[8] The ranch spanned more than a million acres of land. He offered him pennies on the dollar for his fifty percent share., It was a paltry amount, Roberson agreed. On the map of Texas it appears as a great emptiness south of Vernon, occupied only by the thin strip of U.S. 183/283. St Louis, Missouri, United States. After a big wedding in Decatur, the couple honeymooned in Europe and then planned to settle in Philadelphia. Today, Waggoner descendants still reside at the ranch in two main compounds: Albert B. Wharton, III lives at the Zacaweista (Indian term for good grass) Headquarters and Helen Biggs Willingham and her husband Gene live at the Santa Rosa Headquarters. Anne was the granddaughter of W.T.s friend Burk Burnett and hardly the type to sit around waiting for a roving husband. Today, it is estimated there are over 1,000 producing oil wells on the Waggoner Ranch, with the W.T. The W.T. [6] It is the second largest ranch in Texas (after the King Ranch),[6] enclosing 510,527 acres (207,000ha; 798sqmi; 2,070km2) of land. Reply Anonymous February 3, 2013 at 8:00 PM He began buying land in western Wise County in 1870. [6] Guy Waggoner lived there with his wife Anne Burnett, the daughter of Samuel Burk Burnett and heiress of the 6666 Ranch from 1922 until their divorce. Hes not a large man, but his pleasant and unassuming manner and his quiet, considered confidence give him stature. [6], After W.T. Busters card room, on the second floor, which was once walled in leather, now has the original wood exposed. The Waggoner Ranch is a historic north Texas ranch located 13 miles south of Vernon, Texas. We would love to have our customers come by and see us and see our newly remodeled store. A complete list of this inventory can be made available. Some area ranches have rural water systems available, but still principally rely on creeks and ponds as their major water source. As previously noted, this massive holding spans six North Texas counties. He didnt want to sell the ranch, but he thought it could be divided, that a line could be drawn on a map so that each side would have a separate but equal share. She was strikingly pretty, with a long, sensitive face and dark, sparkling eyes. A municipal waterline from nearby Seymour serves some of the homes located at Lake Kemp. A granite marker, weighing four tons, notes his grave site. After Buckys father died, Lula [the last of Busters four wives] stripped this place. In one last attempt to keep the range open, W.T. King Ranch. As the sun begins to crawl over the horizon, Hawley marvels at the endless prairie. Today, the ranch boasts 7 stallions and over 90 broodmares containing bloodlines of Poco Bueno, High Brow Cat, Peppy San Badger, Top Sail Cody, Smart Chic Olena, and Wimpys Little Step. He first settled on Catlett Creek near the site of present Decatur. The other half belonged to Electra Waggoner Biggs, through various trusts. The Waggoner Ranch Store is located in the Waggoner Estate building in Vernon Texas. Another formula was used to calculate mineral rights, pipelines, cattle, horses, equipment, other assets. It doesnt seem real to even think about it, he says. Buster never liked cows; the only thing about the ranch he cared about was horses, especially his polo ponies. Bucky looks more like a Little League coach than a cattle baron. 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. In The American Quarter Horse Journal, Jim Jennings writes, The Waggoner contribution to the Quarter Horse industry has long been recognized. It would be Helens husband, Gene Willingham, who would one day become Bucky Whartons main opponent in the struggle over the Waggoner Ranch. The ranch is approximately 175 miles northwest of the Dallas/Ft. Mid America is your local truck topper and trailer dealer in St Louis MO for all your new and used truck toppers in st louis as well as dump trailers and utility flatbed trailers in St Louis MO. Quanah delivered the land to the Waggoners and other cattle baronsat one time, Waggoner and son leased 650,000 acres for an annual payment of $30,000and the cattle barons made Quanah rich and famous. Yesterday a helicopter herded one hundred mother cows and their calves into a trapa corner of the large pastureand soon cowboys on horseback will be stripping the calves away from their mothers, herding them into separate pens and loading them onto trucks for transportation to other parts of the ranch. The facility is equipped to do embryo transfers and has both indoor and outdoor arenas, two barns, and over 30 stalls. Consequently, climate data can vary over such a large area of the state. In the Roaring Twenties, Electra Waggoner was the most infamous socialite in Texas. The last e-mail I got from him, he testified, [was] five years ago.. [6] Electra Waggoner mostly resided at Thistle Hill in Fort Worth, although her husband, Albert Buck Wharton, operated a livery yard and horse stables on the ranch. When my wife got sick with cancer, Gene and Buck got the company plane to fly her to M. D. Anderson. Approximately 30,000 acres are in cultivation. He borrowed a large sum from his nonagenarian grandmother, Ella, who later transferred the note to E. Paul. Two of the camp divisions, the Zacaweista and the Santa Rosa, are very highly improved. Three pivot sprinkler systems are used to distribute irrigation water to three large fields on the ranch. When Judge Tom Neely, who is in charge of the current lawsuit to break up the ranch, was a young attorney in a previous round of Waggoner lawsuits during the sixties, he and other lawyers found some of E. Pauls letters to Helen. 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. Texas Almanac Rainfall Records show the lowest annual rainfall for this six county area is in Foard and Knox Counties, at 24 inches and 26 inches per year, respectively. B. Wharton III, known as Bucky. Under the terms of the trust, each of the children owned one third of the 100,000 shares in the estate, elected the board of directors of the trust and served on the board themselves, and retained their homesteads. 940-552-2521 x:270. This is the job I set my sights on, he says. I ask him what he thinks of the family feud that threatens to end the way of life that he knew. SOLD. Behind his back, other employees referred to Moore as Rasputin. He was the first quarter horse ever to be insured for $100,000. 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. Choose from multiple print sizes and hundreds of frame and mat options. He offered to pay Buckys attorney fees and pitch in an extra one million. In addition to Lake Kemp and Lake Diversion, the ranch boasts several other large private lakes, some of which, such as Santa Rosa Lake, are reserved for the exclusive use of the families. The Waggoner Ranch can be characterized as a potential sportsmans paradise. Buster too had multiple spouses (four, to be exact), but his only heir was A. This legendary horse was named the Grand Champion Stallion at Denvers National Western Stock Show, the Fort Worth Southwestern Exposition and Fat Stock Show, the State Fair of Texas in Dallas, and the American Royal Livestock Show in Kansas City. Each camp is equipped with a managers house, outbuildings and pens. The W.T. All I ever knew is the Waggoner Ranch, he tells me. This is your chance to purchase the W.T. cattle inventory, horse inventory, horse facilities, brands . Growing up, the ranch didnt seem like a big deal, Bucky told me. The settlers, most of them German or Czech, moved north of Paradise Creek, which runs just beyond the present northern boundary of the ranch. WAGGONER RANCH (VILLAS 18-21) Vernon, TX | Founded 1852 Archer, Baylor, Foard, Knox, Witchita, and Wilbarger Counties Established in 1852, the ranch was primarily used to raise crops, Longhorn cattle and horses. Numerous food plots are located adjacent to these protected creek bottom areas, and these food plots serve as a magnet for wildlife. John and Electra had two daughtersa third Electra and Helen. She left the motor running, didnt even bother to shut it off, and walked to the depot and took the next train out of town. When Guy moved to New Mexico, Tony Hazelwood, who hated his guts, showed his disrespect by storing oats on the homes prized hardwood floors. The Wichita River, the two branches of Beaver Creek, countless small streams and tributaries, and dozens of stock tanks supply the ranchs water. 20% off all products! The many improvements and related assets mentioned above combine to offer the purchaser an extremely attractive depreciation schedule. But W.T. Heath Ownbey. Marketing is done through private treaty and production sales. The ranch's wild steers, huge supply of . One thing you dont see on the ranch is windmills. That became the seed money for the Waggoner empire. We have unique items that feature our brand. In 1965 he replaced Tony Hazelwood as foreman. 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. Joe Roberson, who was the estates auditor for many years, describes him this way: Big belt buckle, expensive boots, a bottle of whiskey. E. Paul had a good eye for horseshe bought Poco Bueno, the great cutting horse sireand loved to be seen as the ultimate cattle baron, but a retired Waggoner Ranch foreman named G. L. Proctor told me, He wasnt much of a rider. In over 165 years of the Waggoner family ownership, commercial hunting has never been allowed on this expansive ranch. Horses have always been big business at the Waggoner Ranch. The Waggoner Ranch Reversed D Brand is burned on the right hip of calves, and dates back to June 11, 1849. Dan and W.T. Inside the Decades-long Effort to Commemorate a Notorious Waco Lynching. The family feud began the moment the old man rigged the game. 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. It may be hard to truly comprehend the sheer vastness of the Waggoner Ranch. In addition to land and cattle, the family owned five banks, three cottonseed mills, and a coal company. Historically, the Waggoner Ranch has been operated as a cow/calf ranching unit, with stocker cattle used for seasonal grazing on wheat fields. Our cattle herd consists of approximately 10,000 mother cows comprised of 60 percent Hereford and 40 percent Angus/Hereford and Brangus/Hereford cross. On each of those transactions, Kroenke had relied on Leadbetter's counsel and the insights of Sam Connolly, general manager of Kroenke Ranches. Its a trade that suits only a select few for whom the life satisfies rather than restricts. When they presented the map to Gene, they say, he asked for more details. [9], In August 2014, the ranch was listed on the real estate market with an asking price of US$725 million. [8], After the death of Daniel Waggoner in 1902, his son W.T. In 1877, Burk Burnett (6666 Ranch), Col. C.C. But the difference is that the cattle barons of the King Ranch led private, almost secretive lives, running their empire themselves and living on the land, while the Waggoners turned their ranch over to professionals, moved away, and pursued flamboyance. After a hard rain, this endless maze of graded red clay becomes a network of quagmires. Thats the only reason anyone would want to sell.. The sale of the iconic Waggoner Ranch, while marking the end of one era, creates for a new owner the opportunity to begin another. Now look at it! [2][3] It was originally established in 1852 near Vernon, Texas, by Daniel Waggoner under the name of Dan Waggoner & Son; his son being William Thomas Waggoner. The 1905 hunt was a classic Waggoner production. Fire Ants Have Unleashed Chaos in Texas for Decades. They have been up since three and have had a hefty cookhouse breakfast of eggs, sausage, bacon, potatoes, biscuits, and gravy. W.T.s granddaughter, Electra Waggoner Biggs was nationally known as a sculptress, and with her national notoriety, General Motors named their most luxurious Buick model the Electra and Lockheed Aircraft named a plane in her honor.

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