littlejoe
Well-known member
HELENA - The sprawling Broken O Ranch, which spans three counties and includes more than 20 miles of the Sun River near Augusta, is for sale for $132 million.
The 123,000-acre ranch was assembled during the past 20 years by William and Desiree Moore, founders of the Kelly-Moore Paint Co. After William Moore died in 2004 and his wife passed away last year, their children decided sell the property, according to ranch manager Dan Freeman.
"Their heirs that are taking this on are in a different age bracket with different interests, so they decided to sell," Freeman said. "We hope that whoever buys it will continue the legacy and not cut it up."
The ranch extends 26 miles from east to west and 12 miles north to south, and is located about 10 miles east of Augusta. Freeman said it's a well-diversified operation, including cattle, farming, irrigation and a feed lot.
Mike Swan, the managing broker of the Bates Sanders Swan Land Com. in Bozeman, said the property was listed for sale on Tuesday. He said he's seen larger ranches sold in recent years, like one in New Mexico, and more expensive parcels, like ranchettes in Jackson Hole, Wyo., but never one like the Broken O.
"I don't know of another ranch this size and scale that's been on the market in the last 10 years that compares to this," Swan said. "It's an extremely unique offering of a Western landmark, a ranch of this size and scale and production capabilities in a location as spectacular as this one. You just don't see these on the market."
The asking price includes 4,500 head of cattle and Montana's largest block of irrigated land - 13,000 acres - that historically averaged 25,000 tons of alfalfa hay and 700,000 bushels of small grain crops. The property includes 108,670 deeded acres and another 14,600 acres leased from the state of Montana and Bureau of Land Management.
"It's not the largest ranch in Montana but it's in the top 10 and it's the largest irrigated ranch," Freeman said.
It's also home to a wide range of wildlife, from the occasional grizzly to large herds of antelope, mule deer and whitetails.
Augusta resident Linda Wolfe said people are a little nervous about the sale of the ranch, mainly because change always makes people uneasy. She said the Moore family made considerable positive impacts within the small community, and that while people are sorry to see the family sell the ranch, they wish them the best.
"People are always scared of change and the Moores have been so supportive of the community, so I think people are a little nervous about what will happen," Wolfe said. "But I'm sure they were scared when he bought it and he turned out to be a really generous man to the community, as have his children.
"I think there's also a feeling out there that it's so much money that nobody will buy it right away, especially with this economy."
Wolfe pointed to the community center on Main Street as a symbol of how important the Broken O Ranch is to Augusta. The center was donated by the Moore family and now serves as the senior and youth center, but also is a gathering place for a wide range of activities.
"This building holds funerals, weddings, has the food bank, a clinic every other week. The Girl Scouts meet here, 4-H does too, they hold aerobic classes here and elections," Wolfe said. "This building is the community hub, and that's due to the Moores."
She said they've heard all sorts of rumors that the property already was sold, but those are only rumors. What's somewhat of a relief to the community is that the 25 to 30 employees will be kept on to run the ranch at this time, and they hope new owners will retain the hired hands.
"Even if somebody else buys it, they still need someone to run it, and these folks know the ranch," Wolfe said. "So we're not really scared that they'll lose their jobs."
Swan said he's received a lot of interest in the ranch, which is being marketed as a single parcel, but no offers yet.
The 123,000-acre ranch was assembled during the past 20 years by William and Desiree Moore, founders of the Kelly-Moore Paint Co. After William Moore died in 2004 and his wife passed away last year, their children decided sell the property, according to ranch manager Dan Freeman.
"Their heirs that are taking this on are in a different age bracket with different interests, so they decided to sell," Freeman said. "We hope that whoever buys it will continue the legacy and not cut it up."
The ranch extends 26 miles from east to west and 12 miles north to south, and is located about 10 miles east of Augusta. Freeman said it's a well-diversified operation, including cattle, farming, irrigation and a feed lot.
Mike Swan, the managing broker of the Bates Sanders Swan Land Com. in Bozeman, said the property was listed for sale on Tuesday. He said he's seen larger ranches sold in recent years, like one in New Mexico, and more expensive parcels, like ranchettes in Jackson Hole, Wyo., but never one like the Broken O.
"I don't know of another ranch this size and scale that's been on the market in the last 10 years that compares to this," Swan said. "It's an extremely unique offering of a Western landmark, a ranch of this size and scale and production capabilities in a location as spectacular as this one. You just don't see these on the market."
The asking price includes 4,500 head of cattle and Montana's largest block of irrigated land - 13,000 acres - that historically averaged 25,000 tons of alfalfa hay and 700,000 bushels of small grain crops. The property includes 108,670 deeded acres and another 14,600 acres leased from the state of Montana and Bureau of Land Management.
"It's not the largest ranch in Montana but it's in the top 10 and it's the largest irrigated ranch," Freeman said.
It's also home to a wide range of wildlife, from the occasional grizzly to large herds of antelope, mule deer and whitetails.
Augusta resident Linda Wolfe said people are a little nervous about the sale of the ranch, mainly because change always makes people uneasy. She said the Moore family made considerable positive impacts within the small community, and that while people are sorry to see the family sell the ranch, they wish them the best.
"People are always scared of change and the Moores have been so supportive of the community, so I think people are a little nervous about what will happen," Wolfe said. "But I'm sure they were scared when he bought it and he turned out to be a really generous man to the community, as have his children.
"I think there's also a feeling out there that it's so much money that nobody will buy it right away, especially with this economy."
Wolfe pointed to the community center on Main Street as a symbol of how important the Broken O Ranch is to Augusta. The center was donated by the Moore family and now serves as the senior and youth center, but also is a gathering place for a wide range of activities.
"This building holds funerals, weddings, has the food bank, a clinic every other week. The Girl Scouts meet here, 4-H does too, they hold aerobic classes here and elections," Wolfe said. "This building is the community hub, and that's due to the Moores."
She said they've heard all sorts of rumors that the property already was sold, but those are only rumors. What's somewhat of a relief to the community is that the 25 to 30 employees will be kept on to run the ranch at this time, and they hope new owners will retain the hired hands.
"Even if somebody else buys it, they still need someone to run it, and these folks know the ranch," Wolfe said. "So we're not really scared that they'll lose their jobs."
Swan said he's received a lot of interest in the ranch, which is being marketed as a single parcel, but no offers yet.
