from, he was unreal," recalled Mr George. "He had a dream. He knew what he wanted."
He drove his vehicle like he pushed himself - hard and fast - and he was likely driving that way when it left the highway south of Casino about 2am, returning from an agents meeting at Grafton with four passengers snoozing in their seats. A tree stopped the whole show.
Did a blown tyre contribute to the accident? Newspapers of the day suggested that fact. Certainly no one wore seat belts. Mr Clark died instantly as did fellow Barnes and Clark agent Les Egan, who passed with his father-in-law Alastair McGregor - the only victim from outside the Casino agency, as he represented Reg Lehman at Kyogle.
Two others survived - with Bill Leeson dying in hospital one week later. Big John "Blue" Ellis took 12 months to come good. Ron Barnes, the older and wiser half of Barnes and Clark might have been in the vehicle except he had retired from the agency game, with bad pain in one eye.
Perhaps less has been said about those who picked up the pieces of the bustling business and carried on.
Terry McMahon, who actually missed a ride in the car by only a few minutes, was woken by the policeman Lloyd Timms who said to the upright man, "You better sit down." Then it was Mr McMahon's turn to bear the bad news.
By Monday morning a new team had assembled at the agency.
Ron Barnes, Mr Clark's original partner, pulled himself out of retirement to run the books while Mr McMahon took on the roll of outside boss. Marlene Landrigan had been on maternity leave, but returned with a pencil as sharp as her accuracy. That skill didn't prevent her being asked to clean coffee cups during the day or order beer on a Friday afternoon.
Two agents were brought in, including John Shelley, from Leeton, who made the transition easily, and a Victorian called Graham Egan.
Casino agent Arch Northam, recently retired from George and Fuhrmann, started working for Kevin Clark as a 16 year old. At the time Mr Clark sold cattle for his parents and saw potential in the youngster. In the two months that young Arch worked under Mr Clark he recalled one lickity split road trip with the boss over the Yabbra Range that left the passenger feeling all at sea. But his strongest memories remain for the man who took over the show, with an auctioneer's presence every bit as commanding as his predecessor and that was Terry McMahon.
"After the accident Terry really took the reins," he said. "All credit to him."
In the seasons that followed the agency hosted special store sales that attracted four and five thousand head, recalled former Woodenbong agent Neil Reid. "They became two days events and during the week of sales that included Tabulam and Kyogle, Woodebong and Urbenville there might have been 10,000 sold for the week, most of them weaners going to the southern states.
"They picked up and went with it. The community was supportive. They said 'if we get behind Terry he'll be right'."
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