Nora Springs community chips in to bring the buffalo home

By Travis Fischer, tkfischer@charlescitypress.com

The season of giving is helping a Nora Springs man rebuild his herd of bison.

For more than 35 years Al Brallier has tended to a small herd of bison, commonly referred to as buffalo, that have become the unofficial mascots of the town. The pasture pastime began when Brallier purchased his welding shop back in 1985.

Along with the shop the property came with an adjacent piece of empty land that served him little use, so he decided to enlist some animals to take over the mowing duty.

“I had to do something with the pasture and the land,” said Brallier. “I thought it’d be nice to bring the buffalo back to Nora Springs.”

Nora Springs has been known for having bison since at least the 1940s when Francis Sherman kept a herd on the east end of town. The Sherman family got rid of their herd in the 70s, but Brallier would eventually come along to rekindle the tradition.

In 1988 Brallier purchased three bison from Neal Wedeking out of Clarksville and immediately found out that he was in for an interesting time. On the first day he brought the animals in, the trio escaped and ran loose through the town.

“They were on the run, but we were able to corral them over by Cartersville Elevator here and get them back home.”

Since then, Brallier’s herd has become a staple attraction for the community, particularly when Nora Springs celebrates its annual Buffalo Days in the park under the old water tower.

“Everybody likes to see the newborn calves out in the pasture,” said Brallier. “It’s a great attraction for the kids.”

Brallier’s herd has counted up to 15 bison at once over the years. Marketing a calf or two each year has paid for the costs of sustaining the rest of the herd.

These days though, that number has dwindled. In October, Brallier lost his last remaining male, leaving one lone “mama” out in the pasture.

Brallier would like to get a pair of younger bison back in the pasture, to keep “mama” company and start producing new calves to bring the numbers back up. He has a whole list of sellers that belong to the Iowa Bison Association that will sell him young bison, it’s just a matter of finding $1,000 to $2,000 per animal to pay for it.

Fortunately, the Nora Springs community wants to see the buffalo roam again as well and has been eager to support that effort.

“Just out of the blue some of the citizens in town decided to try and help out,” said Brallier.

Brallier says he’s received donations in the mail to go toward the purchase of new bison and the town even held a bingo fundraiser over a recent weekend, though he doesn’t yet know how that turned out. Regardless of the amount, Brallier is looking forward to rebuilding his herd and thanks the community for the support.

“It’s kind of nice to have a little help,” said Brallier.