Ella Smith
10 X Ranch, northeast of Douglas
Ella, her three siblings and their parents live on a Southeastern Arizona ranch. Here, Ella is pictured in front of a stock trailer during a branding at the 10 X. “She was about 9 or 10 in this photo,” Baxter recalls. “Her job was to help the cowboys who were doing the branding by running the branding irons back and forth.”
Ashley Riggs
Crossed J Ranch, southeast of Willcox
The Crossed J sits at the base of the Chiricahua Mountains. In this photo, Ashley, age 11, is applying oil to a hot brand to cool it down and keep insects away. Her two younger siblings are in the background. “I was really impressed with her,” Baxter says. “At one point, she asked me about my Hasselblad camera. I’ve had assistants who couldn’t figure out how to load a Hasselblad, but she learned how to do it in about two minutes.”
Gideon Smith
10 X Ranch, northeast of Douglas
Gideon, Ella’s younger brother, works in the branding corral under the tutelage of Ed Ashurst. “Ed was mentoring five young ranch kids between the ages of 7 and 14,” Baxter recalls. “The kids performed tasks such as branding, heating up branding irons, vaccinating calves and delivering ear tags. They worked hard all morning in the heat and dust. In Gideon’s hand are calf testicles he’s taking to a hot griddle; ‘calf fries’ are commonly cooked and eaten during branding.”
Vinson Picozzi
MLY Ranch, near Greer
The MLY neighbors the X Diamond. Vinson is the son of rancher Kym Johnson and the great-grandson of Louis Johnson, who was John Wayne’s partner in the nearby, 50,000-acre 26 Bar Ranch. And his grandmother, the late Sug Peters, was the owner of the MLY. “Vinson just folded his arms that way,” Baxter says. “I barely had to direct him at all.”
Allison Ashurst
10 X Ranch, northeast of Douglas
Allison comes from a long line of cowboys: Both her father, Everett, and her grandfather Ed — a noted Western writer — ran some of the largest cow outfits in Arizona, including the Diamond A and Babbitt ranches. “Allison starts her own horses, cowboys with her family and other employers, and competes in high school rodeo,” Baxter says. “She was about 11 when I shot this, and when I was running a bunch of horses with a crew of cowboys, she was the one with the walkie-talkie, helping to direct the crew in moving the remuda.”
Michael Cordrey
Flying UW and Haydon-Combe Ranches, near Winkelman
Michael, affectionately called “Brother” by his relatives, is another member of a ranching family. His mother, Jenny Meyer Cordrey, and aunt, Katie Meyer Cline, run the Flying UW and the neighboring Haydon-Combe. “I photographed other members of this family for my 100 Years 100 Ranchers project,” Baxter says. “I’m always taken by ranch kids’ behavior: They’re extremely polite and well-mannered, and they all work hard. Michael was no exception.”
Vinson Picozzi, Keaton Jasso and Kaden Summer
X Diamond Ranch, near Greer
This trio is shown at the X Diamond’s Voigt Allotment in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests. “I’ve known Vinson since he was born, but I had only recently met Keaton and Kaden,” photographer Scott Baxter says. “These kids had just finished moving cattle from near the West Fork of the Black River down to Greer. They all were really nice young men.”