The terrain varies from fairly level to gently rolling, sloping and hilly, but there are areas of rougher breaks and scenic, very eroded, red clay badland. Hughes grew up in Vernon and has been hunting and fishing on the ranch since high school. They include a bunkhouse for single cowboys, more homes for the foreman and senior cowboys, a cookhouse, several maintenance sheds, and a truck barn. The Waggoner (Three D) Ranch had its beginnings in the early 1850s when Daniel Waggonerqv and a fifteen-year-old black slave trailed 242 longhorn cattleqv and six horses into Wise County. Each camp manager is responsible for the operation of his specific unit, but all of the managers and cowboys work together during spring branding and shipping. We try not to put stress on the livestock.. Most sets of pens are capable of handling several thousand head of cattle at one time. In a January 2003 deposition, Gene said he sent Bucky his own draft of the map but never got a reply. The major drainages through the ranch are Beaver Creek, which starts on the west side of the ranch and runs through the entirety of the northern portion of the property, and the North Wichita and the South Wichita Rivers, which converge in the southwest portion of the ranch and meander through the entire south side of the property. [14] After Electra Waggoner Biggs's death, her share was inherited by Electra Waggoner Biggs's daughter Helen Biggs and her husband, Gene Willingham. The family made their main homes in the city and returned to the ranch for weekend getaways and holidays. All-night parties that started at Shadowlawn sometimes ended up on the ranch, after a trip by private railroad car, so that Eastern dandies could be treated to the sights of cowboys branding and castrating calves. As previously noted, this massive holding spans six North Texas counties. All framed prints are professionally printed, framed, assembled, and shipped within 3 - 4 business days and delivered ready-to-hang on your wall. W.T. Millionaire ranchers from Argentina and the elite of East Coast society came in their private planes for weekends of polo and debauchery. Its been vacant ever since. W. T. Waggoner Ranch is currently developing hunting opportunities for quail, wild hog and deer. Copyright 2023 W. T. Waggoner Ranch Uptown Style WordPress theme by, 2013 Gelding (Cat Man Do X Smoked Diamonds), 2015 Stallion (Cat Man Do X Smokin and Swingin). To make the trip, Dan gave Tom $12, a group of drovers, and 50 saddle horses, all of which had sores on their backs from heavy use. Patel Brothers - largest Indian American supermarket chain. Its a perfect October morning, cool and crisp, and the ranch spreads out in every direction, 25 miles north to south, 30 miles east to west. Leave them blank to get signed up. For the past 15 years, champions at both the National Reining Association and the National Cutting Horse Association Futurity have had Waggoner bloodlines in their pedigree. [6] Specifically, this went to Albert Buckman Wharton, Jr., also known as Buster Wharton, who was Electra Waggoner's son, and Electra Waggoner Biggs, who was E. Paul Waggoner's daughter. Joe Roberson showed me how to read the books. The house eventually fell apart and was torn down. The cowboys sided with Bucky, who felt that hunters left litter, cut fences, and left gates open. A granite marker, weighing four tons, notes his grave site. Nothing is too trivial to spark an argument. The greatest annual precipitation occurs to the east, in Archer and Wichita Counties, at just over 29 inches per year annually. Back in town, I am introduced to 79-year-old G. L. Proctor, the old cowboy who Weldon Hawley has modeled himself after. The Waggoner Ranch fully supports the AQHA initiative to implement the Ranchers Heritage Breeders Program and the AQHA Versatility Ranch Horse Program with current staff serving as a member of two AQHA Committees. The farmers probably didnt need intimidating. a full partner, gave him $12, a group of drovers, and fifty hard-used saddle horses, and sent him to Abilene, Kansas, with a herd of five thousand steers. We have unique items that feature our brand. She finally pulled up in front of the Vernon drugstore, pieces of gate and fence hanging off the car, Bucky tells me. and 283. Sep 1989 - Present33 years 6 months. 27 of 56 28 of 56 Cowboys on the Waggoner Ranch brand calves in the spring of 1983. In the lower draws and creek bottoms, hackberry and soapberry trees are common. reclaimed all land and assets in 1923 and placed them in a so-called Massachusetts trust, a draconian arrangement in which he, as the trustee, controlled everything, including one of the biggest shallow oil fields in the world. We see a bunch of javelinas too, and a bobcat as big as a mountain lion. With the trust on the verge of expiring, Bucky and Electra II agreed to extend it until March 31, 2003. SOLD. Chip Gaines Bought Larry McMurtrys Historic Texas Bookstore. "W. T. Waggoner Estate: Venerable, $725 million ranch about to be sold", American Quarter Horse Association: Waggoner Ranch, "You Can Now Buy a Texas Ranch That's the Size of a Small Nation, For $725 Million", "Waggoner Ranch: 1994 Best Remuda Winner", "NFL Owner Stan Kroenke Buys Texas Mega-Ranch Listed for $725 Million", "Legendary Waggoner Ranch Historical Combination of Then and Now", "Massive Waggoner Ranch, "last of the True West," is up for grabs", "Mammoth estate to be split up, auctioned", "Waggoner Ranch, among US' largest, listed for sale", "Ranch Dressing: Brokers Prep Giant Waggoner Farm for Sale", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Waggoner_Ranch&oldid=1097984814, Infobox mapframe without OSM relation ID on Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 13 July 2022, at 17:07. The history of the land and the Waggoner family is so entwined with myth and legend that nobody can untangle the truth. Seafood City (California, Hawaii, Washington, Nevada, Illinois) - Filipino American. Two large, privately-owned lakes are located on the Waggoner Ranch. The family feud began the moment the old man rigged the game. It would be Helens husband, Gene Willingham, who would one day become Bucky Whartons main opponent in the struggle over the Waggoner Ranch. [6][12], When Guy Waggoner died in 1950, his sons sold their share of the estate to members of the family. Passing under a granite arch, we head down a long, paved driveway to Zacaweista, an Indian word meaning good grass. Its the name of both the ranch headquarters and the sprawling rock-and-wood home that Electra built in 1910. Hunting big game in Africa and hosting extravagant parties at the ranch occupied most of Busters time. I remember my mother taking me to Fort Worth to talk to her attorney. Ahead was a legal battle over whether Buster had the right to dispose of property that Electra, his mother, had left in trust to him and his bloodline. One of the most interesting properties at Zacaweista is the gothic stone barn where Buster Wharton bred his polo ponies. When it is necessary for them to be in the same room, they let third parties do the talking. Texas Purple Hull Pea Festival Is More Than an Event. He went on and on about how heartbroken he was and how much he missed them, but he didnt write them. Maybe thats why Judge Neely told me that he has no intention of setting a deadline. By the late fifties, forces were marshalling to ensure total control for E. Paul and his heirs. Now the fate of the ranch was up to the court. She joined him in the apartment, and they set to work remodeling the Zacaweista mansion, which had sat vacant for nearly a dozen years. Growing up, the ranch didnt seem like a big deal, Bucky told me. The Waggoner Ranch was ordered liquidated. Oil production soon followed. The sale of the iconic Waggoner Ranch, while marking the end of one era, creates for a new owner the opportunity to begin another. Before the day is done, well spot hundreds of deer and numerous herds of feral hogs, fifty or sixty in a bunch, wee piglets scurrying to keep up. Waggoner Estate operating approximately 150 of these wells and 40 independent operators operating the balance. This was probably a bluff. Waggoner Estate Ranch and related assets are now, for the first time ever, being offered for sale at a guideline listed price of $725,000,000. A unified decision has now been made by the shareholders to sell this legendary ranch. To sum up the great legacy of the Waggoner Horse Program, it has produced three AQHA Hall of Fame Members (one Waggoner heir and two Waggoner horses): E. Paul Waggoner, Poco Bueno and Poco Lena; it is the number one All-Time Leading Breeder of NCHA Hall of Fame Members, Poco Lena, Poco Mona, Poco Stampede and Snipper W; it is the number three All-Time Breeder of AQHA Champions; and it is the Breeder of All-Time Leading Sires, Poco Pine, Poco Tivio, Poco Dell and Poco Bob. The ranch's wild steers, huge supply of . When my wife got sick with cancer, Gene and Buck got the company plane to fly her to M. D. Anderson. How could things have spun so wildly out of control? 510,527.00 Oil was a nuisance, and any good cattleman knew the value of water. Waggoners have a series of brands that go on each foal, the history of which goes back to the days of W. T. Waggoner. Bucky and Gene and their lawyers were there. As the frontier pushed westward, he expanded his herd and bought more land, in Clay and Wichita counties. Apparently they just agreed to continue to disagree. Some whitetail deer on the Waggoner Ranch are estimated to be of Boone and Crockett quality. The party bagged seventeen wolves (some of which were really coyotes), and the president beat a five-foot rattlesnake to death with his quirt. Can College Sports Get More Absurd Than SMU Joining the Pac-12? For more than a century the520,000-acre Waggoner Ranch has been an inseparable part of the culture and fabric of the Red River country west of Wichita Fallsand of Texas itself. Most other ranches in this general area also rely on creek water and earthen ponds. Santa Rosa Lake covers approximately 1,400 surface acres when full. One thing you dont see on the ranch is windmills. Numerous smaller cultivated fields are scattered throughout the ranch. The mesquite trees that now dominate the land arrived later, their seeds transported in cow droppings as herds from South Texas passed through on their way to railheads in Kansas. They wintered the herd that year in Clay County and the following spring drove it to market, netting a profit of $55,000. Instead of six bedrooms, it now has four. $ 58.00. We opened it up. Today the home is bright and welcoming. What does it take to be a good cowboy? I ask. One side wants the ranch divided equally but otherwise left intact. Its a weird deal. No Waggoner is buried on the ranch, only this one cowboy and a few early settlers in unmarked graves. Copyright 2023 Waggoner Ranch Store - All Rights Reserved. Now available for sale on the open market, the Waggoner Ranch represents a singular opportunity so rare, it only comes along every 165 years or so. Things were working smoothly at that moment, but neither side believed the harmony would last. He was the first quarter horse ever to be insured for $100,000. [9] In 1902, W.T. Enlow is an advertising, media and fine arts photographer based in Fort Worth. [6] However, in 1923, he changed his mind, and set up a Massachusetts trust. Cowboys of the Waggoner Ranch. Gene has told people that the ranch would sell in no time, the whole 520,000 acres. But even as board members, they were powerless to exercise any authority over the ranch, except to elect future trustees. Bucky and Gene run the operation from offices in the W. T. Waggoner Estate Building. This historic brand has been used in one form or another since that date, making it one of the very oldest brands in Texas. It is the nations biggest ranch within the confines of a single fence, a spread so vast that it extends across six counties and covers more than eight hundred square miles. All canvas prints are professionally printed, assembled, and shipped within 3 - 4 business days and delivered ready-to-hang on your wall. He knows the ranch, its cast of characters, and its skeletons and stories as well as any outsider. This land sits atop the Seymour Aquifer, while the ranch itself is bone-dry. Nobodys sure. Waggoner met in Graham, Texas, and formed what today is known as the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA), which is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. The King Ranch, based in south Texas, has more acreage spread over several parcels. It's one of the largest ranches in the world with 825,00 acres. In 1923, W. T. formed what is known today as the W. T. Waggoner Estate. (Tom) Waggoner was heard to say, There I was with more t, han 5,000 big, wild steers, 50 sore-backed horses, $12 and 16 years of my life.. By all rights the Waggoner Ranch ought to be the equal of the King Ranch in Texas lore. Our cattle herd consists of approximately 10,000 mother cows comprised of 60 percent Hereford and 40 percent Angus/Hereford and Brangus/Hereford cross. The horse operation, known as the Whiteface Division, is a state-of-the-art training/breeding facility located in the northeastern portion of the Waggoner Ranch. I never saw him on horseback except during a parade. E. Paul was a famous charmer, though his wife, Helen, perhaps saw his romanticism through more practical eyes. As the large ranches of Texas, such as the Waggoner, 6666, JA, Slaughter, King Ranch and others, were established, fenced and began to operate, these legendary holdings were, at times, confronted with the problems of Indian raids and cattle rustlers. Additionally, all livestock (cattle and horses), an extremely substantial inventory of rolling stock, farm equipment, pickups, trucks, etc., and considerable other personal property are included in this offering. Disgusted, he continued drilling for water. The ranch is approximately 175 miles northwest of the Dallas/Ft. Dan took advantage of this great opportunity. (and future trustees) would have the sole right to make all management decisions. They work six and sometimes seven days a week, from daylight until the job is done, often late at night. This is what shes good at, raising cattle. Hawley is 52 and has been at the ranch since 1972, working his way up from cowpuncher to straw boss to headquarters boss and finally to ranch manager. In one last attempt to keep the range open, W.T. Dan sent Tom (his son), who was only 16 years old at the time, to Kansas City with a herd of 5,000 steers. The Waggoner (Three D) Ranch had its beginnings in the early 1850s when Daniel Waggoner, his son W. T. (Tom), and a fifteen-year-old Black slave trailed 242 cattle and six horses into Wise County. Quality horses are always the pride of a true rancher, and this original set of broodmares became a huge influence in the development of the Quarter Horse breed. Many carry the bloodline of Poco Bueno. I was there. I cant sit down, never could, he tells me. He offered him pennies on the dollar for his fifty percent share., It was a paltry amount, Roberson agreed. How Florence ButtNot Her SonLaunched the H-E-B Empire, More Colorful Texas Sayings Than You Can Shake a Stick At. As land was cleared for settlement, he gradually moved west and by the late 1870s settled along Beaver Creek near Electra Texas. The little village of Lockett, where the descendants of those settlers now live, is wet in another way: It is the nearest spot where citizens of Vernon can buy beer and liquor. [14] Her second cousin, Albert Buckman Wharton III, also known as Bucky Wharton, who was Buster Wharton's son, appealed to stop the liquidation. B. Wharton III, known as Bucky. Another number brand is placed on the left hip to denote the year. I worked for six months with various people in the oil and the ranching divisions, he told me. After that, negotiations were dead in the water. Gene remembered it differently. A unified decision has now been made by the shareholders to sell this legendary ranch. | Two years after Prathers resignation, Bucky gave notice of termination of the trust in a letter to Electra IIs family. [6] Meanwhile, Electra Waggoner Biggs became a renowned sculptor. The Waggoner Ranch, 550,000 acres extending into six counties, a realm steeped in Texas history, teeters on the brink of liquidation. Some say these deer may have never heard a rifle shot. Bucky looks more like a Little League coach than a cattle baron. Northwest Texas was open range in the 1850s, when Dan Waggoner and his fifteen-year-old black slave trailed 242 Longhorn cattle and 6 horses to Wise County. Without a trustee to keep them at arms length, they set off on a collision course. As their cattle business grew, the ranch needed more grazing land, especially as barbed wire began to close in the open range. The Waggoner Ranch can be characterized as a potential sportsmans paradise. [4][8] From 1889 to 1903, they acquired land in Wichita County, Wilbarger County as well as Foard County, Knox County, Baylor County and Archer County. Meanwhile, W.T.s widow, Ella, ran the ranch as dowager empress until her death, in 1959. In 1965 he replaced Tony Hazelwood as foreman. He offered to pay Buckys attorney fees and pitch in an extra one million. Bucky Wharton didnt think of the ranch as his heritage until he was in high school at Culver Military Academy, in Indiana. It doesnt seem real to even think about it, he says. [8] Although it still spans six counties, it is primarily centered on Wichita County and Wilbarger County. The main set of shipping pens are located along the highway at the Zacaweista Headquarters Division. The only time we dont work, Hawley tells me, is when its raining and lightning, or when its very hot. W.T. The Wichita River, the two branches of Beaver Creek, countless small streams and tributaries, and dozens of stock tanks supply the ranchs water. Waggoner, a widower, and his young son, William Thomas, settled on Catlett Creek, near present-day Decatur. The ranch is reported to be the largest contiguous ranching operation of its kind under one fence in Texas, and one of the largest in the United States. The assets of the estate have been estimated at $200 to $300 million, but it would surely fetch far less if liquidated. Dan sent Tom (his son), who was only 16 years old at the time, to Kansas City with a herd of 5,000 steers.
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