Bar U Ranch
Encyclopedia
The Bar U Ranch National Historic Site, located near Longview
Longview, Alberta
Longview is a village in southern Alberta, Canada. It is located in the Canadian Rockies foothills, on Cowboy Trail, 32 km west of High River and 64 km south of Calgary...
, Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, is a preserved ranch
Ranch
A ranch is an area of landscape, including various structures, given primarily to the practice of ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle or sheep for meat or wool. The word most often applies to livestock-raising operations in the western United States and Canada, though...
that for 70 years was one of the leading ranching operations in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. At its peak, the ranch extended over 160000 acres (64,749.8 ha) with 30,000 cattle and 1000 Percheron
Percheron
The Percheron is a breed of draft horse that originated in the Perche valley in northern France. Percherons are usually gray or black in color. They are well-muscled, and known for their intelligence and willingness to work. Although their exact origins are unknown, the ancestors of the breed were...
horses. Two owners were instrumental in the establishment of the Calgary Stampede
Calgary Stampede
The Calgary Stampede is an annual rodeo, exhibition and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The ten-day event, which bills itself as "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth", attracts over one million visitors per year and features one of the world's largest rodeos, a parade, midway,...
, forming part of the Big Four
The Big Four (Calgary)
The Big Four were the wealthy Alberta cattlemen Patrick Burns, George Lane, A. E. Cross and Archie McLean. Together they founded the Calgary Stampede, as well as other cultural and entrepreneurial activities in Calgary, Alberta, Canada in the early years of the 20th century.George Lane and A.J....
.
The ranch was founded by Fred Stimson, whose North West Cattle Company kept cattle on 147000 acres (59,488.8 ha) of open range between 1881 and 1902. Stimson used the Bar U brand for NWCC stock. From 1902 to 1925 the Bar U was operated by George Lane
George Lane (politician)
George Lane was an American-born Canadian politician and rancher and known as one of the Big Four who helped found the Calgary Stampede in 1912.George was foreman at the world famous Bar U Ranch....
and his business partners, whose business ventures included meat packing, mills and other farms and ranches. Lane renamed the operation the Bar U Ranch, buying out his partners in 1908. Lane raised both cattle and Percherons.
From 1927 to 1950 the Bar U was part of a group of ranches operated by Patrick Burns. Burns grew grains on the ranch, which remained one of the largest ranches in Canada during the period.
After 1950 much of the ranch land was sold. The present National Historic Site is the central remnant, owned by Parks Canada
Parks Canada
Parks Canada , also known as the Parks Canada Agency , is an agency of the Government of Canada mandated to protect and present nationally significant natural and cultural heritage, and foster public understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment in ways that ensure their ecological and commemorative...
, which bought the property in 1991 and opened it to the public in 1995.
A number of prominent personalities were associated with the Bar U. In 1891 Harry Longabaugh
Harry Longabaugh
Harry Alonzo Longabaugh , better known as the Sundance Kid, was an outlaw and member of Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch, in the American Old West. Longabaugh likely met Butch Cassidy after Parker was released from prison around 1896...
was a horse breaker at the Bar U, later becoming known as an outlaw, the Sundance Kid. Edward, Prince of Wales
Edward VIII of the United Kingdom
Edward VIII was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and Emperor of India, from 20 January to 11 December 1936.Before his accession to the throne, Edward was Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay...
visited the Bar U in 1919 and was so taken with it that he bought a neighboring ranch, which he named the EP. Charles M. Russell
Charles Marion Russell
Charles Marion Russell , also known as C. M. Russell, Charlie Russell, and "Kid" Russell, was an artist of the Old American West. Russell created more than 2,000 paintings of cowboys, Indians, and landscapes set in the Western United States, in addition to bronze sculptures...
painted a series of paintings at the Bar U.