King P-234, a quarter horse foaled on Manuel Volpe’s ranch in Laredo on June 25, 1932, was originally named Buttons before being sold to Charles Alexander of Laredo and then to Byrne James of Encinal, whose wife renamed the colt King. James broke and trained King for calf roping and ranch work before selling him to Win Dubose of Uvalde. Jess L. Hankins, born on April 23, 1905, came from a ranching background and moved to his ranch six miles south of Rocksprings in 1925 after marrying Olga Burney, whose family lived in Edwards County. After hearing about King from a ranch hand, Hankins became determined to buy the stallion and purchased him from Dubose on July 5, 1937, for $800, a step that propelled Jess and his brothers, J.O. and Lowell, into the quarter horse business. Registered with the American Quarter Horse Association as number 234 with a “P” for permanent registry, King became a dominant sire whose legacy endured after his death from a heart attack in 1958, having produced 658 foals in twenty-six years and later earning induction into the AGHA hall of fame in 1989. Hankins became known as a pioneer horse breeder and an AGHA hall of fame horseman, served as a director of the association in 1951 and as its thirteenth president, continued working with horses until his death in 1994, and was buried in the Rocksprings Cemetery.