Caroline Lockhart Ranch: Cultural Landscape Inventory, Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, National Park Service

Shapins Associates, Contractor; Finley, Chris

The Caroline Lockhart Ranch is an agricultural complex located in southern Montana, within the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area. The ranch lies between the Pryor Mountain Range and the Bighorn River, at the terminus of Wassin Canyon. It once contained more than 6000 acres; however, the cultural landscape focuses on a 125-acre area that includes the developed ranch complex, neighboring pastures, and historic circulation systems. The ranch site was first settled by Lincoln Hannon, who was listed on the 1900 local census. Hannon constructed a small log home and a saddle/tack shed, and it is likely that he started construction of the root cellar and established 20 acres of irrigated hay fields. The property was purchased by George W. Burkey in 1905, who was the postmaster from 1906 until 1908 when the post office closed. Very little documentation exists about Burkey’s contributions to ranch development, but he probably constructed the first portion of the log house James Wasson occupied and added onto in 1920. James Wasson came to the ranch in 1909 after filing a Homestead Claim. During his tenure, he maintained and improved the 160-acre homestead. The ranch was sold to noted author and publisher Caroline Lockhart in 1926, where she spent a quarter-century acquiring several thousand acres of range and establishing a successful ranching operation, known as L/Heart. Activity at the ranch site decreased around 1950-55, during which time Lockhart retired to Cody, WY. The was sold to Isaac Tippetts, who later granted the ranch to his son, Ivan. Following establishment of the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area in 1966, the National Park Service (NPS) expressed interest in acquiring the property, and negotiations for purchase were concluded in 1980. The basic infrastructure of the ranch complex was established between 1900 and 1926 during the Hannon, Burkey, and Wasson years of occupation. The complex contained seven structures and 20 acres of cultivated ground. Lockhart constructed an additional 15 structures, fencing, irrigation systems, and cultivated areas. Built features utilized local materials to align with the natural landscape. Although the Great Depression of the 1930s impaired the ranching industry of the Dryhead region, Lockhart continued to expand her ranching operation, acquiring adjoining properties and supervising improvements to her ranch. Most of the buildings added during her ownership were reassembled structures removed from other ranches purchased during this expansion. Prior to selling the ranch in 1955, some structures had fallen into disrepair, and irrigated fields used for pasturing were minimally tended. Under the Tippetts’ ownership of the ranch, irrigated pastures continued to be utilized, but few alterations were made to expand or preserve extant buildings. The period of significance—1900 to 1950—includes the years of ranch development and use, beginning with Hannon's arrival and first log cabin, and continuing through the expansive cattle ranching enterprise and retreat of Caroline Lockhart. The site layout reflects the organization of a small, earlier homesteads, while later additions illustrate the functions of Lockhart’s L/Heart ranch headquarters. Most of the historic-era landscape features remain intact, and built structures continue to maintain historic integrity due to an extensive long term effort by NPS staff to stabilize and repair the structures. Minor alterations and additions have occurred since the period of significance; yet the historic character, physical form, and setting are largely unchanged from Lockhart’s tenure. Thus, the Caroline Lockhart Ranch is a representative example of regional architecture and a ranch complex established in the Dryhead frontier during the first half of the 20th century.

Caroline Lockhart Ranch: Cultural Landscape Inventory, Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, National Park Service

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