Manistee Ranch was founded in 1897 by Herbert W. Hamilton, a native of Wisconsin. The ranch, located in the town of Glendale, Arizona, was rich in citrus fruits and dates. The ranch has all of its historical structures restored. It is administered by the Parks and Recreation Department of Glendale.On April 9, 1998, Manistee Ranch was listed in the National Register of Historical Places.Ranch historyHamilton era (1897 - 1907)Herbert W. Hamilton was a wealthy lumber baron from Wisconsin who homesteaded lands in what was to become the future the City of Glendale founded by William John Murphy. What made an investment attractive was the completion of the Arizona Canal in 1885. The canal allowed 100,000 acres (40468.564 hec or 40468 hec (hectare) and 5642.2 m²) of desert land to be opened up to homesteading and irrigation farming. The Homestead Act was a United States federal law that gave an applicant ownership at no cost of farmland called a "homestead."By 1897, Hamilton had under his control 320 (129.499 hectares or 129 hec and 4994.0 m²) of farmland in Glendale. He established a farm where he planted large citrus orchards and dates. Hamilton built a home for his family, unlike any of the typical Arizona farm houses of the time. It was a Queen Anne Victorian style house with a "Sky Parlor," a square windowed tower rising above the building's center.
