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John Walker Myers and the Ranch at the Bear River Crossing

An English-born trader turned a Mormon Trail river crossing into a stage station, a Pony Express stop and one of the earliest cattle ranches in what became Wyoming.

Who Was John Walker Myers?

John Walker Myers was a trader and cattleman whose ranch sat where the Mormon Trail crossed the Bear River, south of present-day Evanston in southwestern Wyoming. The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum calls him Wyoming's first rancher. That label is the museum's, and it rests on the combination of an early ranch, an early registered brand and a place on the stage and mail routes.

Born in England in 1825, Myers died in 1901. The sources I could open give the outline of his adult life but few personal details, so this profile concentrates on the ranch and the crossing.

From England to the Overland Trail

The museum says that in the 1850s Myers drove a team of oxen from St. Louis to Florence, Nebraska, and on to Salt Lake City. After two years he married and settled in what became Uinta County. That path was the working route of freighters and emigrants heading west, and a man who could drive ox teams across it knew where the traffic and the supply needs were.

Settling at the Bear River was a deliberate choice of location. The historical marker at the crossing says Myers ferried emigrants over the river and sold them supplies from his store, and that the nearby land was a welcome rest stop for exhausted travelers.

Bear River Station and the Pony Express

According to the marker text, the Myers Ranch at the Bear River bridge was designated Bear River Station on the Overland Stage Route in 1858, where mail and freight were left. In 1861 the ranch also became a changing station for the Pony Express. The museum gives the same two roles.

That stage and mail work is part of why a trader's ranch deserves a place in cattle history. Travelers brought cash and needs, and the station supplied both feed and food. The roadside marker ties the ranch to the Mormon Trail, the Overland route and the Pony Express, three famous routes in one spot.

Yoke 9 and the First Water Right

The museum reports that the ranch focused on shorthorn cattle and that his Yoke 9 brand was the first registered in Wyoming. A registered brand matters because it was the legal mark of ownership on the open range. WyoHistory.org's Uinta County entry adds that in 1858 Myers established the first ranch in the Bear River drainage and filed the first water right in what later became Wyoming Territory.

Both claims describe a man who put legal paper behind his property early. The dates sit awkwardly with the territory's formal creation, since Wyoming Territory itself was organized in 1868, so the phrase first in Wyoming means first in the area that later became Wyoming. Sources differ on the finer points, and the museum and the county entry are the two I could cross-check.

The Key to Myers's Success

The documented record shows a man who built a ranch on top of services travelers needed. The cattle came later and sat alongside other income.

The sources do not describe his herd size, finances or labor, and they do not discuss disputes over land or water. Those gaps mean that this section describes the pattern of his business, not a full accounting.

  • He chose a crossing, not just a pasture: the ranch sat at the Bear River on the Mormon Trail.
  • He sold services before selling cattle, ferrying emigrants and running a store.
  • He took on mail and stage work, with Bear River Station designated in 1858 and a Pony Express stop added in 1861.
  • He diversified, running a timber business that supplied poles for new telegraph lines, per the museum.
  • He secured legal footing early, with the Yoke 9 brand and, per WyoHistory.org, the first water right filed in the area.

Timber, Telegraph Poles and Shorthorns

The timber business gave the ranch a second line of income. The museum says Myers supplied poles for new telegraph lines, which would have needed wood on a large scale as the telegraph spread west. Shorthorn cattle suited the mixed farm and ranch economy of a river valley with irrigation and hay.

The county history explains that after the transcontinental railroad in 1869, cattle and sheep ranching grew quickly across Uinta County, with livestock on mountain meadows in summer and local hay in winter. Myers's ranch was already there before that expansion.

Legacy and Where to Read More

WyoHistory.org says family members still operate the ranch, which is a rare record of continuity for a business that began before the territory existed. The museum inducted Myers into the Hall of Great Westerners in 1960.

If you are following the story of how ranching started in the Mountain West, the ranching pages on farm.FM are a place to keep going, and a farm.FM story about pioneer ranching gives a wider view. For this profile, the main limit is the short record: a fuller life of Myers would need county histories I could not open.

Timeline

  1. 1825Born in England
  2. 1858Myers Ranch at the Bear River crossing designated Bear River Station on the Overland Stage Route; first ranch in the Bear River drainage, per WyoHistory.org
  3. 1861Ranch becomes a Pony Express changing station
  4. 1901Dies
  5. 1960Inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners

Frequently asked questions

Who was John Walker Myers?

John Walker Myers (1825 to 1901) was an English-born trader and cattleman who ran Myers Ranch at the Bear River crossing in what became Uinta County, Wyoming. The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum calls him Wyoming's first rancher.

What was Bear River Station?

Bear River Station was the Myers Ranch at the Bear River bridge, designated a station on the Overland Stage Route in 1858 and used as a Pony Express changing station in 1861, according to the marker and the museum.

What was the Yoke 9 brand?

Yoke 9 was John Myers's cattle brand, described by the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum as the first brand registered in Wyoming.

Is the Myers Ranch still operating?

WyoHistory.org says family members still operate the ranch, located south of Evanston where the Mormon Trail crossed the Bear River.

Sources and further reading

Profiles are compiled from public sources and reviewed against them. See our editorial policy to suggest a correction.

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