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144-Year-Old McGregor Family Ranch Feels Fire's Impact by Matthew Weaver Capital Press, July 24, 2026

The McGregor farm includes about 6,900 acres of wheat and 400 acres of hay.

Fire caused by lightning threatened the 144-year-old McGregor family ranch.

The Lyons Ferry Fire began July 16 and is now 100% contained.

It burned roughly 33,750 acres in Washington's Franklin County, including about 20,000 acres owned and operated by McGregor Land and Livestock in Whitman County, said Ian McGregor, president of The McGregor Company.

"We believe the losses will be minimal, thankfully," Ian McGregor said.

"The fire was scary," said Alex McGregor, chairman of The McGregor Company and managing partner for McGregor Land and Livestock, father to Ian McGregor. "The scale of it and the speed of it — we've had range fires over the years, but never one like this, in the 144 years we've been there."

Losses

An unused barn and a former cook shack burned, Ian McGregor said.

A four-man team backburned around the historic "Archie's Sheep Barn," one of the original buildings, built in 1915.

"That was saved, but fire (was) all around it for literally miles," Ian McGregor said.

The cattle herd was spread out across multiple pastures. No cattle appear to have been killed in the fire.

"We believe we've recovered most of the herd at this point, but the team is still working on that," Ian McGregor said.

The fire got to the edge of the farm's wheat fields, said Alex McGregor. The farm includes about 6,900 acres of wheat and 400 acres of hay.

He estimates 50 acres were lost, half of that to discing the ground to keep the fire from spreading.

"We'll have more than 100 miles of fence to replace," Alex McGregor said. "That's a daunting task, but we'll be up for it."

Community

The McGregors thanked the community and volunteer firefighters for their "extraordinary efforts" and "tremendous achievement."

About 72 people responded, including aircraft support and crews alternating between saving Ian McGregor's house and saving the farm's wheat.

"It was incredible peace of mind just having and seeing the community come together, bringing tractors and water and really address what could have been far worse," Ian McGregor said.

Family history

The ranch is the original sheep farm for the McGregor family.

Brothers Peter and Archie McGregor moved to Washington Territory in 1882, owning 22,000 sheep by 1890. They and brothers John and Alexander Campbell "A.C." McGregor expanded to raise wheat in 1901.

A.C.'s son Sherman McGregor established The McGregor Company, the agronomic retailer, as its own separate entity in 1955.

Alex McGregor is the son of Sherman McGregor.

The ranch is headquartered in the small town of Hooper, Wash. The 41,000-acre property includes 26,000 acres of rangeland.

"Even the town of Hooper could well have burned without all of that help," Alex McGregor said. "It was that close."

They raise about 750 cows for beef production.

The ranch employs about seven full-time workers and other harvest crew members.

Next steps

The ability to graze the affected ground has likely been lost for more than a year, Ian McGregor said.

Some bunchgrass land may be viable, which will be determined this fall. The company will reseed more than 20,000 acres of rangeland.

Some range areas were spared, so the family will use that for grazing.

The company may downsize the herd some, and buy feed in the meantime, Ian McGregor said.

"Quite an experience, and while it's one I'm happy to see only once every 144 years, we're left with tremendous appreciation for agricultural, rural areas and people pulling together when it counts," Alex McGregor said.

Related Pages:
The Voice: Alex McGregor Speaks Out for Northwest Farmers by Matthew Weaver, Capital Press, 1/18/24
Working Together, We Can Have Healthy Rivers and a Healthy Economy by Alex McGregor, Spokesman-Review, 6/4/22
Energy Crisis and Agriculture by Alex McGregor, Wheat Life, 11/5