It was a sense of deja vu for those celebrating the well-known farmer’s July 23 birthday, but this time the party took place at Estia Health.

Mr Coyle, originally from the Indigo Valley, first moved to a Wodonga farm in 1943.

The Albury-Wodonga Development Corporation bought a chunk of land in 1974 but he remained on his farm until September, with his sons continuing on the family legacy.

“I grew up with it; from the time I could walk I was interested in sheep and handling cattle,” he said.

“I had a keen eye for cattle and sheep stock and traded a lot of them.”

It was this “keen eye” and a knack for bargaining that has earned Mr Coyle the name as one of the most well-known of his generation in the Border livestock industry.

Agent Michael Scollard first met Mr Coyle as a junior stock clerk in 1965, when the Henty market was operating.

“We’d all be there as young blokes, and George would buy a pen and he’d always find one had a limp leg or something and it was a reduction on the price or it had to come out,” he said.

“He was just one of those characters that started with nothing and became very successful, through a lot of hard work.

“Everyone who’s aged over 70 would know George – I have very fond memories of him.”

Colin Coyle said his father was certainly a man of the land and read his first book just before he turned 100.

“In his day, you didn’t receive much of an education,” he said. “His first book was A Fortunate Life and he enjoyed it because it was so much like his own life; he shared many of the trials and tribulations.”

With his late wife Blanche, Mr Coyle had two sons and three daughters – on Friday, he was joined by his 13 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren.

Benambra MP Bill Tilley dropped in to acknowledge the contributions across three generations of the Coyle family, as did Indi MP Cathy McGowan.

“I hope the McGowan family can learn from the Coyle family, because I know your roots go deep into the Indigo Valley, and share the same long life,” she said.