Spade Ranch (Nebraska)
|
Spade Ranch
|
|
 
|
|
| Location | Sheridan / Cherry counties, Nebraska, USA |
|---|---|
| Nearest city | Ellsworth, Nebraska |
| Coordinates | 42°18′19.7″N 102°05′25.8″W / 42.305472°N 102.090500°WCoordinates: 42°18′19.7″N 102°05′25.8″W / 42.305472°N 102.090500°W |
| Built | 1888 |
| NRHP reference # | 80002464 |
| Added to NRHP | February 28, 1980 |
The Spade Ranch is a large cattle ranch located in the Sandhills of western Nebraska between the towns of Gordon and Ellsworth. Founded in 1888 by Bartlett Richards, the ranch was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
A beef ranching operation in the Nebraska Sandhills, the Spade Ranch, encompasses land in both Sheridan and Cherry Counties. Founders Bartlett Richards and William Comstock successfully managed the ranch into the early twentieth century. At its peak size in 1905 with open range grazing and ready markets for cattle, the Spade, encompassed over 500,000 acres (200,000 ha) with a herd of 60,000 cattle. Under the direction of the Bixby Family, associates of Richards and Comstock since 1908 and owners of the ranch since 1923, the Spade Ranch has continued to produce quality beef cattle as part of Nebraska's large beef industry. That the ranges remain cattle country today attests to the vision of early Nebraska Sandhills ranchers.
The Spade Ranch is named for the cattle brand that founders Bartlett Richards and William Comstock used to mark their cattle. The brand resembles an Ace of Spades on playing cards. The Spade brand is still in use as the ranch brand today.
Nebraska's early beef cattle industry first developed between the Platte Rivers and along the valleys of the Republican River and South Loup River. H.L. Newman a wealthy St. Louis banker and stock-raiser and brother E.S. Newman established headquarters in 1878 at the mouth of the Antelope Creek, 12 miles (19 km) south-east of the present town of Gordon, Nebraska and range along the Niobrara River covered an area of 30 by 65 miles (105 km) with 15,000 head of cattle. John Bratt, the Keystone Cattle Company, and the Bosler Brothers had penetrated along the south rim of the Sandhills, but it wasn't until the spring of 1879 that the economic importance of the Sandhills were discovered. That year storm-driven cattle from the Newman Ranch disappeared South into the Sandhills area previously avoided by cattlemen. An expedition was organized, with ranch foreman Billy Irwin in charge, to venture into the Sandhills and round-up the scattered cattle. During the roundup of those cattle other wild cattle were found, the wild cattle had grown fat even though untended during several winters. On the fourth week out and running low on provisions, the Newman cowboys camped along a lake where all they had to eat was bean soup. They called the lake Bean Soup Lake, four miles (6 km) east of what would later become the headquarters of the Spade Ranch. One of the Newman cowboys on the 1879 round-up, was later Omaha mayor James Dahlman.
...
Wikipedia