Another site I visited in #Arizona was the historic Empire Ranch, which is now part of the 42,000 acre Las Cienegas National Conservation Area which is managed by @mypubliclands. Empire Ranch has been a working cattle ranch for 140 years. The Empire Ranch was originally established in the 1860s as a homestead ranch of 160 acres with a flat topped four-room adobe ranch house and adjoining adobe-walled corral. In 1876, the ranch was owned by Edward Nye Fish, a Tucson businessman, when it was acquired for $2,000 by Walter L. Vail, a native of Liverpool, Nova Scotia, and Plainfield, #NewJersey. Walter Vail had married Margaret Russell Newhall in Plainfield. The ranch remained in the Vail family until 1928. In 1928, the Empire Ranch was purchased by the Chiricahua Ranches Company, successor to the Chiricahua Cattle Company. The Chiricahua Ranches Company was incorporated by three Boice brothers, Henry, Frank, and Charles. Many Hollywood films and TV shows were shot at the Empire Ranch during this time, including Red River (1948) with John Wayne, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), Oklahoma! (1955), and Gunsmoke (1955-1975 TV series). In 1969, the Boices sold the Empire Ranch to Gulf American Corporation which planned to build a large residential community. Gulf American Corporation contracted with Pancho Boice to continue ranching the Empire Ranch under lease arrangements. In 1974, Anamax Mining Company purchased the Empire Ranch from Gulf American Corporation for its water rights and mineral potential. Anamax leased the Empire Ranch to rancher John Donaldson. In 1976, the Empire Ranch House was listed on the @nationalregisternps. In 1988, the property was placed into public ownership under the Bureau of Land Management. In 2000, Congress officially designated 42,000 acres to be Las Cienegas National Conservation Area. In 1997, the Empire Ranch Foundation was established to assist in preserving the ranch buildings and enhancing the educational and recreational opportunities of the site. #az #azhistory #SpreadTheHistory #historygirl #architecture #archi_ologie #travelblog #travelblogger #blog #blogger #exploreaz #history #southernarizona #bureaulandmanagement #l (at Empire Ranch Foundation) https://www.instagram.com/p/BxGdaoGHE7c/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=qkld5ryxt08y