Back to the Ranch

Back to the Ranch is my exploration of one of the oldest ranching communities in the United States and its demise due to urbanization and the loss of rural lands. Just across the bay from San Francisco, the East Bay ranching community traces its origins to the founding of Mission San Jose by the Spanish in 1797. That way of life is dying now as ranches are replaced by suburban sprawl and shopping centers. Many of the ranches I photographed no longer exist; the only hint of their past existence is a street name like Old Ranch Road. In addition to the photographs, there is a text component, poignant, telling, and often humorous excerpts from interviews with members of the East Bay ranching community, in which these men and women speak of the ranching life, their personal histories, and the changes which are bringing about the end of their way of life.