YADKIN RIVER HISTORY IN THE MAKING - THE BEGINNING - THE TRUE STORY

A LEGACY - -By Pete & Tina Barber with the help of our friends.

(our mission statement)

   A painting hangs on our wall of a tri-colored hound standing with his feet firmly planted on a tree, his head thrown back and mouth open.  In your mind’s eye, and if you can listen with your heart, you will hear a big booming voice echoing through these North Carolina hills and ‘hollers, and on the banks of the Yadkin River over thirty years ago.  He wasn’t the best dog ever, but to a tall, skinny, sixteen year old boy, he was best buddy and hunting partner.  It was the start of a long love affair with the Yadkin River dogs.  That dog was the cause of the start of our family (how we met at the vet's office in 1976), and part of the inspiration for who and what we are.  His name was Nite Ch. Ch. Smith's Yadkin River Pete.

     A lot of the coonhound websites we’ve viewed while surfing the net have what they call “mission statements.”  We decided we wanted to do something different.  This is our mission statement.

    This site is dedicated to the Yadkin River dogs, the men who have in the past loved them and followed them in the woods, those who continue to do so, and in loving memory of those who are no longer with us - - hounds and houndsmen alike.  We hope to create a vision for future hunters and hounds as well as to preserve the legacy of a much loved bloodline of treeing walker coonhounds.  As we are able to compile and publish, we intend for our website to grow and change in the weeks, months and years to come.  We hope you appreciate our efforts and come back often for news, or to reminisce.  If you have old articles, pictures or stories to share about these fine hounds and their owners, please do not hesitate to give us a call.

Note:  Pictures have been provided and used with permission, or are our exclusive property. Please be respectful of intellectual property rights and copyright laws.  Thank you.

These people I want to thank for their time and efforts in making all of this possible by providing their time, photos and information: 

Special thanks to

"Mr. Yadkin River"

himself, Jim "Wildman" Meeks

David Gilroy 

Gordon Gilroy

(not forgotten)

A. J. Wright

(not forgotten)

Kyle Chase

A. J. Wright and the sire of Yadkin River Jeff, Grand Nite Ch. Wright's Pistol Pete.  (Photo courtesy of Jim Meeks)

(Owner:  R. L. Lares)

Pedigree of Brack's Blaze & A. J. Wright's Pistol Pete

 

--World Champion Stan's Sailor Boy

Grand Nite Ch., World Champion Stan's Sailor, Jr.

--Monroe's Betty

 

NITE CH. BRACK'S BLAZE

(same pedigree as GR Nite Ch. Wright’s Pistol Pete & NITE CH GRCH Tar Heel Bo)

 

--Dual World Champion House's Bawlie

Wright's Sue

--Champion Grand Nite Champion Tut's Tillie

Jim "Wildman" Meeks and Nite Ch. Yadkin River Jeff.  Yadkin River Jeff breeding has been instrumental, and is still making a big impact on the Treeing Walker Coonhound breed as we know it today. Yadkin River Jeff - Southeastern Treeing Walker Association Hall of Fame - 1995 (Photos, above & below courtesy of Jim Meeks)

Dual Grand Ch. Yadkin River Tom sired by Nite Ch. Brack's Blaze and Nite Ch. Yadkin River Jane.  In 1983 Yadkin River  coonhounds finally got the recognition they deserved on the cover of Coonhound Bloodlines.  In this February 1983 issue, you'll find an article on Dual Grand Ch. Yadkin River Tom owned by Kyle Chase of Kingsport, Tennessee.  Tom was also once owned by Jimmy "Wildman" Meeks.  Jimmy finished Tom into a Dual GR Champion & later sold him to Kyle Chase when Tom was six years old.  Chase owned Tom until he died.  Yadkin River Tom  - Southeastern Treeing Walker Association Hall of Fame - 1982 (Photo courtesy of Kyle Chase)

The original Dual Grand Ch. Yadkin River Tom and an albino raccoon treed by  him and his owner, Kyle Chase, of Kingsport, Tennessee.  Old Tom looks very proud of his "prize!"  (Photo courtesy of Kyle Chase)

Jim Meeks and Toehead Smith in 1973-74 with Dual Grand Ch. Yadkin River Tom and Dual Grand Ch. Triplett's Belle.  Sire and dam of Spot and Pete (my start........)

Kyle Chase and Rozelle (upper left.  Toehead, Kyle and Outlaw left).

A. J. Wright of Marshville, North Carolina, receiving a plaque for the Breeding On Award given by the Southeastern Treeing Walkers Association.  A. J. Wright was the owner of Ch. Grand Nite Ch. Wright's Pistol Pete, who was the sire of Nite Ch. Yadkin River Jeff.  A. J. also owned a top reproducing female named Wright's Sue.  Wright's Sue - Southeastern Treeing Walker Association Hall of Fame - 1982 (Photo courtesy of Kyle Chase)

Kyle Chase of Kingsport, Tennessee and Gordon Gilroy of Nanjemoy, Maryland receiving a plaque given by the Southeastern Treeing Walker Association for the Breeding on Award for Jimmy Meeks (not present)   (Photo courtesy of Kyle Chase)

Nite Ch. Ch. Yadkin River Jane, the first dog known to be named "Yadkin River" and the dam of Dual Grand Champion Yadkin River Tom.  Yadkin River Jane's Sire was Nite Ch. Finley River Chief and Miss Banjo.  Jane was owned by Dwight Terrece. (Photo courtesy of Jim Meeks)

Kyle Chase with Dual Ch. Kyle's  Rozelle, a daughter of Dual Grand Ch. Yadkin River Tom, also the mother of Nite Ch. Yadkin River Jeff.  (Photo courtesy of Kyle Chase)

Yadkin River Champ - another top reproducer of the Yadkin River bloodline.

On February 23, 2008, Yadkin River Champ was inducted into the Southeastern Treeing Walker Association Hall of Fame.

Nite Ch. Yadkin River Crowder (sire Yadkin River Jeff and David's Dinah)- -one of the most intense tree dogs to ever climb on the wood owned by Gordon Gilroy.  Yadkin River Crowder - Southeastern Treeing Walker Association Hall of Fame - 2003.

Dual Grand Ch. Yadkin River Spot owned by Walter G. "Toehead" Smith.  This is possibly one of the most winning dogs that was was produced by Yadkin River Tom.  Toehead and I spent many nights hunting these dogs (Pete and Spot) together back in the late 1970's.  The very first nite hunt I ever hunted in, we drawed these two dogs out together.  We'll let Toehead tell the story.

This is Yadkin River Chico that was owned by Jim Meeks.  Yadkin River Chico - Southeastern Treeing Walker Association Hall of Fame - 2002 (photo courtesy of Jim Meeks)

Yadkin River Legends

Jim Meeks and Kyle Chase at Southeastern Treeing Walker Days in February  2008

This is Pete, Geoff and Jim Meeks getting ready for a hunt during the summer of 2007.

Here are Kyle Chase, Pete and Tommy Hutchins during a visit to our kennels in October, 2007.  I've hunted with and known both of these men for 30 (or more) years.

Just a little history about me......Pete Barber

This is my very first Yadkin River dog.  He was purchased in 1976 by a sixteen year-old boy (me) - - Nite Ch. Ch. PR Smith's Pete (a/k/a Yadkin River Pete).  I have been in love with the Yadkin River bloodline ever since owning "Pete" over thirty years ago. 

Double-click on the thumbnail below to view Pete's (and littermate, Spot's) pedigree:

NITECH YADKIN RIVER JIM (and Pete)

date of picture - 1983

NITE CH Stan’s Sailor Jr.

NITE CH GRCH Tar Heel Bo

Wright’s Sue

NITE CH Yadkin River Jim

NITE CH Finley River Chief

NITE CH Yadkin River Jane

Miss Banjo

Jim was such a powerful tree dog - if he treed on a mailbox, you'd open it and if he treed on a light pole, you'd shine it! 

Yadkin River Flash x Yadkin River Lady

GRNITECH COON GETTEN ANGEL (above & below)

Angel was trained by me, and was one of my all time favorites.  I owned Angel three different times. 

NITECH Yadkin River Bill - 2 years old, had 4 wins toward grand and was hit by a car and killed in 1987.  This is Bill, some of the trophies and a gold belt buckle that I won with him.

Another picture of Yadkin River Bill and the belt buckle. 

CH NITECH Prim's Yadkin River Spot

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NITECH Yadkin River Jill

These are the ads that I ran on Yadkin River Sonny in 1992 and 1993.  Sonny was another one of my all-time favorites and a COONDOG!  He was out of GRNITECH Yadkin River Tom Tom and GRNITECH Coon Getten Angel.