McGraw Ranch
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/McGraw_Ranch_barn.jpg/250px-McGraw_Ranch_barn.jpg)
The McGraws ranched the land unprofitably until John died in 1917. Irene continued ranching, but in 1935-36 converted to guest ranching. The McGraw family built several cabins, and under the motto "Ranching with Ease" the family operated the guest ranch until 1973. From 1973 to 1988 the property changed hands several times, until the National Park Service bought it with the intention to restore the landscape to its natural state as part of Rocky Mountain National Park. Opposition from local communities convinced the Park Service to convert the ranch to a research facility. It is the only intact dude ranch in Rocky Mountain National Park.
The ranch was used in 1936 by U.S. presidential candidate Alf Landon as a campaign headquarters, giving the ranch valuable publicity as it was being converted to a dude ranch.
See also
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
- ^ "McGraw Ranch". List of Classified Structures. National Park Service. January 10, 2009. Archived from the original on May 21, 2011. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
- ^ R. Laurie Simmons and Thomas H. Simmons (August 7, 1998). National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: McGraw Ranch (pdf). National Park Service.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- McGraw Ranch at Coloradohistory.org
- Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) No. CO-175, "McGraw Ranch, McGraw Ranch Road, Estes Park vicinity, Larimer County, CO", 7 photos, 2 measured drawings, 11 data pages, 1 photo caption page