Many moons ago, farmers lived in a different day and age. There were no cell phones, no Starbucks, no new and improved farm equipment - Just acres upon acres of farmland, their livestock, and that bell ringing over yonder signalling supper time. Indeed, times have changed but farm life will always be ... farm life. Someone once told me, you can't take the farm out of the kid.
As farming and ranching practices begin to change, the traditional branding method is somewhat taking a back seat to identification tags and tattoos. Branding was the first practice farmers used and is still prevalent due to the logistics of microchipping and the food chain.
Branding is a character or combination of characters applied to farm animals to identify ownership. If ever cows or horses wandered astray, these brands would make their identification known and they would be returned to their rightful owner.
This brings me to my first Friday find at the Stockmen's Memorial Foundation - and a very fitting way to start this journey. Senator, Matthew Henry Cochrane would establish the Cochrane Ranche in 1881 and this would be how the town would come into its name. The Cochrane Ranche was Alberta's first large-scale cattle ranch totalling close to 144,000 ha of rangeland. Cochrane would purchase thousands of cattle from Montana and would eventually become Western Canada's first great cattle ranchers.
Cochrane's first-ever brand was registered on July 18, 1881. It would take the shape of a "C" with a line near the top of the curve. The brand would be placed on the left hip for cattle and the right rib for horses.
Check back next week when I will reveal another Friday find from the Stockmen's Memorial Foundation.
The Stockmen's Memorial Library, located at the Cochrane RancheHouse, has a wealth of ranching history to explore, including brand records dating back generations. Check it out from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday to Friday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the weekends.
