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Sterling County, Texas
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===U Ranch Legacy=== The derivatives of W.R. McEntire's initial "U" Ranch are currently owned and operated as distinct ranches by his descendants. These ranches are the only remaining segments still in existence of the first large cattle outfit in the region. In 1906, W.R. McEntire divided his ranching estate between his two sons, R. Billie McEntire and George H. McEntire. His daughter, Lula Elizabeth McEntire, received title to the estate not associated with agriculture. R. Billie McEntire received title to the Harrison Ranch in Dallas, and the n+ Ranch in Sterling County. He also received a cash advance from the dissolution of McEntire and Co. and from investments made in the American National Bank in Dallas. Of the same year, he purchased 10,000 acres in Nolan and Mitchell Counties, and moved his family to Colorado City, Texas, to send his children to school. Eventually, his four sons, Fowler McEntire, James H. McEntire, W.R. McEntire, Jr, and R.B. McEntire, Jr, formed a partnership, the “McEntire Brothers”, which began managing much of R. Billie McEntire's ranching operations. James H. McEntire initially became the primary manager of the ranching operations in Sterling County (about 10,000 acres) while the other three brothers were primarily engaged in Mitchell and Nolan Counties (also around 10,000 acres). This partnership lasted from ''circa'' 1915 to 1928, and was dissolved as a result of the brothers becoming owners and subsequently managing their own operations in Sterling County. In 1927, R. Billie McEntire sold the acreage in Sterling County to his sons. Eventually, Fowler and James H. McEntire purchased their brothers' interests, with each owning one-half of the acreage in Sterling County. R. Billie McEntire continued ranching in Mitchell and Nolan Counties until his death in 1937. * James H. McEntire brought the Campstool Ranch into its current form by 1925. The ranch was established on the Lacy Creek near the intersection with the Concho River on acreage that was initially acquired by his grandfather, W.R. McEntire, in 1884. After his death in 1937, his wife, Sudie Rawls, managed and operated all aspects of the ranch until 1955, when their daughter, Jamie Sue McEntire Cole, and son-in-law, Bill James Cole, first leased the agricultural production and then eventually became full owners of the ranch in 1981. Under Bill Cole's stewardship, ranching operations were enlarged to include about 35,000 acres across four counties: Crockett, Glasscock, Sterling, and Val Verde. In 1963, a feedlot with a maximum capacity of 32,000 sheep was constructed on the Campstool Ranch in Sterling City. Initially built as a commercial operation for the region, it was later primarily used for the benefit of their livestock and staging of livestock between operations. In 1969, Custom Skins, Inc. was established in San Angelo. The vertical integration into the sheepskin tanning industry was successful, and the company quickly became one of the leading suppliers nationally and globally. In the 1980s, ranching operations were expanded into Colorado, California, and Nevada, and eventually became one of the single largest individual producers of sheep and wool within the United States. To effectively support the multistate expansion and continued growth, Cole Trucking, a livestock transportation company, was established and a fleet of dedicated trucks ranged from Texas to California. Anticipating a peak in market prices in 1989, Bill Cole proactively sold all of the livestock and returned his focus to Texas, purchasing three additional ranches from 1989 to 1992 that totaled 40,000 acres. In 2008, the 9,000-acre Schleicher County ranch was sold. In understanding the need to preserve and proactively restore the natural resources once found on the open rangeland, a standard practice that Bill Cole implemented over 50 years ago in Sterling County, he was recognized by the Crockett County Soil and Water Conservation District for the improvements to the natural resources on his ranch in Crockett and Val Verde Counties – fostering native vegetation through good brush management, wildlife management, and erosion control. George H. McEntire received title to 23,000 acres and operated the "U" Ranch under a partnership with his father, McEntire & Son. In 1962, George H. McEntire gave his two children, George H. McEntire, Jr. and Virginia McEntire, 16,233 acres each. George H. McEntire, Jr. continued his operations under the "U" Ranch name, while Virginia McEntire operated the acreage as the VJ Ranch.
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