Author Description

Ranching was present in the Great Basin before Nevada statehood in 1864. Cattle from Texas and California grazed its valleys and mountains, and ranch headquarters grew along its rivers and creeks. By the late 1800s, a few large ranching operations dominated the high sagebrush desert, running thousands of head of cattle, and sometimes sheep, on the hundreds of thousands of unclaimed acres of rangeland. These operations, dubbed 'cattle empires' by historians of the time, and the buckaroos who rode for them, hold a prime place in the cowboy culture that has become a symbol of the Ameican West. Most of these empires have been broken up, sold and resold, run by absentee owners or distant corporations in place of the families that built them. One has survived, still in family hands, still viable in modern times, still operating historic ranches, but in new ways. This is the story of Ellison Ranching Company. Founded in 1910 by a group of Utah businessmen led by Ephraim Peter Ellison of Layton, the company's first ranches were located in the Quinn River and Kings River valleys of Humboldt County. Seeing opportunities for expansion, E.P. continued to buy ranch lands in Lander and Elko Counties. Buffeted at times over a century by a harsh climate, poor hay crops, unpredictable prices for beef and lamb, labor shortages, two World Wars and the Great Depresson, Ellison Ranching Company survived and eventually thrived. Today it operates three historic ranches--the Spanish Ranch, the Seventy One, and the PX--and is known for the high quality of the cattle and sheep it produces, for its innovative practices, and for honoring the traditions of the past. It is recognized throughout cattle country and beyond as one of the premier ranching operations in the world.--Front flap cover.