Hat Ranch near Williams, Arizona, has a layered history of conservation and public life.
The area was first home to the Cohonina, who farmed and foraged along drainages and pinyon tree stands. Later, Pai, Pueblo and Diné families also took part in the seasonal pinyon harvest, sustaining communal ties to the land.
Isabella Greenway, Arizona’s first congresswoman and a close friend of Eleanor Roosevelt, built Hat Ranch in 1928. Greenway expanded the ranch to more than 130,000 acres and rose to prominence as a Democratic leader.
Franklin D. Roosevelt visited Hat Ranch during his presidential campaign, cementing the property’s place in American political history. In an effort to “toughen up” her children, Eleanor Roosevelt even sent her two sons to work as summer cowhands on the ranch.
Later, in 1963, friend of the family — and one-day president — George W. Bush, followed the same tradition, building fences and helping with odd jobs at Hat Ranch.
One of the world’s most respected Arabian horse breeders, Bazy Tankersley, later purchased Hat Ranch as a high-elevation training ground for young horses. She hosted “Straw Bale Forums” that brought together politicians, conservation leaders and academics. Though a Republican for most of her life, she kept a photo of FDR at the ranch and maintained ties with the Roosevelt family. Bazy permanently protected thousands of acres of her ranch by placing them into a conservation easement with the Grand Canyon Trust.
In 2021, a donation by Theodore Roosevelt’s great-granddaughter transferred the 300-acre ranch to Northern Arizona University. The school now uses Hat Ranch to host summer environmental science field courses, continuing a legacy of learning from the land.
This Earth Note was written by Danika Thiele and produced by KNAU and the Sustainable Communities Program at Northern Arizona University.
