The Pooley Ranch, located on Mamette Lake Road, northwest of Merritt, received British Columbia’s Century Award at the BC Cattlemen’s AGM last month.

Created in 1994, this provincial award honours agricultural organizations that have been active for 100 years, celebrating the rich heritage of farming and ranching families in B.C.

The Pooley Ranch was first homesteaded in the early 1900s by Jim Pooley.

His great nephew and third generation owner Mark Pooley accepted the award. Jim Pooley died in 1911 leaving his brother William (Mark’s grandfather) to sail from England the following year to take over the family ranch.

William had two choices for his sea-faring journey, and chose the earlier option, departing England March 22.

The later voyage he didn’t choose was the maiden voyage of the infamous RMS Titanic, which sank while crossing the Atlantic Ocean on April 15, 1912.

The primary commodity at the Pooley Ranch for its first 40 years of operation was sheep, which produced wool and mutton.

William passed down the ranch to his three youngest children (including Mark’s father Harold) in 1935.

After the Second World War, the family began cattle ranching.

The Pooley Ranch today is a cow-calf and yearling grazing operation on 15,000 acres of private and Crown land.