“When I meet Matt, he shows me one of their new hay barns. The old one caught fire earlier this year. The school bus driver saw the fire and radioed for the fire department. But by the time Matt got there, he was only able to save a few pieces of equipment. The barn and […]
“Together the Flournoys look to the future. They’re relentless in their well-organized, and hard-working farming and the cattle business, but they predict that some of the ranch’s future may be in its water. The Lazy F has springs and wells scattered across the property, and the corporation owns substantial water rights to the South Fork […]
“Senator Warren’s son Fred brought Harvard-trained engineering experience to the ranch, moving it from its “Wild West” phase into an efficient ranching affair. Fred updated facilities and equipment until it became of the most modern operations in the West. Fred also worked with Dr. John Hill of the Wyoming School of Agriculture to develop the […]
“Nottingham had traveled from Iowa to the Rocky Mountain valleys with his wife and five small children in 1882. He’d met Ernest Hurd and a third settler near the town of Redcliff, and the three men proposed a ranching partnership. The trio bought 480 acres, brimming with all the excitement and hope that a new […]
“The cows stuck in front of me now are a reminder of the hazards of crossing water. So many cattle drowned on the Opelousas Trail that the town of Beaumont, Texas, where the Neches River wanders along the county line, enacted the “Ordinance to Prevent Nuisances by Swimming Cattle” in August of 1840. The provision […]
“It’s late at night and I still have three or more hours of driving before reaching the Siddoway Sheep Ranch. I haven’t seen another car for some time now, and I’m road weary. Rounding a bend in the road, I notice light coming from a lone motel in a small Idaho town. It’s either stop […]
“Rod’s German grandfather, Matt Froelich, was just nineteen years old when his family immigrated to North Dakota from Russia. Catherine the Great had promised German farmers wealth and privilege if they would come and cultivate farmland along the lush Volga River valley. But the promises proved false, and in the early ears of the twentieth […]
“Two hundred years ago, Comanche Indians hunted plentiful buffalo on this grassland prairie. The tough limestone soil was – and still is – high in calcium and perfect for grazing. Today the Bonds Ranch near Saginaw, Texas, finds itself surrounded by roads. Not your average rocky, pockmarked ranch roads but busy streets and intersections teeming […]
“Buffalo require a special alertness and special constraints. They’re fast sprinters, and can surprise you in amazing ninety-degree turns by jumping straight up and switching direction. Fences must be built at least six feet high. The beasts are too ornery to be herded by horses, so the Duff Ranch crew uses pickups. My advice after […]
“The White Ranch, at about four feet above sea level, suffers from a host of issues never faced by northern operations – such as alligators and tropical storms. Mosquitoes are such a plague that every cowboy on the ranch includes an arsenal of insect repellent on his saddle from March to October. I’m slapping at […]
