Brown Canyon Ranch, formerly known as the Barchas Ranch, is a historic
ranch
A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most often ...
located in the foothills of the
Huachuca Mountains
The Huachuca Mountains are part of the Sierra Vista Ranger District of the Coronado National Forest in Cochise County in southeastern Arizona, approximately south-southeast of Tucson and southwest of the city of Sierra Vista. Included in this ar ...
, near
Sierra Vista, Arizona
Sierra Vista is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2020 Census, the population of the city is 45,308, and is the 27th most populous city in Arizona. The city is part of the Sierra Vista-Douglas Metropolitan Are ...
.
History
The land Brown Canyon Ranch is on was first settled around 1880 by John Thomas Brown, who owned a hotel a few miles away in neighboring Ramsey Canyon.
Following a succession of owners, the land eventually ended up in the hands of the brothers James and Tom Haverty. Between 1905 and 1907, James and his brother built what is today the most prominent building in the canyon, a modest three-room adobe home, now known as the Brown Canyon Ranch House. James and his wife Lessie
homestead
Homestead may refer to:
*Homestead (buildings), a farmhouse and its adjacent outbuildings; by extension, it can mean any small cluster of houses
*Homestead (unit), a unit of measurement equal to 160 acres
*Homestead principle, a legal concept th ...
ed the ranch in 1912 and lived there until 1921, when it was sold to William and Margaret Carmichael.
The Carmichaels were major landowners in the Sierra Vista area and did not take up residence at the house. Instead, they rented it out to a local miner named Harvey James and later a
Yaqui Indian named Chico Romero and his family. In 1946, the Carmichaels sold the ranch to Roy and Stella Rambo, who raised cattle on it until 1957, when it was again sold to Samuel and Cecile Barchas. The Barchas family did not live on the ranch, either, but they raised livestock on it all the way up until 1997. One year later it was deeded to the
United States Forest Service
The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency inc ...
in a land exchange.
Efforts to preserve and restore the historic ranch house, as well as its associated outbuildings, has been underway since 1998. In addition to the ranch house, there is also a one-room adobe storeroom adjacent to the house, a wooden corral and outhouse, the stone ruins of a barn, and a pair of man-made ponds, which are now used as a preserve for the endangered
Chiricahua leopard frog
The Chiricahua leopard frog (''Lithobates chiricahuensis'' syn. ''Rana chiricahuensis'') is a species of frog in the family Ranidae, the true frogs. Distribution and habitat
It is native to Mexico and the United States (Arizona and New Mexico) ...
. Further up the trail is a small graveyard known as the Brown Canyon Cemetery, followed by the ruins of an old house and the remains of the Pomono Mine. The ranch is open to hikers and picnickers, free of charge, for day use only.
Buildings and remnants
There are several historic buildings and other remnants at the Brown Canyon Ranch, including the following:
* Ranch House: Adobe L-shaped building with a tin hipped roof, including a main living room, a kitchen in the center, and a bedroom
* Storeroom: One-room adobe building with a tin roof, adjacent to the bedroom of the ranch house
* Barn: Stone building in ruins
* Outhouse: Attached to the corral
* Corral: Wooden structure
* Windmill: Attached to a small water tank, now used as a preserve for the Chircahua leopard frog
* Frog ponds: Two man-made ponds now used as a preserve for the Chiricahua leopard frog
* Old house: Ruins up the trail from the ranch house
* Brown Canyon Cemetery: A small graveyard near the ruins of the old house
* Pomono Mine: former mining operation from the early 20th century
Photo gallery
Kitchen Brown Canyon Ranch House Arizona 2014.jpeg, The kitchen inside the Brown Canyon Ranch House.
Brown Canyon Ranch 3.jpg, The living room.
Brown Canyon Ranch 2.jpg, The bedroom.
Corral & Outhouse Borwn Canyon Ranch Arizona 2014.jpeg, The corral, an outhouse and a windmill attached to the water tank.
Barn Ruins Brown Canyon Ranch Arizona 2014.jpeg, Ruins of the barn.
Frog Pond Brown Canyon Ranch Arizona 2014.jpeg, One of the frog ponds.
See also
*
Little Boquillas Ranch
The Little Boquillas Ranch is an historic ranch property located in western Cochise County, Arizona, near the Fairbank Historic Townsite in what is now part of the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area.
History The ranch era
The Little B ...
*
Faraway Ranch Historic District
The Faraway Ranch Historic District is part of the Chiricahua National Monument in southeastern Arizona, and preserves an area associated with the final conflicts with the local Apache, one of the last frontier settlements, and in particular, i ...
*
San Bernardino Ranch
San Bernardino Ranch is an historic ranch house in the southern San Bernardino Valley near the San Bernardino National Wildlife Refuge in extreme southeast Cochise County, Arizona, United States. It is significant for its association with the beg ...
*
San Rafael Ranch
The San Rafael Ranch, formerly known as the Greene Ranch, is a historic cattle ranch located in the San Rafael Valley about a mile and a half north of Lochiel, Arizona, near the international border with Sonora, Mexico.
History
The land that is n ...
*
Empire Ranch
Empire Ranch is a working cattle ranch in southeastern Pima County, Arizona, that was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. In its heyday, Empire Ranch was one of the largest in Arizona, with a range spanning over , and it ...
References
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Ranches in Arizona
Houses completed in 1907
1907 establishments in Arizona Territory
Buildings and structures in Cochise County, Arizona
History of Cochise County, Arizona
Tourist attractions in Cochise County, Arizona