The Meeteetse Museums invites the public to the annual tour of the Pitchfork Ranch on Saturday. The tour will be led by owner Dr. Lenox Baker, beginning at the ranch at 10 a.m. Participants should meet at the Meeteetse Museums at 9 a.m. with their own picnic lunch and water. Guests will drive their own vehicles, but must travel with the organized group to the Pitchfork, which is private property. Carpooling is encouraged, but not required. 

The Pitchfork Ranch has a long history. The German Count Otto Franc von Lichtenstein started the ranch in 1880, raised Hereford cattle and ran the ranch until 1901. In that year he died of an accidental gunshot wound. Louis G. Phelps purchased the Pitchfork Ranch in 1903. Phelps had earlier purchased the Z-T Ranch from Englishman Richard Ashworth. Later, the new owner of the Pitchfork added other properties to the original ranch, which eventually grew to 250,000 acres.

A number of managers ran the Pitchfork for L. G. Phelps, the first being George Merrill. It was during this time that Phelps joined with Henry Sayles, Sr. to add sheep to the Pitchfork operations. At one time they had as many as 60,000 head. Phelps also finished building the new ranch house in 1920.

Upon Phelps’ death in 1922, his son, Eugene, and Charles Belden took over management of the ranch. The two met while attending the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and became friends. Belden visited the ranch in 1910 and married Eugene’s sister, Frances, in 1912. From 1914 until 1940, Belden produced an impressive photographic record of the ranch, its people and activities. His images of the Pitchfork graced the covers of Life magazine and many other publications. Belden’s photographs also made the Pitchfork’s Timber Creek Dude Ranch world famous and brought in a long string of guests.

Around the middle 1930s, the ranch suffered hard times. Allen Smith, a bank-imposed manager, took over in 1936 and returned the ranch to profitability. The end of the Great Depression also improved the situation. Smith added farming to the Pitchfork’s operations and by 1939, the ranch was producing 6,000 tons of hay and 50,000 bushels of grain per year.

The ranch was divided in the 1940s due to financial difficulties and family disagreements. Despite these issues, the Belden, Phelps and Turnell families continued to control over 100,000 acres. Sheep-raising operations ceased in 1964 and, from then on, the ranch only raised cattle.

During the early 1970s, under the management of Jack Turnell, the ranch implemented technological improvements that increased efficiency. New houses, out-buildings, and corrals were added, while modern farm facilities and machinery were employed. Productivity and sustainability increased as modern agricultural and ranching techniques were adopted.

The Pitchfork gained new international notoriety in 1981 when a colony of black-footed ferrets (believed to be extinct) was found on the property. This discovery was made after Shep, the dog of neighboring rancher John Hogg, dragged up a dead ferret on the Hogg Ranch. This event began a large-scale and cooperative effort to save the species which was reintroduced to the site in 2016.

Meeteetse Museums is located at 1947 State St. For additional information, call 307-868-2423 or email info@meeteetsemuseums.org.