Artist: Richard Stewart Halstead (born 1947)
William H. “Bill” Rishel
RISHEL, WILLIAM H. (born 1945), inducted 2025
Born and educated in Pennsylvania, Bill Rishel found early success with 4-H beef projects, achieved an impressive livestock judging record, and completed a master’s thesis on genetic improvement of carcass merit in beef cattle. With this solid foundation, Rishel has had many industry firsts and accomplishments through the decades. In 1974, he led a group of breeders in the purchase of the first syndicated bull in the history of the Angus breed, Northern Prospector 14. He and his wife Barb moved to North Platte, Nebraska, the next year to establish a livestock sales management company and a purebred operation, Rishel Angus.
In 1981, Rishel Angus purchased the bull AAR New Trend and embarked on a pioneering sire evaluation program to measure carcass merit and end-product value. A grandson of New Trend—B/R New Design 036—became a leading sire of Angus Pathfinder females and the foundation sire of all New Design Angus cattle. Today, 036 is recognized as one of the top carcass quality Angus sires with over 3,200,000 descendants in the pedigrees of the American Angus Association. Adding to this legacy, Bill Rishel has been a valued mentor to many and a supporter of scholarships and programs for the industry’s next generations.
Source: Saddle & Sirloin Guidebook 2026, p. 167