NEWELL, S.D. — For over eight decades, the small high-plains town of Newell has transformed into the epicenter of the Northern Plains sheep industry every September.

The 81st Annual Newell Ram Show and Sale set for September 17-18, 2026, brings top-tier breeders, commercial producers, and industry spectators to the Ram Sale Barn continuing a legacy of resilience, community grit, and high-standard genetics that began in the wake of World War II. 

Established in 1945, the Newell Ram Sale was born out of economic necessity and geographic isolation. Back then, western South Dakota sheep producers needed a reliable local venue to acquire rugged, range-ready seedstock capable of thriving in the harsh local climate without requiring long-distance travel to distant major markets.

Sponsored by the Newell Community Club and guided by a dedicated local committee, the event’s core mission has remained unchanged over its 81-year history: building the regional sheep industry and supplying growers with superior rams and ewes to maximize lamb and wool production. 

This year’s event follows its time-tested traditions.  Breeds offered include Rambouillet, Targhee, Columbia, Polypay, Hampshire, Suffolk, Dorset, Corriedale and Katahdins.  Show and sale activities begin with health inspections, followed by the Ewe and Stud Ram Show, Thurs., Sept. 17^th beginning at 9:00a.m., alongside the traditional Open and Junior Fleece Show, where regional producers compete for cash prizes with their finest fleeces.

Friday’s live auction—the heartbeat of the event—draws an active crowd of buyers representing an expansive multi-state region, with simultaneous online bidding capturing remote interest. Ewes hit the ring first at 11:00a.m., followed by elite individual stud rams and uniform pens of range rams spanning traditional fine-wool and dual-purpose powerhouses like Rambouillet and Targhee, alongside meat breeds such as Suffolk and Hampshire. 

Over the decades, the sale has weathered fluctuating commodity prices, synthetic fiber booms, and shifting agricultural landscapes. Yet, events like the Newell Ram Show and Sale endure because they offer something algorithms and catalogs cannot: face-to-face evaluation of livestock bred specifically for the trials of western range conditions, championed by generations of families who treat sheep husbandry as both a livelihood and a craft.

Sheep producers and the general public are invited to take in the show and sale along with the sheep equipment dealers, vendors and concessions on site.

Find out more information and view the sale catalog online at newellramsale.com. Find the latest Newell Ram Show & Sale news on Facebook.