In 1922, just a year after marrying Raymond, Ruth bought 10 prize-winning Hereford cattle to add to the purebred Herefords from the Lewis family's ranch in Fowler, Colorado. Apparently the cattle business captured her imagination, because two years later Ruth sold her family's ice and coal business to devote more time to ranching.

With their ranching operation growing, Ruth and Raymond moved from the old Banning Ranch property south of Colorado Springs to a stretch of land on the east side of town. To keep up with their expanding business, they eventually acquired more than 30,000 acres. And their cattle, known as the Colorado Domino Type Herefords, became known as some of the finest examples of the breed.

Ruth and Raymond Lewis were not only cutting edge cattle breeders, they helped blaze a trail to more sustainable land-use practices. The Banning-Lewis Ranches had one of the most progressive soil conservation programs in the US and in 1948 won the Colorado Soil Conservation program award.

Dig into Banning-Lewis history, and what you discover is a deep devotion to learning, to invention and to making things better for a whole community - both the Hereford cattle breeding community and the Colorado Springs community. Banning-Lewis Ranch is working to emulate their commitment and vision in everything they do.