[3] It is located in Sulphur Springs Valley about 27 miles (43 km) north of present-day Willcox, Arizona.

By the early 1800s there were a number of Mexican rancheros in the area that managed thousands of cattle on the open range.

The miners and merchants who came to California as a result of the Gold Rush fed an explosion in the state's population and a concurrent demand for beef.

[8] Hinds had secured a U.S. government contract to supply beef to military posts and Indian agencies in Arizona.

Hooker followed that contract with another by partnering with pioneer cattlemen William B. Hooper and James M. Barney in a similar venture.

The walls were built of two rows of adobe bricks 20 inches (510 mm) thick and 16 feet (4.9 m) high.

He bought six purebred stallions and ran over 500 brood mares that produced horses that became known for their speed, beauty and temperament.

[3] Playwright Augustus Thomas set his play Arizona at the ranch and based the two primary characters Canby and Bonita on Hooker's family.

[3] The valley is at 4,000 feet (1,200 m) elevation, allowing the ranch to escape extremes of heat and cold, and thus provided an ideal breeding range.

In case of drought, Hooker had ditches dug that brought water from the mountains to reservoirs on his ranch.

Hooker Initially suffered heavy losses, both in personnel and supplies, due to Apache raids.

Hooker originally stocked his ranch with Texas Longhorns and low-grade Mexican corrientes before replacing them with Durham cattle.

[12] Hooker built a sound operation and was one of the few Arizona ranchers to survive a disastrous drought in 1891, which killed over half the cattle due in part to severe overgrazing.

Some of the land was lost to homesteaders allowed on the property in the early 20th century by the federal government, and some has been portioned off to other family members.

The integrity of the site is exceptional for three reasons: Continuity, appearance of the buildings, and the same setting that first attracted Col. Hooker.