Founded in 1867, the Historic O’Keefe Ranch offers a fascinating glimpse into the life of an early farming community in the heart of the Okanagan Valley. The O’Keefes of O’kanagan, a welcome resource for any visitor to the site, is an in-depth look into the multiple branches and generations of the family that gave the ranch its name.

When Michael O’Keefe arrived in Canada a penniless Irish immigrant in 1819, he had no idea the impact his descendants would leave on the Canadian West. Michael’s son Cornelius arrived in British Columbia, also penniless, in 1862, and over the course of fifty years became a prosperous rancher, farmer, and developer, marrying three times and fathering seventeen children. Indeed, the story of Cornelius O’Keefe, ranching magnate, is as much the story of the five strong women who lived and worked alongside him, persevering through the economic downturns and years when the family’s very survival was a struggle.

Ken Mather has been researching western Canadian heritage for over four decades, working in curatorial, management, and research roles at Fort Edmonton Park, Barkerville, and the O’Keefe Ranch since the early 1970s. He is the editor of the Okanagan Historical Society Report and is the winner of the Joe Martin Memorial award (2015) for his contribution to BC Cowboy Heritage. He is the author of several books on pioneer and ranching history, including Stagecoach North, Trail North (a finalist for the British Columbia Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Historical Writing), Ranch Tales, and Frontier Cowboys and the Great Divide.

Ken Mather's profile page

"Ken Mather came to the O'Keefe Ranch in 1984 as manager and curator. His love and dedication to history make him the ideal person to write this important story. It is my pleasure to recommend this as the 'only family authorized story of the O'Keefes.'”
—Eileen O'Keefe Giuliani, granddaughter of Cornelius O'Keefe and family historian

“This multi-generational history of Cornelius O’Keefe and his family, pioneer ranchers of the North Okanagan, is a very welcome contribution to British Columbia’s social and economic history.”
—Patricia E. Roy, professor emeritus of History at the University of Victoria and and recipient of the Canadian Historical Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award

“Ken Mather is a thorough researcher, knowledgeable historian, and prolific author, and in his latest book, he combines that expertise with a brilliant ability to conjecture. Using all these skills and tools, he presents an engaging, comprehensive story of the O’Keefe Ranch, its founder Cornelius O’Keefe, and his family.”
—Donna (Yoshitake) Wuest, bestselling author of Coldstream: The Ranch Where It All Began and Douglas Lake Ranch: Empire of Grass

""This clearly written and well researched study, with excellent illustrations, recounts how Cornelius O’Keefe, followed by his son Tierney, built up a large cattle and grain ranch, just north of Vernon in the Okanagan Valley."
—Jean Barman, award-winning author, historian, retired academic, and winner of the 2015 Governor General's History Award for Scholarly Research

""A meticulously researched account of the life and times of cattle baron Cornelius O’Keefe. In lively and engaging prose, Ken Mather recounts the saga of a family-run ranch that is intricately linked to the history of both the local Syilx people and white settler farming and ranching in the Okanagan Valley."
—Ian Pooley, Okanagan historian