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History: Big Red Ranch, Ucross
In 1887, when Wyoming was still a territory, the Pratt and Ferris Cattle Company was formed by four partners, James H. Pratt from Massachusetts, Cornelius Ferris, Marshall Field of Chicago, who started Fields department store, and another brother-in-law of Pratt.
The had four ranches, one of which was Big Red. Nearby the ranch the village of Ucross grew up along the road from Buffalo. It went through several names, including Cedar Rapids (which it was known as in 1913), Dow, Charger and finally Ucross, after the original Pratt and Ferris brand.
Sometime in the 1800s, Big Red became the headquarters for all four of the Pratt-Ferris ranches. Construction on the house and the Big Red Barn began in 1882. The house featured many modern features for the era, including hot and cold running water and a copper-lined wooden tank to furnish water pressure. In the early days of Wyoming, United States Post Offices were inside of various businesses, and from 1886 to 1902, a fourth-class post office was operated at Big Red. From 1891 to 1911, it was also on the stagecoach route between Buffalo to Clearmont.
During the 1890s, the land around Big Red was sold to Levi Leiter, who ran it as a successful farm, and was instrumental in bringing more advanced irrigation techniques into the Clear Creek Valley.
As seen in this short item,The Democratic Leader (Dailyed.), Cheyenne May 30, 1885, irrigation was brought into the valley in the early days. “Pratt and Ferris have let a contract for the construction of a large ditch, which will head on Clear Creek, and will irrigate a large amount of land.”
Even today, the ditch is still called the “Pratt and Ferris Ditch”
Here are some of the old newspaper stories about Big Red and the Pratt and Ferris Cattle Company. The Wyoming Commonwealth, April 12, 1891. A new town called Houstonville has been laid out on Clear creek, near the Big Red ranch, on the surveyed line of the B. ft M. road. Several workmen went from here this week and have commenced work on two-story stone building to be erected by Mr. Houston and used by him as hotel. The townsite is in Sheridan county.— Sheridan Enterprise.
Author’s Note. This would have been the town of Huson, the fore runner of Clearmont. It was Doc Huson, not Houston, who built the house and started the short lived town.
This from The Peoples Voice, Buffalo May 28, 1892, who felt that the claims made by the Clear Creek Valley Ranchers about the fertile valley was an exaggeration.
A FALSE REPRESENTATION. A petition, signed by quite a number of cattle and landowners, in Wyoming, was recently sent to Senator Manderson of Neb., asking him to cooperate with Senators Carey and Warren in seeing that justice was done to the stockmen at Fort Russell. The petition went on to represent that these cattlemen were the only taxpayers in the country, and that their property would all be destroyed while they were incarcerated.
It also represented that Wyoming in general, and Johnson county in particular was not adapted to farming; that there was no water for irrigating purposes, and that in fact, there was not an acre of farming land from the Platte river Montana line. Two of the men who signed this petition were Pratt and Ferris, of the U-Cross outfit, of Johnson county, who have one of the largest granger ranches in Wyoming.
They have Clear Creek fenced in for a distance of 22 miles, commencing at the mouth of Piney Creek, and extending down Clear Creek. Every acre of this is fine meadow and farming land. On this ranch they have built fine buildings. and have all conveniences for handling and feeding stock. The ranch is called Big Red, and is a post office. On this land are 35 miles of irrigating ditches that cover and water every acre of it.
Last year 3000 tons of bluestem and alfalfa hay were cut and stacked, and last winter, 660 head of beeves, and 1200 calves were fed on the ranch. The largest yield of wheat and oats to the acre ever reached in Johnson County, was reached on their ranch two years ago; their oat crop yielded over 90 and their wheat crop over 60 bushels to the acre. Last month 800 tons of hay were sold off of their place, for $14.50 a ton and 8,000 bushels of grain, at a cent and a half a pound. This spring they have sown 250 acres to grain and have 300 seeded to alfalfa., Is this a case of forgery, or did these gentlemen sign this paper? And if they did not sign it, they should sue the framers for forgery, and if they did sign it, they have put themselves on record as the biggest pair of fabricators in existence and have stultified themselves in the mind of every man and woman who has ever been to the Big Red ranch.
And this, from The Buffalo Bulletin, July 21, 1892, the writer felt that the valley was very fertile and that the hay and grain had high yields.
FROM BUFFALO TO CROTON. Sights and Scenes along the Route. Unlike the route to the southward from Buffalo, the scenery along the banks of Clear creek is restful to the eye. For nearly 43 miles from Buffalo the road skirts an almost continuous meadow, broken into here and thereby a small field of grain. On every farm haying is in progress and judging from a passing glimpse, the harvest will be good. The best wild meadow by all odds is that of Copps Brothers & Pfeiffer, commonly known us the Bar OP ranch. The grass on this ranch Is simply magnificent, m many places hating fallen over.
But the tame meadows of the Pratt and Ferris ranch would teach the farmer that nothing pays better than cultivated hay. Tho yield of hay on that ranch must reach from two to three tons per acre at one cutting. Near sundown the coach rolled insight of Buffalo Junction, the Sheridan coach coming down Lone Tree gulch at the same time. Junction City now boasts 16 frame buildings, strung out on sides of a 100 foot Main street, besides numerous tents, large and small, three saloons, several store buildings, a lunch counter, blacksmith shop and eating house comprise the town.
About a half mile below D. C. Lothrop’s station is the first grading camp and a strip of grade about 500 yards long finished. From this place for fifteen miles down Clear creek and thence across country to the”only and original” Suggs, grading camps are strung out nearly oaeto the mile, and grading is being pushed with great energy. Cattle do not seem to have got used to the tramping hobo, judging by their complete absence in the neighborhood of the road.
About one and a half miles west of Suggs and on the east side of Powder river is Suggs No. 2, where Kilpatrick Bros, and Collins commissary store tents are located. Two houses and a number of tents stand opposite the store tents. Suggs itself is quite a burg; its buildings of log with dirt roofs, its population full of life and jolly to the last degree. The first person your correspondent met on stopping out of the stage was tho city marshal.
The track to the river will be laid by Thursday and trains will run to within three fourths of a mile of town next Friday the 22nd. The work on the bridge has been let go by default up to this time, but will be resumed as soon as trains run to Suggs, bringing bridge material. It is calculated that Suggs will be the railroad terminus for at least six weeks, if not two months.
Railroad to Buffalo is still all the talk at this point. Good clean beds are afforded the weary traveler by three lodging houses and good meals are served at the Hotel de Sugg and several restaurants and chop houses. A party had been out fishing on Clear Creek the night before and as a result of their sport six or eight men were seen wending their way to breakfast swinging a good sized cat by the tail. Proudest among the fishermen was their irrepressible Buffalo Bill, who carried a loft a huge trout, hooked by one of his friends.
The road from Suggs to Croton is well calculated to settle a man’s breakfast, and the wonder is, not that freight was delayed last spring, but that it got through at all. This road now is well traveled, the coach passing 57 loaded wagons in the distance of 14 miles.
People in the early part of the 20th Century had to make their own entertainment, and house parties and were some of the ways people got together and enjoyed a summer evening or a winter day by the fire.
The Sheridan Post, January 2, 1917
This notice in The Sheridan Post, February 7, 1920, mentions the Big Red Ranch.
The original barn no longer exists, but the art gallery at Ucross has rebuilt it keeping the original design. The Ranch House is on the National Registry of Historic Places and has been renovated in the period as near as possible.
There are events at Ucross throughout the year, and they occasionally offer tours of the grounds and the ranch house. The art gallery is open year around, and for hours go to the Ucross website. https://www.ucrossfoundation.org/
