TUCSON, Ariz. – To commemorate the centennial of the Dude Ranchers’ Association in 2026, the DRA, Ranch Preservation Foundation and Dude Ranch Foundation have collaborated on a new photo-driven coffee-table book that will be released in December 2025. “100 Years of Dude Ranching: Celebrating the Centennial of the Dude Ranchers’ Association” features a history of the DRA and dude ranching, as well as a section on “Centennial Ranches” that were accepting guests in 1926 and are still in operation today.
“‘100 Years of Dude Ranching’ is a wonderful tribute to a century of hospitality in the American West,” said Jaye Wells, Ranch Preservation Foundation Board Member. “From the founding of the Dude Ranchers’ Association to dude ranches’ enduring appeal today, it tells the story of an industry that pioneered America’s first destination vacation and how it has evolved through the years. In photos and words, it captures the unique spirit of these places and the people behind them.”
In the late 1800s, ranchers found that East Coast travelers who were exploring the American West, also known as “dudes,” longed to extend their stay and were happy to pay in exchange for lodging. Dude ranching got its official start in 1926, when a group of ranchers created a governing organization for the industry, the Dude Ranchers’ Association.
“100 Years of Dude Ranching” explores historical and modern dude ranching, and 26 “Centennial Ranches” in Arizona, Colorado, Montana and Wyoming at the forefront of the industry, hosting guests by 1926 and continuing to welcome them today.
The book pairs historic photos of the “Centennial Ranches” and modern images captured by award-winning photographer Scott T. Baxter with information about how each ranch has changed over the past century. Baxter’s fine art photography of the American West is in numerous museums and private collections.
It also includes a written history of the DRA and dude ranching authored by Lynn Downey. Downey is a historian, the award-winning author of “American Dude Ranch: A Touch of the Cowboy and the Thrill of the West” and a member of the Dude Ranch Foundation Board of Directors. The foreword is by Bob Boze Bell, executive editor of True West Magazine.
Retail price of the 200-page hardcover book is $79.95 and proceeds will be donated to the nonprofit Dude Ranch Foundation to support its work in the dude ranching industry.
To order, visit https://www.ranchpreservationfoundation.org/100-years-of-dude-ranching.
About Ranch Preservation Foundation
Ranch Preservation Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded to promote the protection, restoration and preservation of historic western ranches and related projects. The foundation honors the storied histories of each unique property to maintain the connection to the past and history of dude ranching. Current projects include work with the O.T.O. Dude Ranch, Montana’s first dude ranch, and Rancho de la Osa, one of the most historic ranches in Arizona. For more information, visit https://www.ranchpreservationfoundation.org/.
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