A Brief history
Homesteading to heritage house
History of Homesteading In America
History of the Ranch and Old Ranch House
This timeline is rough and not cohesive since it's cobbled together from several sources, and there were several buildings on the spread.
Sources: Redmond Historical Commission (Walt Seely), Ancestry.com, and familysearch.org
Random History of the Ranch
More Local History http://bit.ly/2FRNnAM
If you have information that might be of interest, please let us know.
Even better is when you can substantiate with article, reference material, etc.
Please use the Contact Us tab if you have stories, photos, etc, to share, or are interested in joining the committee or our meetings.
- 1803 ~ President Jefferson negotiated the Louisiana Purchase, adding more than 500 million acres of public lands west of the Mississippi River. From 1800 to 1812, Congress created 14 new land districts besides those established in 1800. For each new district a land office had to be set up.
- 1812 ~ On April 25, 1812, by an Act of Congress the General Land Office was created within the Treasury Department. It was the first Bureau to be created within a department.
- 1862 - 1916 ~ The Homestead Acts were several United State federal laws that gave an applicant ownership of land, typically called a “homestead,” at no cost. In all, more than 270 million acres of public land, or nearly 10 percent of the total area of the US, was given away free to 1.6 million homesteaders; most of the homesteads were west of the Mississippi River.The first of the acts, the Homestead Act of 1862, opened up millions of acres. An amendment to the Homestead Act of 1862, the Enlarged Homestead Act, was passed in 1909 and doubled the allotted acreage from 160 to 320 acres. Another amended act, the national Stock-Raising Homestead Act, was passed in 1916 and again increased the land involved, this time to 640 acres. (Homesteading ended in 1976.)
- 1946 ~ The General Land Office became a part of the new Bureau of Land Management within the Interior Department.
History of the Ranch and Old Ranch House
This timeline is rough and not cohesive since it's cobbled together from several sources, and there were several buildings on the spread.
Sources: Redmond Historical Commission (Walt Seely), Ancestry.com, and familysearch.org
- Homestead Date? Who? Eastern Office of BLM researching for us...
- 1815 ~
- 1910 ~ A Hillsboro politician by the name of Harry V. Gates purchased the property from homesteaders, forming what was known for years as the “Gates Ranch”. Later an engineer in heavy construction, water and power systems for towns, he put in a water pump on the river...to the top of the canyon, and set up a power plant for the ranch. His son, Oliver, also buys land.
- 1915-1920 ~ This house was built in 1916 as the family residence for the working cattle ranch... They put up a house to live in while they built a home. A barn was next and a fence to go around it all. Heim increased the size of the ranch, buying more land, raising hay for his livestock...said to own or control about 20,000 acres.
- 1915 ~ Daughter Helen Gates marries Charles W. Heim and they also begin buying land, and building three houses and farm buildings, silo, and round barn to begin the cattle ranch.
- 1927 ~ Charles and Helen build a home in Redmond.
- 1932 ~ Officially named Crooked River Ranch
- 1932 ~ 1942 The house sat vacant, alone and neglected.
- 1942 ~ Heim sold the entire ranch to Aubrey Wardman. Wardman hired Carroll Lawrence to serve as the foreman of Wardman’s Crooked River Ranch. The Lawrence family was hired to take care of the cattle. They moved into the house with no heat except the fireplace and a cook-stove.
- 1957 ~ Roy Yunker bought the Ranch, lived at the coast, but visited often. When Ray died, his son inherited it and his grandson bought a parcel on Horny Hollow Trail.
- 1959 ~ Wardman sold to Mr. I.C. Stearns, about 10,000 acres at the time.
- 1961 ~ The Ranch was purchased by the Thomas Bell family. It was operated as the Z-Z Cattle Co. for the next 10 years.
- 1972 ~ Became recreational land (remember Crooked River Bob and his twirling cowboy hat on TV ads?)
- 1980 ~ The Ranch's zoning changed from recreational to rural/residential.
- 1982 ~ The house, along with several other properties and facilities, are deeded to the Crooked River Ranch Club & Maintenance Association.
- 1992 ~ Final rezoning took place, which made the Ranch a residential subdivision, and the largest residential HOA in Oregon ~10,000 acres and 2646 lots and residences, with a growing commercial district in the canyon.
- 1995 ~ Starting in 1995, thru determination, resources, and experience, the CRR Senior Group was formed. Along with members of our Ranch community, they breathed new life into this old house. This historical house, now over 100 years old, affords warmth and space for a variety of groups.
- 2016 ~ "The Heritage House" pen & ink portrait was created by Alyssa Fendall Wagner.
- 2018 ~ Ongoing, the House is being redecorated with period design. The Bride & Groom rooms, Dale's Room (a museum of photos and relics), Lending Library, main floor restroom, and the kitchen are basically complete. Many people, including the CRR Lions, CRR golf club, and pickle-ball folks, support the house with their time and finances.
- 2022 ~ New flooring product installed in the Back Porch Pantry
- 2022 ~ The CRR History Group was formed to begin the tedious yet rewarding task of creating a public access to Crooked River Ranch history.
Random History of the Ranch
- Movies filmed here and near here: The Way West, 1967-; Rooster Cogburn, 1975-; Love at Large, 1990-; From Oregon with Love, 1992-; The Postman, 1997-. Find information about Oregon films at http://bit.ly/2FJ73e4
- Hollywood Trail: coming soon
More Local History http://bit.ly/2FRNnAM
If you have information that might be of interest, please let us know.
Even better is when you can substantiate with article, reference material, etc.
Please use the Contact Us tab if you have stories, photos, etc, to share, or are interested in joining the committee or our meetings.
Page updated 10/5/2022
Heritage House
6710 SW Ranch House Road, Crooked River Ranch, OR 97760
[email protected]
Message Phone 541-504-8236
Heritage House
6710 SW Ranch House Road, Crooked River Ranch, OR 97760
[email protected]
Message Phone 541-504-8236