Ned Purtle

Ned Purtle was very involved in many areas of Arkansas Agriculture, especially those related to livestock. In the early 1950s, Mr. Purtle represented the Arkansas Livestock & Poultry Commission at a meeting with USDA officials and was successful in getting an agreement for Arkansas to become the first state to have an “on the farm” calf vaccination program. Mr. Purtle was later credited with the idea of testing all adult cows at sales barns and packing plants. He successfully negotiated a Lease Purchase Agreement for a 1,000-acre tract of land east of Hope for the University of Arkansas. This 1,000 acres has been used by the University for research on beef cattle, forestry, foliage crops, field crops and other projects.