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Wyoming Livestock Roundup • Volume 32 No. 35 • December 26, 2020
OBITUARIES
We welcome obituaries. Obituaries are printed free of charge and can be sent to roundup@wylr.net.
Bradley Matthew Iiams March 27, 1948 – Dec. 6, 2020
Bradley Matthew Iiams, a life-long rancher of Lander passed away on Dec. 6 at Promise Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah as the sun was setting. Brad was born March 27, 1948 in Lander to LeRoy Iiams and Marie (Campbell) Alexander. He was named after Marie’s grandfather David Bradley and LeRoy’s uncle Matt. He was born and raised on the pioneer Iiams Ranch located on Table Mountain and where the Wyoming Life Resource Center now sits. When Brad was four years old, his dad bought a small Farmall tractor, and he learned to rake hay. From then on, he worked in the hayfields with his
dad and his brother Samuel. They ran about 200 head of cattle and 500 head of sheep on the outside permits of Beaver in McGraw Flatts, Government Draw, Strawberry Creek and Twin Creek. The Iiams Family sold milk and cream in Lander from their dairy cows. Brad truly disliked milking those cows and drinking milk. During his school years, Brad was active in the local 4-H and FFA, winning many state awards for both. He was also a high school state champion wrestler. He graduated from the Lander Vocational High School in 1966, and he earned a scholarship to Denver Tech. Brad’s time in Denver was cut short when his dad passed away on May 9, 1967. Brad returned home from Denver and operated the Iiams Ranch with his mother until 1971. Brad married the love of his life, Susan Martin of Lander, on March 29, 1972 in the First United Method-
ist Church of Lander. In 1972, Brad and Susan purchased the Iiams Ranch from his mother. Brad and Susan were active cattle ranchers through the years, but their focus was always the hay and pasture. Brad and Susan later built a rental trailer home park at the lower Iiams Ranch. Brad did backhoe work digging for neighboring farmers and ranchers, always lending a helping hand. He was a very active member and shareholder with the North Lateral Ditch, Parker McBride Ditch and Nicole-Table Ditch Companies. He was one of the first Table Mountain ranchers to install underground water irrigation sprinklers. Brad and Susan’s first child Jamie Alina was born on Feb. 1, 1979, and Field Tyrel was born May 14, 1981. On the day Field was born, Brad shouted throughout the Lander Hospital, “It’s a boy!” Brad loved his children
with all his heart. He was so proud of them and all of their accomplishments. Brad was a very wellknown musician throughout Wyoming. He formed the Iiams Band, which was later called the The Silver Express Band and played almost every Friday and Saturday night, standing on the stage with his guitar and his band members singing the country and old-time rock-n-roll tunes. After the large Iiams Ranch barn was built in the 1940s, the family hosted several community barn dances and everyone who lived in Fremont County attended the “Iiams Barn Dances.” The Iiams barn dances had quite a clientele from around the state from Casper, to Farson and to Cody. Brad and Susan continued the historic barn dances with Brad’s band playing the music. They held the last Iiams barn dance in 1981 with over 300 people in attendance. Brad and Susan designed and built a beautiful two-story log home where the old Iiams Ranch pioneer home was located. They were the first to purchase logs from Wyoming Wood Products in Lander, and Brad was the first to tell them the saw was not cutting square.
Brad completed the filing on the Iron Spring and piped it into their home by hand and with his backhoe. Building the house was one of Brad’s proudest accomplishments. He would always say, “Look at this beautiful house.” Brad and Susan remained in the house together until he passed. Susan, Jamie, Field, LeeAnn, Xane and Reece continue to live on the Iiams Ranch to this day, working the land with pride and honor, just as Brad had. One of Brad’s greatest joys was helping his son build his own shop and house and seeing Jamie become a first-generation college graduate. Holding his grandsons Xane Bradley and Reece Jerome in his arms was one of Brad’s most cherished moments. He loved both his grandsons. Brad loved a good, homecooked meal, playing his music, driving his tractor and most of all his family. He will be missed dearly. Brad was preceded in death by his father LeRoy Iiams; his brother Samuel Iiams; grandparents Roy and Christine Iiams and Morris and Gladys Alexander; aunts Emily Iiams Hedges, Betty Iiams Hornecker and Charlotte Alexander and uncles Bar-
ney Alexander and Albert Hornecker. Survivors include his loving wife of 48 years Susan Iiams; daughter Jamie Iiams; son Field (LeeAnn) Iiams; grandsons Xane Bradley and Reece Jerome Iiams; his mother Marie Alexander Campbell; Wainwright Gustin, who has always been like a father to Brad; brother-in-law Jay Martin; step-brother Colin (Sandy) Campbell; nephew Robby Martin; niece Jennifer Martin, great-niece Annabelle Martin; great-nephews Bodhi and Monte Ranelle; niece Krista (Cole) Nethercott and their children; niece Colleen (Jake) Conilogue and their children and numerous other cousins, family and friends. A service was held Dec. 19 with a tractorwagon procession from the Iiams Family homestead to the Mount Hope Cemetery. Condolence flowers, cards and/or memorial donations to Xane and Reece Iiams College Fund may be mailed or delivered to the Iiams Family at 28 Iiams Road, Lander, WY 82520. Condolence flowers and/ or cards for Brad’s mom may be mailed or delivered to Marie Campbell at 150 Caring Way, Lander, WY 82520.
Despite lifted bans, individuals should practice winter wildfire safety Although fire bans have been lifted across Wyoming and several other western states, warmer winter temperatures and lack of recent moisture and snowpack means individuals and recreationalists need to remain aware of wildfire safety. “As we look at conditions across the country, all of the elements are there for winter wildfire outbreaks,” noted Eric Atkinson, host of Kansas State University’s (KSU) Agriculture Today podcast.
During the Dec. 14 episode, Atkinson sat down with KSU State Fire Management Officer Mark Neely, who points out the heightened potential for winter wildfires as the dry weather pattern is expected to continue. Contributing factors Neely notes there are a few factors contributing to the heightened potential for wildfires this winter. First are the dry, drought conditions caused by the current La Niña weather event. “The reality is, there
is a La Niña in place, so we haven’t received a lot of moisture, and it may or may not come in the future. Because of this, a lot of fuels have dried out and have gone into their dormant season, but they aren’t snow packed down,” Neely says. “Instead, they are standing upright, which allows more oxygen into the fuels. This can easily be ignited by a big wind event and start a large fire.” Neely also notes, despite dry conditions persisting in the West throughout the
summer, fall and now into winter months, there is still an abundance of fuel materials. “Currently, there are a lot of what we call 1,000-hour fuels. These are large logs and fuels that have spent the past six months drying out because they didn’t receive adequate amounts of moisture,” he explains. “Not only are they readily available to start catching fire, they also produce more heat, burn for a longer period of time and take a lot more effort to put
“As we look at conditions across the country, all of the elements are there for winter wildfire outbreaks.” – Eric Atkinson, Kansas State University out.” Additionally, Neely notes areas with low relative humidity are more apt to see winter wildfires than areas with higher relative humidity. Mitigating wildfire risk According to Neely, there are a few things indi-
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viduals can do to reduce the risk of wildfires this winter. “Being a landowner and a recreationalist has its responsibilities,” he states. Neely notes warmer temperatures may result in more people spending their winter months recreating outdoors, and he encourages them to recreate with the same wildfire awareness they would during the summer. In regards to landowners, Neely encourages individuals to clean leaves out of their gutters and flowerbeds. “Be sure to look around houses, outbuildings, shops, barns, propane tanks, firewood piles, etc. for any flammable material that can hold an ember and ignite,” he says. “There is also some value in knocking down any heavier fuel loads around the house, such as brush, bushes, weeds, etc. Individuals should keep tall grass around the edges of their property mowed down and free of trash.” Neely continues, “The more individuals practicing fire awareness, the more the entire community will benefit.” Hannah Bugas is the editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.
