Morton was a sheep rancher who also served as an elected official, banker and civic leader in Douglas.

He enlisted in the U.S. Army at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, but deserted after an incident with an officer and changed his name to Morton.

For a while he worked around the gold mines of Cripple Creek, Colorado, then went to Wyoming where he established a sheep ranch about 1891.

Almost immediately he became the largest owner of livestock in central Wyoming, working together with his brother Jacob Jenne to operate the Morton-Jenne Sheep Company.

[2] The Morton Mansion is a 2-1/2 story frame house with a porch on two sides and a variety of projecting bays.