Little Ranch House on the Prairie

This century old homestead located in the heart of the West Block of Grasslands National Park, was once the home of Walt and Marjorie Larson and their three children.

The humble ranch buildings now stand as testimony to the vibrant ranch life that once existed there – a homestead, bunkhouse, underground bank barn, corrals, workshop, blacksmith shop and more, not to mention the 50 square miles of rangeland! The site is a distant reminder of the once bustling hub of the Larson Ranch operation.

The Larsons, like so many other ranch families in the region, made their living off the land, raised families, nurtured community, and created a western identity while engaging in a native prairie landscape that remained significantly unchanged for centuries. The vast majority of the lands having not been turned over by the plough and used for grazing cattle, remained significantly unchanged for centuries and enabled the creation of a grasslands park.

Walt Larson was born in 1891 in Minnesota and caught a train to Canada as a young teenager to pursue the life of a cowboy and a rancher in the west. In Walt’s early ranching days, he wasn’t selling cows; he was slowly building up his herd. He supplemented his income with other activities such as selling coyote hides and riding broncs at local rodeos. Over the years, Walt acquired land and leases and upgraded his cattle along the way. By the 1930’s, he had one of the finest herds of Black Angus cattle in western Canada. Walt spent over 60 years of his life on the range, living out his ranching dream with his family in the Frenchman Valley.

In 1984, Parks Canada purchased the Larson Ranch estate, where approximately 50 square miles became the first land acquisition to become part of Grasslands National Park. Today, the homestead site has become a cultural attraction and an opportunity for visitors near and far to connect with the western heritage from yesteryear.

Over time, the harsh prairie elements have taken a toll on the homestead structures. To help revitalize the buildings and demonstrate our care towards the ranch heritage, Parks Canada's ‘Built Heritage Restoration Workshop’ team of crafts persons have been performing conservation work on the Larson bunkhouse and workshop.

Repairing older structures can be tricky and quite time-consuming. The first step was to repair and stabilize some of the structural elements of the buildings, including conservation work on the walls and roofs. New cedar shingles were installed to maintain the historic look and feel and protect the buildings from the elements.

Once the structural elements were stabilized, the bunkhouse foundation was stabilized by replacing old field stones with modern concrete footings. The wall studs that had deteriorated over time due to contact with soil and moisture, were replaced in a way that was representative of the time. The walls were covered and protected with new plywood before finishing the exterior walls with cedar shingles.

All the windows and doors were removed and sent to the Restoration Workshop Team’s wood shop for conservation.
In spring 2025, the Restoration Workshop Team will return to finish repairs to the windows and doors. Once all structural work is completed, these will be reinstalled and the building exteriors will be completed with new trim work.

A project of this magnitude takes a lot of planning and time, and we appreciate the many efforts that have made it possible. Showcasing the history and ranch life culture is an integral part of the Grasslands National Park experience and we look forward to sharing a restored Larson Homestead site with visitors in the near future!