In 1856, one of Northern California’s oldest cattle ranches was established
The non-profit organisation operates California’s largest private preserve system and welcomes more than 1.5 million visitors each year to protected areas across California and Utah, with no admission fee. The Wildlands Conservancy is seeking private donations and public grants to cover the $15.5 million purchase and support long-term management, trail building and habitat restoration across the newly protected landscape.
Albert Newton III said the family had developed a deep personal connection to the land during its long tenure. “Over the years, the ranch has hosted everyone from dignitaries and politicians to our kids’ college friends,” Newton said, highlighting the property’s role as a gathering place in the Scott Valley. The sale brings an end to more than six decades of ownership by the Newton family. The AP Ranch includes seven homes, six historic timber barns and large cattle corrals equipped with certified scales. Under the new plan, The Wildlands Conservancy will gradually end intensive commercial operations while developing facilities for public use. The new preserve will offer free public access for activities such as hiking, wildlife watching and educational trips for local schools. Higher parts of the property have views towards Mount Shasta and will also offer opportunities for winter activities, including cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. Fundraising is now underway.
The Wildlands Conservancy has agreed to buy one of Northern California’s oldest working livestock operations, protecting 14,177 acres of historic wilderness in Siskiyou County and turning it into a huge public preserve. The $15.5 million purchase of the AP Ranch, detailed in reports by the San Francisco Chronicle and official documents from The Wildlands Conservancy, marks a major change for a landscape that has been privately owned for 170 years. Located in rural western Siskiyou County near Gazelle, the vast property will be combined with the existing 6,094-acre Beaver Valley Headwaters Preserve. Once the deal is complete, the connected public preserve will cover more than 20,000 acres across the Scott River watershed. Founded in 1856 by Alexander Parker soon after the California Gold Rush, the AP Ranch is one of the region’s oldest continuously operating agricultural properties. The Newton family bought the estate in 1961 and later expanded it by purchasing nearby land. They ran the property as a year-round cow-calf operation with capacity for about 500 mother cows.
The ranch has varied terrain centred around the prominent Lover’s Leap peak, according to listing details from California Outdoor Properties.