ranch historySince the 1800s, horses have been an integral part of the Eliason’s daily life, supporting a large cattle ranching operation in northern Utah.
The signature AE brand traces its roots back to August Eliason, who emigrated from Sweden to the rugged high desert of northern Utah.
In 1863, five-year-old August Eliason emigrated from Rodene, Sweden, with his family. After a long and perilous journey across the Atlantic and the American plains—including the loss of two of his younger brothers—August arrived in the Utah Territory. August left home at the age of 13 to live with an older sister and soon became a cowboy. August would become a foreman for the Bar M Ranch ran by wealthy railroad tycoons, managing 45,000 head of cattle across Northern Utah and Southern Idaho. During the severe winter of 1886-87, most of those cattle died. The railroad tycoons pulled out, and August—along with other local cowboys—rounded up what cattle were left and began homesteading and ranching in the Curlew Valley of Northern Utah.
August married in 1884, and together, he and his wife, Emma, continued to raise cattle on public and private land while instilling the values of faith, stewardship, and resilience in their children. They endured harsh winters, devastating droughts, and family tragedy—but through it all, they built a foundation that future generations would carry forward.
As August’s health declined, sons Chester and Bert Sr. took over daily operations. They expanded the ranch’s reach into Locomotive Springs and the North String region. Horses remained central to life and work—from driving cattle across the desert to roping in the branding pen.
As a third-generation rancher, Bert Jr. continued this legacy, farming and running cattle across Idaho and Utah, and eventually settling in Snowville, UT. He and his wife, Luzelle, raised cattle, ran Bert’s Café and gas station, and raised their children with a deep sense of purpose and heritage.
Bert Jr.’s son, Dave Eliason, carried the operation into its fourth generation. As President of the Curlew Valley Cattlemen’s Association and a member of state and national ranching boards, Dave was known for his leadership and stewardship of the land. Alongside his wife GayLynn, he raised five children and built a life rooted in the traditions passed down through the generations.
Today, the ranch is owned and operated by Shane Eliason and his wife Allyson—representing the fifth generation of Eliasons to raise cattle and horses in the Curlew Valley.
Shane grew up riding the same ground his great-great-grandfather once homesteaded. Together with Allyson and their children, they manage cattle across 10,000 acres of privately-owned land and another 160,000 acres of public land, operating a selective, performance-driven horse breeding program rooted in real ranch work.
Shane and Allyson are committed to raising horses that perform just as well in competition as they do in the branding pen. Every stallion and mare is selected for their proven ranch performance, solid minds, and elite genetics. These are horses raised in big country, tested by the work, and trusted by generations.
Their program honors the past, serves the present, and builds toward a future where the best traditions of the West live on—in the horses they raise, the land they steward, and the family they continue to grow.