Since settlers first headed West in the early 1800s, cattle have been a staple source of food and clothing. Homesteaders relied on animals to feed their families and generate income that allowed them to purchase essential supplies.
In 1886, when Tom Powers and his family arrived in Wyoming after a covered wagon journey from Missouri, they, too, built their life around cattle. After wintering in a dugout at the foot of the Big Horn Mountains, the Powers’ homesteaded land in the spring of 1887.
To this day, that homestead has stayed in the hands of Powers’ descendants, and cattle-related pursuits still account for much of their income, but the years in between haven’t been without struggles. Now, sixth-generation rancher Taylor Kerns works cattle in the same region with his wife, Cathryn, and their son Jack.
“More of our current family came in 1902,” Taylor reveals. “Through marriages, they ended up putting the places together. My great grandfather, John Wesley Kerns, had a very large ranch out there. He gave each of his sons a 300-head ranch as a wedding present. My grandfather was the youngest, and they couldn’t find any land in that area by the time he married, so he ended up outside of Blacktail, Montana.
“In the 1960s, my grandfather’s oldest brother passed away from polio, so that gave my grandfather an opportunity to come back to the homestead,” Taylor continues. “He ended up buying the original homestead and selling the Blacktail place. That’s where my father was predominantly raised, right there on the homestead.”
Born from Adversity
Although every generation of Taylor’s ancestors faced trials inherent with the ranching lifestyle, the 1970s brought arguably the most trying times, not only for the Kerns family, but also for ranchers across the West.
“The high interest rates of the late 1970s and early 1980s were brutal on the family rancher,” Taylor explains. “Forty percent of family ranches have gone out of business since then. We were almost one of them.”
PHOTOS BY CATHRYN KERNS