Music, Saddles & Flapjacks: Dudes at the Oto Ranch

This is the story of the first dude ranch in Montana, the OTO, and of its founder, Dick Randall. He and his wife homesteaded at the northern edge of Yellowstone National Park in the 1890s and eventually established a guest ranch there that reached its heyday in the 1920s. Numerous quotes from Randall's unpublished memoirs and nearly 100 black-and-white photographs provide readers a glimpse into Randall's life and his development of a western icon the dude ranch. Music, Saddles and Flapjacks, first published in 1978, gives voice to this romantic chapter in the history of Montana. The U.S. Forest Service acquired the OTO Ranch in 1991 with help from the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. Volunteers from around the country are now restoring the ranch--a nominee to the National Register of Historic Places.