History of Rancho San Cayetano

The ranch first established in 1807, part of the original Native American settlement, which was adjacent to the old Tumacacori Mission, dating to the mission's founding in the 1600s.
The land was a part of Baca Float #3, a large land dispute in this area.  It was purchased by
T. T. Pendleton, and around that time, Arizona became a state.  Soon after this, the Santa Gertrudis cattle were introduced to the ranch from the Great King Ranch in Texas.  Several large ranches of similar size were sold off, and what is now Rancho San Cayetano was purchased by J. T. Mallory, the VP of General Motors of Detroit, Michigan.  His family began the tradition of fine horsemanship on this property that exhists to this day.

In 1924 the Mallory's built the grand hacienda style home which is surrounded by twisted iron wood beams carved with various brands.  They planted Sycamore trees along the main entrance, now towering, over 100 feel tall.  These sycamores provide shade all over the ranch, along with the abundance of native cottonwoods, mesquites, and elderberry that follow the Santa Cruz river which flows right through the property.

Following the Mallorys, the Merryweather family purchased the ranch in the late 1930s.  A handsome, social and politically active family, they continued the Santa Gertrudis cattle operation as a working ranch.  So did the Day family in the 1960s.  The two families were featured in the Town and Country magazine and Arizona Highways, with pictures shown of the ranch itself.  Also, about this time, a movie was filmed in the area with shots of the ranch house.  It was titled "Bottom of the Bottle", starring Ruth Roman and Van Johnson and was based on an novel written by a guest at the ranch.  The movie still airs occasionally on late night television.

Perhaps the most famous of all owners of the ranch were the Reeves.  Richard and Josephine (Seth Thomas) Reeve owned the ranch for almost thirty years.  Josephine's nephew, we know as "Superman", Christopher Reeves.  They came from the famous Bellota Ranch northeast of Tucson.  They purchased the Ranch, where they raised registered Quarter horses, and eventually they began to board horses. George Hemminger, bought the Ranch four years ago, and has turned it into the premier horse boarding facility, with year-round pasture, that it is today.