“I’m instantly enchanted by this family – by their appreciation of history, their concern for the land, their creativity. For example, Ladd’s wife Ree recently launched a modern Little House on the Prairie blog that gets more than 3,000 hits a day. Is she a pioneer woman like the last century’s Addie Drummond? ‘I am […]
“In the 1820’s, Taylor White began driving his cattle on a path that retraced the Old Spanish Trail all the way to New Orleans, where he could get $12 per steer as compared to $5 per steer back home in Texas, and soon hordes of other ranchers joined him. Until the Union Pacific Railroad finally […]
“Nine days after my departure, Helena, Yelena, and Bryan start out on a typical 65-mile trek from the ranch to the post office, unaware of the tragedy awaiting them. There is a terrible automobile accident. Miraculously, Yelena and the baby survive, but Helen is killed instantly. Sorrow descends over the Monitor Valley, but still the […]
“The sagebrush was huge, sometimes towering over them and their shared horse. The brush was so thick that a straight path wasn’t possible. The frequent backtracking slowed their progress and used up their slim resources. Jose Navarro and Antonio Azcuenaga began their journey from Nevada in 1889 to seek their fortunes farther north. Originally from […]
“When the Bells originally bought this ranch, their first foreman, Val Cason, had worked for the notorious Mexican bandito Pancho Villa. As I settle into the ranch house in this southeastern corner of Arizona, I have a few fleeting thoughts about the old Wild West movies I saw as a boy: the shootouts, galloping posses […]
“The Bonds Ranch is particularly distinctive for a couple reasons. First, it’s the only ranch I visited hosting a full-scale dance studio. Pete’s wife Jo teaches ballet and tap to pre-school through high-school students right on the ranch, bringing a dose of culture to this cattle-centric acreage. Second, it’s one of only a few ranches […]
“The century-old tale has been passed down through six generations of ranchers, undiluted by time. In 1893 – fifteen years before Oklahoma would become a state, Oscar Chain traded $50 and a shotgun for 160 dusty acres situated between the North and South Canadian Rivers in Dewey County. Looking over the ranch today, it seems […]
“The Civil War did much to shape the character of this young man from Hinsdale, Massachusetts. After the war, the lure of the Western Territories called Warren away from Hinsdale to the wild, boisterous town of Cheyenne, Wyoming. Warren found work with cattle baron Amasa Converse, and their arrangement evolved into a partnership that ultimately […]
“A year after Wayne Sr. purchased Pine Creek Ranch there was a knock at the door – the U.S. Forest Service was calling to try to purchase the ranch and the water rights. The price they offered was half of what the Hages had just paid for it. Wayne’s refusal to sell brought the full […]
“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 […]
