Ramsay Park bows out on a high and is bestowed Hampshire Down life membership

For Peter and Julie Button of Ramsay Park, Minlaton, this year's Adelaide Show marked both an ending and a celebration.

After decades of involvement with the Hampshire Down breed, the couple have officially retired from showing - and fittingly, walked away with the title of most successful exhibitor.

It was the only show the Buttons attended this season, making the win even more meaningful.

"We're chuffed to win that, especially after so many years," Mr Button said.

"We've had some good competition in recent years, and to still be able to come out on top is very satisfying.

"It feels like a nice way to finish."

The decision to retire closes a long chapter for the family, who first began showing Hampshire Down sheep at Adelaide in 1994.

From then, the breed has been a consistent thread running through their lives, even as the family expanded into White Suffolks and Poll Dorsets over the years.

"Our journey with Hampshires goes right back to the 1980s," Mr Button said.

"We started with a small stud and a few local clients.

"Then during the wool boom anything with black points became hard to sell, so we dispersed them.

"But when we took over the farm in our own right, we bought back into the breed."

He said they had an on-property sale for 27 years, mainly White Suffolks, before deciding to wind down.

That winding down has stretched into a graceful conclusion.

After dispersing the White Suffolks in 2021 and 2022, the Buttons reactivated their Hampshire stud as something of a 'retirement hobby'.

Their final draft of rams will be offered at the Telpara sale on September 10, marking the very last of the Ramsay Park bloodlines.

"This is it now," Mr Button said.

"We've got some rams in the Telpara sale and that will be our last offering. It's officially the end."

The end of the stud is also a personal milestone.

Mr Button has been a fixture on the executive of the Hampshire Down Association, serving two terms as president and contributing for more than three decades.

At this year's show, he was recognised with life membership of the Association - a rare honour that was also extended to his wife Julie.

"To be awarded life membership alongside Julie was very special," he said.

"We've done it together from the start."

Their involvement has always been a family affair.

The Buttons began showing sheep when their children were just five and seven years old.

Now, a generation later, their grandchildren have also helped with their Hampshires at Adelaide.

"It really has been something we've done as a family right through," Mr Button said.

Retirement will not mean slowing down entirely.

The couple has kept their home block on Yorke Peninsula, but sold off much of the farm, and they plan to spend time travelling.

Their son has recently purchased a station north-west of Broken Hill, where they lend a hand.

"His partner calls us volunteers," Mr Button said.

"We'll spend a fair bit of time up there, and we've got a caravan as well. So it's a new chapter for us."

Looking back, the Buttons are proud of what they've achieved.

Ramsay Park has produced stud and commercial rams for clients across SA and beyond, with their genetics continuing in flocks long after their dispersal.

But for the couple, the real legacy lies in the friendships and family moments built around the breed.

"It's been a great ride," Mr Button said.

"We've enjoyed the competition, the camaraderie, and the chance to see our sheep do well.

"To go out on a high note like this is just the perfect way to finish."