The article “The Original Owners of DC Ranch” by Nancy Lucas was published in the June 2003 issue of A Peek at the Peak magazine. GPPA is re-publishing the article online, in four installments. The series begins with The Original Owners of DC Ranch, Introduction.
The Original Owners of DC Ranch, Part 2
By Nancy Lucas
Over time, the ranch grew to 44,000 acres, 23,000 acres were deeded, and the remainder was state and federal leased land. It was referred to as the Lower Ranch, which ran from Pinnacle Peak Road south to Shea, and the Upper Ranch, which stretched north from Pinnacle Peak Road for about six miles. The western boundary was Scottsdale Road. The eastern edge rose up to the summit of the McDowell Mountains. The Lower Ranch had the spring, but the Upper Ranch’s more favorable grazing conditions made it the hub of cattle operations. E.O. was a businessman who owned a cattle ranch, he depended on foreman Harvey Noriega to maintain the property and manage day-to-day ranch operations. Noriega lived in a basic dwelling on the Upper Ranch, and managed both the Upper and Lower areas. When Noriega retired, E.O. deeded him two lots on Second Street in Scottsdale, where he lived until his death a few years ago at age 105.
Life on the Ranch
Chicken Henry. Photo Courtesy of the Brown family.
Life on the ranch was rugged and solitary, except during roundups. Cowboys came from all around to be part of the roundup. Meals on the ranch were prepared by legendary cook “Chicken Henry.” The cowboys’ breakfast was usually a stale biscuit and some beef jerky before riding out, and lunch was another fistful of beef jerky consumed while on the range. In the evenings when all the cowboys came in, they shared a communal dinner. E.O. recalls times when, too young to take part in the roundup, he would spend the day at the house helping Chicken Henry rustle up the evening meal. Chicken Henry would give E.O. a big pan full of jerky. E.O’s job was to pound it to a pulp, which they used as the base for jerky gravy. The rich gravy was poured over the biscuits and beans. “I can still taste that gravy,” E.O. said. They finished off their meals with peach cobbler for dessert.
Cowboys rounded up the cattle and divided them into two groups: those who went to feeding pastures in California to fatten up and those who went to slaughter. Following the roundup and branding, the family and cowhands led the cattle south. They kicked up huge clouds of dust as they meandered down then unpaved Scottsdale and Pima roads. People stopped to watch as the parade of cowboys, cattle and horses passed by. It took two or three days to travel between the stockyards downtown and the ranch, depending on the weather and size of the herd. Not all the cattle survived the hot, dusty and dry trip. Occasionally, a steer would fall over dead from dehydration.
In 1920, E.O.’s daughter, Ruth, married Robe Zimmerman, an immigrant from Germany, lured to Arizona by the adventure of the American West. He worked on DC Ranch hauling supplies and married the boss’s daughter. In 1923, Ruth and Robert started the Scottsdale Dairy. When growth encroached too closely in 1972, they moved to Gilbert. Today, Zimmerman Dairy is located in Queen Creek and run by four generations of Zimmermans. Grace Allen, E.O.’s niece, married Arthur Crews in 1918, and they built a home on Main Street. Grace taught school at the Little Red Schoolhouse and was one of the first to be placed in the Scottsdale Hall of Fame.
E.E. and Merle Brown, Courtesy of Brown Family
E.E. “Brownie” loved ranch life and was involved in ranch operations as a teenager. When his father, E.O., died in 1937 he inherited the ranch and continued to shape its growth and progress. He was a true cowboy and worked alongside the ranch hands butchering cows, shoeing horses and tending to the stock. He ate dinner and often camped out with the cowboys, on his bedroll under the starry skies. He often spent weeks out at the ranch without venturing into town. His sons and grandsons spent time with him on the ranch riding, rounding up livestock and branding.
Continued … The Original Owners of DC Ranch, Part 3
Post Date: 8/18/13
A Peek at the Peak is published by the Greater Pinnacle Peak Association, a 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation of the natural environment and enhancement of quality of life in the north Scottsdale Sonoran Desert.
© Copyright 2003 All rights reserved.
Greater Pinnacle Peak Association
Scottsdale, AZ 85255
Related Articles
The Original Owners of DC Ranch, Introduction Published: 8/14/13
The Original Owners of DC Ranch, Part 1 Published: 8/14/13
The Original Owners of DC Ranch, Part 2 Published: 8/16/13
The Original Owners of DC Ranch, Part 3 Published: 8/18/13
The Original Owners of DC Ranch, Part 4, Published: 8/18/13
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