VX Ranch History

History of the VX Ranch

Peter Verplancke first came from Belgium to the Encampment/Riverside area during the summer of 1890. Upon his arrival, he confined his plans to settle. However, he constantly expressed his desire to return to Germany for a short time because he had some “unfinished business” to attend to. Peter decided to set up a homestead, now known as the VX Ranch, and leave it in the hands of a hired man until he returned.

During the three years Peter was back in Belgium, he had gotten married and convinced his new wife to move to Wyoming with him. Along with his “unfinished business,” Peter finally arrived back in Riverside in the early months of 1903. Mr. Peter Verplancke was extremely proud to show his new wife, Emma Venneersch Verplancke, the homestead.

Emma’s behavior demonstrated that she was quite excited about and impressed with the homestead, however, the ranch had plenty of surprises that came along with it. One major surprise that the ranch carried for Emma was the language of the surrounding people. She told Peter that the English language was beautiful, but she felt isolated because she did not know one word of it.

Despite the language barrier, Emma began gardening and helping on the ranch. Peter and Emma both loved gardening, and not long after Peter’s return with Emma, he plowed a huge garden for her. In that garden she planted raspberries, currants, gooseberries, and potatoes, which were all eventually sold in Walden. Peter also planted a certain type of water willow near the house. The trees thrived, and two of the original shoots planted by Peter are still growing near the homestead house.

Water was beginning to be a problem. Peter decided to build a reservoir to store the spring run off. He joined six of his neighbors in digging, by hand, an irrigation ditch from the mountains. They agreed that each of the seven would get one share of the water from the ditch. Soon after beginning to dig the ditch, the seven men found that the surveyor had made a mistake and the water would have to nm uphill for the last 200 yards. Peter however, was still determined to finish the ditch, and he dug the rest of the ditch by himself along a different and longer path. Peter’s lone feat of labor and the respect it commanded gave him not only one share of the water, but two and one half shares. This water right is still held by the ranch, and it is one of the best water rights for ranchers in the Beaver Creek valley surrounding the VX Ranch.

Not only was Peter busy digging ditches and maintaining the ranch, he was also busy at home. Peter and Emma had started a family. They had four children, but when Emma was pregnant with the fifth child, Peter had a tragic accident. While he was returning to the house one clay, Peter was run over by his own wagon. The heavy wagon had broken his pelvis. Peter was taken to the ranch house where he found that the youngest child had just been born. He spent limited time with his fifth child because he was rushed to Cheyenne for medical help. Despite the efforts of the doctors in Cheyenne, Peter Verplancke died on Nov. 7, 1909.

Only twenty-five years old at the time of Peter’s death, Emma was left with five children and the homestead. She had trouble handling Peter’s estate because she still did not speak fluent English. Charles Vyvey, who owned a homestead across from Emma, helped her untangle the mess. In May of 1911, Emma and Charles Vyvey were married and soon had a huge family. Their sons were Charles, John, Rene, Albert, Arthur, and their daughters were Vivian, and Grace. The family lived in the small, two-room homestead house that Peter built for many years. However, eventually Charles built a new house on the ranch. The new house was log and was quite a step up for the large family. It had two stories, with large bedrooms and a storeroom upstairs, and a living room, a large dining room, kitchen, and a milk storage room downstairs. It also had a full porch across the front.

The ranch eventually passed down the family to Charles and Emma’s sons, Arthur (Fox) and Albert (Bert) Vyvey. Fox and Bert were partners, and Fox lived in the nice house that Charles built for Emma for over 70 years. At the time that Fox and Bert owned the ranch it was 4,200 acres, and ran 200 head of sheep and 300 head of mostly Herefords and Charolais cattle. They also built a new shop and a few little houses on the original homestead. Then in 1991 Fox and Bert sold the ranch to Fred Hyle. Fred soon sold to Swanda, and he eventually sold to the Silver Spur Land and Cattle, LLC. PDF of VX Ranch History found here.

The Story of the Vyvey is taken from the publication of

Saratoga & Encampment Wyoming

An Album of Family Histories

It was produced as A Wyoming Centennial Lasting Legacy Project by The Joint Centennial Committee of Saratoga and Encampment, Wyoming Album was designed by the Portfolio Publishing Company and Printed by Pioneer Printing, both in Cheyenne, WY in 1989.

VYVEY by Candy Moulton

BETTY MARIE (HERRING) [1928- ] ARTHUR WARREN [1921- ]

Betty Marie Herring was working as a soda jerk at the Sugar Bowl when she first started dating a Beaver Creek rancher, Arthur Warren Vyvey. The two were married October 23, 1947, at the home of Betty’s brother, H. R. Herring. They moved to a house on the banks of Antelope Creek on which Arthur’s father, Charles, and older brothers had built when Charles claimed homestead land.

Fox’s mother, Emma emigrated to America from Belgium in 1903 as the bride of Peter Verplancke. They settled on Verplancke’s homestead near Antelope Creek and soon had fine children of varying proper names, but commonly known as Sam, Butch, Lena, Lillian, and Alice:

Peter was killed in an accident when a team of horses ran away with the wagon he was riding in on the day Butch was born. Prior to Peter’s death another Belgian, Charles Louis Vyvey, had come to Encampment and after working in the tie camps and at the Grand Encampment smelter he went to work for Peter.

Two years following Peter’s death, Emma and Charles married. They built the new homestead house, where Fox was born, and enlarged the family with seven children: Carl, Rene, John, Albert, Vivian, Grace, and Arthur.

All their lives the Vyvey-Verplancke children have remained as one large family living within a 40-mile radius of each other. At this writing Sam, Rene, and John live in Saratoga, Carl and Fox live in Encampment, and the remainder are deceased.

A complete story of the early lives of the Vyvey-Verplancke family is told in Grace Vyvey Gregory’s book, Sagebrush, Gunny Sacks and Bailing Wire.

Betty is the eldest daughter of Gladys Loualda Fisher and George Ellis Herring. She was born June 18, 1928, in Encampment and has lived her entire life in Encampment. As a girl she attended Encampment schools where she was graduated as valedictorian in 1946.

Betty’s mother, Gladys, was the eldest daughter of Hester Margaret and Joseph Wilson Fisher who settled in Encampment in 1900 in a home on Rankin Avenue, which Joseph built. He was a well-known carpenter and helped construct many other homes for early Encampment residents.

Betty’s mother, Gladys, was the eldest daughter of Hester Margaret and Joseph Wilson Fisher who settled in Encampment in 1900 in a home on Rankin Avenue, which Joseph built. He was a well-known carpenter and helped construct many other homes for early Encampment residents.

Betty’s father, George Ellis Herring, was the eldest son of Malinda May Fleming and George Martin Herring. The Flemings were among the earliest settlers in the Encampment region, homesteading on the North Fork on a ranch which is now owned by Otto Wirz. The Herrings settled in the area where Elli’ father worked at a variety of jobs including as a ranch hand.

After their marriage, Gladys and Ellis continued to live in the Encampment area where they raised their large family. Betty’s many brothers and sisters are Gene, Harry Robert, Francis, Stuart, and LeDawn (Vorn) who still make their homes in Encampment, Earl of San Ramon, California, Patricia (Stites) of Martinez, California, Margaret (Clabaugh) of Powell, Orville of Greeley, Colorado, George of Laramie, Nancy (Pitre) of Omaha, Nebraska, and Bill of Bountiful, Utah. Cheryl (Hooker), Kenneth, and Lloyd are deceased.

Fox and Betty moved to the VX Ranch upon their marriage where they ranched along with Charles and Emma, and Fox’s brother, Bert and his wife, Phyllis. In 1968, Fox and Bert along with Betty and Phyllis bought the ranch from Charles and it has been operated as Vyvey Brothers Inc., since that time.

Life on the ranch for the young couple was busy as they raised cattle and sheep, harvested hay, and started a family of their own. Daughter Penny Marie was born November 12, 1953. Candy Lee followed October 22, 1955, and Charles Kelly was born March 20, 1958. The youngest Vyvey son, Fox, had the youngest grandson, Charles Kelly (always called Kelly) and the only great grandson, Charles Gary, born June 19, 1985.

Betty has always served as ranch bookkeeper and for many years operated a power sweep in the hay fields. She would take Kelly, who was too young to work in the fields, deposit him under a tree in a dry irrigation ditch with some trucks and tractors to play with and work while he played. Often Grandpa Vyvey watched Kelly for Betty. The two would drive Charles car to one of five fishing ponds and spend time fishing or “working” on the ponds. There is little doubt Kelly learned to irrigate from his grandpa. Penny, Candy, and Kelly also worked on the ranch starting as scatter-rake operators and advancing to other equipment. Penny and Kelly both preferred to run the power sweeps, while Candy usually ran the side-delivery rake.

All three also were active 4-H members belonging for ten years each and taking projects ranging from beef, sheep, and hogs to citizenship, sewing, cooking, leather craft, and home improvement. They also participated in judging and demonstration contests. Candy was a top sheep showman and Kelly was noted for swine showmanship. Every year the annual family vacation was taken at the Carbon County Fair in Rawlins. Kelly also was a member of FFA and spent many hours gathering agronomy samples for competition at the county fair.

Fox is known for his mechanical abilities and his sense of humor. He also has been very involved with his community. He operated the movie projectors at the Encampment Movie Theater for many years, belonged to Odd Fellows and Masons and served in many offices of the Encamp-ment-Riverside Lions Club including president the year the Lions moved three original tramway towers from Bridger Peak to the Grand Encampment Museum. For 12 years he was the Lions Club Treasurer.

Betty also once belonged to several clubs including Rebekahs and Homemakers. She now likes to spend her time sewing, crocheting afghans, and having her grandchildren visit.

History sometimes repeats itself. Penny met Bill Walter of Detroit, Michigan, when he was stationed with the U.S. Air Force detachment in Encampment while she was working as a soda jerk at the Sugar Bowl. They were married in 1971 and have two sons, Craig and Brad. Penny, always the brain in the family, was graduated in 1972 as valedictorian of her class. She attended college in Phoenix, Arizona, Pueblo, Colorado, and the University of Wyoming and is still working to attain her degree. She now works for the U.S. Forest Service. Bill is an electrical engineer who works for Sinclair Oil Corp.

Candy, also a high school valedictorian, though definitely not as brainy as her older sister, attended college at Northwest Community College and the University of Wyoming where she received a degree in journalism in 1978. She married Steve Moulton in August of 1977 and they have wo children, Shawn and Erin Marie. She worked for five years as editor of the Saratoga Sun and currently is a free-lance writer working for the Casper Star-Tribune, Rawlins Daily Times, and Denver Post. She has written many feature stories and family histories for various publications, Steve is assembly foreman at the Jack Alexander Ltd. furniture factory in Saratoga.

Kelly, a 1977 graduate of Encampment High School, worked as a heavy equipment operator in the coal mines in Hanna for five years until February of 1982, then returned to ranching, working first for the Silver Spur and since the spring of 1988 on the family ranch. He married Tania Reed of Medicine Bow in December 1985, and they have two children, Cassie and Gary. Kelly is an avid snowmobiler who likes to hunt and fish. Tania works as a cook at the Silver Spur Ranch.

Written by

Candy Moulton

More information on the history and legacy of the VX Ranch and Vivey families can be found in several publications from Candy Moulton. Find out more on her website www.candymoulton.com