Robert Goggins

Robert B. Goggins
May 28, 1924~July 9, 2018

Robert B. Goggins, 94, of Ennis, passed away on July 9, 2018. Born in Brooks, Montana, on May 28, 1924, Bob was the third of John and Pearl Cook Goggins' seven children. He and his five brothers and one sister grew up in the Clark's Fork Valley near Fromberg, and stories of the antics of the Goggins boys are still told today.

After graduating from Fromberg High School in 1942, Bob worked a variety of farming and ranching related jobs. One of those was for an apiary that sent him to the Harlowton area to work bees. A cute redhead named Cora Amdor working at the local soda fountain caught his eye. He asked her for a date the day after she graduated from high school and they were married that fall on October 30, 1946. This began an epic adventure that spanned the next 71-plus years.

Bob and Cora worked for several prominent Hereford breeders where Bob was the herdsman. His keen eye for cattle and stockmanship skills ensured his show strings were always top of the line. He and Cora bought their first registered Herefords in 1955 and bought the home ranch in Ennis in 1959. Through the years, he raised high quality Hereford cattle, selling bulls into all the Western states. He also judged many state and national Hereford shows and was president of the Montana Hereford Association for two terms. His name was synonymous with honesty and integrity.

Bob grew up in a time when you couldn't just go buy new machinery or parts and he had an inventive mind and a skill for making things work even better than their original design. His creativity even led to him owning a patent for one of his inventions. He was an incredibly progressive cattleman and was an early adopter of new technologies in the beef cattle industry.

In addition to ranching, Bob owned the Cibola 8 mining company and enjoyed gold mining in the North Meadow Creek area. He served on the Ennis Rodeo Association board as well as the Farm Service Agency board. Bob was well known for his keen wit, faith, and unfailing optimism.

Family was of utmost importance to Bob and Cora, and they raised their children to work hard, making work on the ranch fun. Bob enjoyed life and will be greatly missed by his family which include his wife of 71-plus years Cora, children Betty Goggins, Bob (Terri) Goggins, Janet Endecott, Jim (Shelly) Goggins, and Pat (Michelle) Goggins, grandchildren Coralee (Chad) Butterfield, Rachel Endecott, and Coy (Valene) Goggins, great-grandchildren Aaron and Marlee Butterfield, sisters-in-law Babe Goggins, Millie Goggins, Sue (Gary Foust), and Alice (Don) Crum, and brothers-in-law George Ellinghouse and Bill Amdor.

We would all be well served to live by Bob's motto of "make definite plans but keep them flexible". Celebration of life services will be held on Monday, July 16, 2018 at Saint Patrick's Catholic Church in Ennis. Rosary at 10 a.m. and Mass at 10:30 a.m. with luncheon to follow. Donations in Bob's name can be made to Madison Valley Medical Center, PO Box 993, Ennis, Montana 59729 or to Saint Patrick Church, Madison County Catholic Community, PO Box 17, Sheridan, Montana 59749.

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