The Quarter Circle A Ranch

The earliest records of the ranch show that it was first homesteaded in 1882 by the Clark family, and then owned by Mr. Becker. The first house built on the site at that time is now the former Ranch Foreman’s House to the north of the Ranch House. In 1892 William Moncreiffe of Scotland bought the homestead and surrounding land, established the Quarter Circle A Ranch and built the Main Ranch House (1892-93). His brother Malcolm Moncreiffe founded the Polo Ranch.

In 1923 William Moncreiffe sold the Main Ranch House (the Quarter Circle A headquarters) with one remaining section of ranch land (640 acres) to Bradford Brinton, and he and his wife Edith retired to the South of France. Brinton continued to use the Quarter Circle A as a gentleman’s working ranch and summer home, buying an additional 2200 acres located further east, and adding new buildings (e.g. the Horse Barn across the creek, Little Goose Creek Lodge) and in 1927/28 adding on to the Main House itself (porches and bay windows as well as an addition to the south and west–Prentice Sanger of New York was the architect he hired–Brinton and Sanger had met at Yale). After his death in 1936 his sister Helen Brinton inherited the ranch and used it as a summer home until her death in 1960.

The Brinton Ranch House was opened to the public as the Bradford Brinton Memorial on June 17, 1961 and is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Grounds

Before exploring our 24,000 square-foot Forrest E. Mars, Jr. Building, we invite guests take a guided tour of The Brinton Museum’s Historic Ranch House to view a large part of The Brinton Collection on display in its original setting, including artwork by Charles M. Russell, Frederic Remington, Edward Borein, Frank Tenney Johnson, Hans Kleiber, Bill Gollings and many others. You will be guided through the ranch outbuildings including Little Goose Creek Lodge and the historic Brinton Barn.

Once guests complete their tour of Bradford Brinton’s original ranch house and outbuildings, visitors are invited to stroll around the Brinton gardens, grounds and nature trails.