Remembering the American Ranch

by Drew Desmond, Secretary, Prescott Western Heritage Foundation for TG Magazine

One can still find old-timers who remember passing by her on their way to school. But by then, she was a mere ghost of her once glorious past. For the “American” was not only a livestock ranch, but a farm, a dairy, a stage stop, a hotel, a locale for social events, and a landmark for nearly a century.

Jefferson Harrison Lee brought his wife Agnes to Prescott, AZ, in July of 1864. “There were seven houses in the village,“ the Prescott Courier wrote. Lee took up several odd jobs until he homesteaded 160 acres about a mile down Granite Creek from Ft. Whipple. This property was named the City Ranch. Yet Lee was desirous of the ranch owned by Dan Conner, who came to Prescott with the Walker party. At one point Lee offered to trade the City ranch for the American ranch property, but it fell through.

However, Conner eventually became restless and desired to go to California to search for more gold, so he offered the property to Lee. The price was incredibly cheap. Reportedly, Conner told Lee: “Well, that is a pretty good-looking six-shooter you have there. Suppose you give me the six-shooter and some ammunition, and we will make the trade.” Lee was overjoyed to take the bargain.

Lee started developing the American Ranch by himself while his family remained at City Ranch. He constructed an adobe house with an escape tunnel that had to be used at least twice to save his life. But when the danger faded away, Lee brought his family to the ranch, and he began to prosper.

It was in 1876 when Lee built the large two-story hotel and stage stop. It was located at a prime intersection on the Prescott to Hardyville tollroad. This grand building in the middle of the wilderness was 34 feet wide by 44 feet long. The first floor contained a saloon, a front parlor, an office, a dining room, a kitchen, two storage rooms and two bedrooms. The second story had a row of 4 bedrooms, an upstairs parlor, and a general hall which could be combined with the parlor (via folding doors) making a sizable dance floor of 21 by 43 feet. A veranda extended around three sides of the building, and on top of it all was an open observatory.

To celebrate the completion of his new building, Lee held a ball at a cost of $5 a ticket (a day’s pay for many laborers). The Weekly Miner reported that a large crowd attended the event and “those who went [were] enthusiastic in praise of the entertainment. It is just the right distance from town for a pleasant drive over a splendid road, making it almost impossible for the young people to stay away.” It would be the first of many successful dances and balls.

“When Agnes moved to the ranch she immediately expanded the dairy and poultry operations,” the Courier related. “Selling to Ft. Whipple that which could not be utilized at the ranch. A large acreage of beans, potatoes and other vegetables was planted. Apple and pear trees set out earlier came into bearing, and the meals she began serving to people passing by soon gained a wide reputation among regular travelers from California to New Mexico and points in between.” They raised pork, mutton, beef, chicken, eggs, corn, various fruits and vegetables, and silage.

Two or three freight or stage parties would pass by each day. At other stops freighters often cooked their own meals outside, but Agnes’ cooking was so good that many looked forward to eating in the ranch dining room. The Lees would also sell silage for the horses and mules and fresh food for the drivers as well. However, the stage business melted away after the Miller brothers constructed a new, shorter tollroad called (and still known as) Iron Springs Road.

Eventually, the Lee family passed on and the ranch house fell victim to weather and vandals. After standing nearly 100 years, it was finally, and unfortunately, bulldozed to the ground.

Today the ranch is the setting for luxury homes.