1. Henry Clay Hooker was a prominent and wealthy rancher during the American Old West who formed the first and what became the largest American ranch in Arizona Territory.
19 Facts About Henry Hooker
1. 2.
Henry Hooker was a personal friend of Wyatt Earp and aided him after the Earp Vendetta Ride.
3.
Henry Clay Hooker was born January 10,1828, in Hinsdale, New Hampshire on a farm that had belonged to his great-grandfather.
4.
Henry Hooker was sixth among 10 siblings: Amelia Prentice, Julia Worthington, George Prince, Charles Gay, Anson Carey, Almira Ann, Minerva Sophia, Anson Carey, John Daggett, and Mary Rosella.
5.
Henry Hooker worked for the Indian Department until 1852 when he moved to El Dorado County, California, during the California Gold Rush.
6.
Henry Hooker started a mercantile business or hardware store and sold supplies to the miners.
7.
Once in a while Henry Hooker would buy and drive cattle east, over the Sierra, to sell to the Comstock Lode miners in the region around Carson City and Genoa, Nevada.
8.
Henry Hooker bought turkeys from a number of local ranchers at a generous price of $1.50 per head.
9.
Henry Hooker hired a man, bought two dogs, and started over the Sierra Nevada with 500 turkeys.
10.
Henry Hooker almost lost the entire flock near his destination when they took flight at the top of a cliff, but was able to recapture the birds when they landed in the valley below.
11.
Henry Hooker drove them through the middle of Carson City and sold them for $5.00 per head, realizing a profit of about $1750.
12.
Henry Hooker, who was referred by the honorary title of "Colonel Henry Hooker", arrived in the Arizona Territory with the profits from his turkey venture in 1867.
13.
Henry Hooker built up a cattle operation supplying beef to the military.
14.
Henry Hooker brought 10,000 Texas Longhorns from Texas in 1872.
15.
Henry Hooker was impressed by the valley, and after the Apache threat was sufficiently reduced, in 1872 he decided to locate his ranch there.
16.
Henry Hooker named it the Sierra Bonita Ranch for the views of the nearby mountains.
17.
Henry Hooker built a sound operation and his ranch was a key part in cattle production in the Arizona Territory that by 1891 supported 1.5 million cattle on the open range.
18.
Henry Hooker hired Billy the Kid before he became famous during the Lincoln County War.
19.
On March 27,1882, after the Earp Vendetta Ride, Henry Hooker hosted the Earps and their companions on their way out of the Arizona Territory.