Horace Franklin McQueen

July 3, 1938 – March 19, 2025

“A pleasant good morning to you, I hope everything is off to a fine start at your house this morning.” For over 33 years those were opening words from Horace McQueen on his Farm and Ranch News television program, first in West Texas, and from 1973 to 2000 in East Texas.

He was born on July 3, 1938 to Tommy and Fairy Lee (Neel) McQueen in a sharecropper shack just outside of Latexo, Texas. When Horace was young, Tommy got on with the Shell Refinery in Deer Park, and the family moved to La Porte, Texas, where Horace grew up working for local farmers and ranchers, participating in the local 4-H program, and occasionally riding his horse to school.

In 1955, Horace caught a calf in the calf scramble at the Houston Fat Stock Show and Livestock Exposition (now the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo). The following year he returned with his calf and was awarded the grand champion Brahman heifer. He sold her for $700, and received scholarship offers from the Rice Institute (now Rice University) and the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas (now Texas A & M University). Having a love for all things agriculture, Horace chose to attend A&M, where he was a member of the Corps of Cadets.

During his junior year, he married Carole Myers of Baytown, and they moved into married student housing. Their son Dale was born in 1959, and Horace graduated in May 1960. Immediately after graduation, the family moved to Alexandria, Virginia, where Horace was an associate editor of the National Future Farmers magazine. Son Dennis was born in 1961. Three moves later for other editor positions with agriculture publications, the family ended up in Lubbock, Texas, where, in 1964, Horace began his television broadcasting career as the owner and producer of Farm and Ranch News, airing live every weekday morning on TV stations in Lubbock, Midland-Odessa, Big Springs, and Abilene. Twin daughters Debra and Deidre were born in 1965.

Horace became interested in the Murray Grey cattle, a premier beef breed in Australia, which he learned about during several cattle industry sponsored trips in the late 1960’s. In 1969, he and Carole established Murray Grey USA, which imported the first Murray Grey semen into the United States. In 1970, Horace left broadcasting to become a full time cattleman, importing the first live Murray Grey cattle into the USA in 1972, and was a founding member of the American Murray Grey Association. The family brand was TV.

Though he loved the cattle business, and Murray Greys in particular, he longed to get back to his East Texas roots, and to his first love, farm broadcasting. In 1973, the family moved to a ranch just outside of Troup, Texas, and Horace began production of Farm and Ranch News on KLTV-Tyler and KTRE-Lufkin, while continuing to raise Murray Greys, as well as participating in several business ventures, including as a founding director of both City National Bank and Oak Brook Nursing Center in Whitehouse, Texas, and developing several subdivisions in the area.

During this period he served on the board of directors of Federal Land Bank (now Heritage Land Bank) in Tyler and the Sabine River Authority, as well as serving on the executive committee of Build East Texas, and as a member of Texas A&M’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Development Council.

He continued to own, produce, and host Farm and Ranch News in Tyler and Lufkin, appearing live every weekday morning for 27 years, finally retiring from television in 2000. When Horace began his farm broadcasting career in 1964, there were close to 20 live weekday farm shows in Texas; when he signed off for the final time in 2000, he was the last. During the course of his farm broadcasting career, he spoke at over 100 events each year – from 4-H and FFA banquets, to Rotary Club meetings, Aggie Musters, and numerous other ag-related events. He interviewed several US Presidents, Senators, and Congressmen, as well as members of the Texas A&M Extension service, the USDA, and, his favorites, local farmers and ranchers.

He, along with Mary Sue Cole, of the Texas A&M Extension Service, and frequent guest of his Friday morning East Texas cooking segment, published cookbooks featuring East Texas recipes, many of which were submitted by his loyal viewers.

He was a 32nd degree Mason, served in the US Naval Reserve, was president of both the Lubbock and Houston County A&M clubs, was a longstanding member of the Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, and, with Carole, funded three Endowed Scholarships for Ag Journalism majors at Texas A&M.

His numerous awards included being selected as the 1980 Farm Broadcaster of the year by his colleagues in the National Association of Farm Broadcasters; being named as the 1986 Man of the Year in Texas Agriculture by the Texas County Agricultural Agents Association; being a 2012 recipient of the Outstanding Alumni Award from the Texas A&M College of Agriculture and Life Sciences; and receiving the Ralph W. Steen East Texan of the Year award in 2023.

Shortly after his retirement from television, he and Carole moved back to his Houston County roots, raising Murray Grey cattle and timber on several farms, including Queensdale Farms just outside of Latexo, which has been in the McQueen family since 1854. During his retirement years he wrote weekly columns for several East Texas newspapers. But mostly, he enjoyed his family, his Murray Greys, his Australian shepherd dogs, and meeting his former viewers over a cup of coffee to talk about cattle prices, the weather, and all things East Texas.

He is survived by Carole, his wife of over 66 years; son, Dale McQueen and wife, Patti, son, Dennis McQueen and wife, Ashley, daughter, Deidre Haines and husband, Gordon, daughter, Debra Green and husband, Phillip; and grandchildren, Faithe Green and Mason Green.

Funeral services for Horace F. McQueen will be held at 2:00 p.m. Saturday, March 29, 2025 at the Callaway-Allee Memorial Chapel with Pastor Wayne Stewart officiating. Interment to follow at the Latexo Cemetery. Visitation will be Friday evening from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Callaway-Allee Funeral Home.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Texas A&M University, Department of Agricultural Communications, 401 George Bush Dr. College Station, Texas 77840.

Online condolences may be left at www.callawayallee.com