Nellie: Wife of a Successful Rancher

Nellie Warren was the wife of a rancher, the grandson of Montana's most well known cattle baron. Conrad Warren was also recognized for his line of purebred Herefords - showing his cattle throughout the west and involved at all levels of the industry, particularly the Montana Stockgrowers Association and the state sanitary board.

Nellie supported her husband's endeavors in the cattle industry. However, unlike most ranch wives, she did not take an active part in the actual day to day operations. A 1947 article about the Warren Hereford Ranch notes;

"As for Con Warren's wife, she takes no active part in the conduct of the ranch. She is interested and informed, but she makes no pretense about directing anything more than the home."

Nellie did help by arranging concessions for cattle sales held at the ranch or properly entertaining important visitors to her home. She traveled to a few of the grand shows, standing beautifully beside her husband when the photographer captured the moment of a significant sale or purchase.

The economic "good times" of the 1950s allowed Nellie to enjoy the finer things in life. She began purchasing her clothes from the finer stores such as Bon Marche. She insisted her husband buy a couple of suits from Brooks Brothers. She purchased pieces of sterling silver that matched the Kohrs' Medici pattern as well as crystal.

Nellie's home now included a nice addition and was beautifully furnished. Still, it was the home of a rancher. In later years Conrad reminisced to a park ranger;

"One winter it was really bad for calving. My car was the only thing that would start and my house was the only place that was warm, so I picked up the calves in the car and put them in the kitchen and in the bathtub. Nell was getting a little upset about the mess in the house. I told her, 'They paid for the car, I don't know why they can't ride in it.'"