Felix William Renick
RENICK, FELIX WILLIAM (1770–1848), inducted circa 1903
Artist: Ernest Sigmund Klempner (1867–1941)
RENICK, GEORGE WILLIAM (1776–1863), inducted circa 1903
Artist: Robert Wadsworth Grafton (1876–1936)
The Renick brothers—George and Felix—were true pioneers, establishing some of the first cattle operations on the western frontier. They moved from (West) Virginia to the Scioto River valley in Ohio in 1797 and 1798, to raise corn and feed cattle. A dry goods business was their back-up plan, if needed. By 1802, they had acquired their first purebred English Longhorn cattle. A few years later, George was credited with leading the first overland cattle drive to a major eastern city from the western frontier, through the Appalachian Mountains. The cattle drive was a success and led to regular overland drives from Ohio to Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York. In 1833, Felix organized about fifty shareholders to form the Ohio Company for Importing English Cattle, and he led investors to England, where they selected cattle to import. The resulting 1836 sale at Felix’s Indian Creek Farm helped establish the Shorthorn breed in America. Renick descendants in Ohio and Kentucky continued the famed Rose of Sharon line. An interesting historical aside: George Renick’s Paint Hill Farm, in Ross County, is an Ohio Underground Railroad Historical site, acknowledging the family’s efforts to shelter individuals fleeing slavery.
Source: Saddle & Sirloin Guidebook 2026, p. 165