Our Story

John Baden and his wife Ramona Marotz-Baden are retired professors who own and operate the Enterprise Ranch near Gallatin Gateway, Montana. Their ranch exemplifies the good things that happen at the convergence of responsible liberty, sustainable ecology and modest prosperity.

One of the most beautiful and productive ranches in the historic Gallatin Valley, the property had humble beginnings. Neglected and overgrazed, with not even a cabin to sleep in, John purchased the ranch in 1970. John and his wife Ramona Marotz-Baden have made great improvements since their marriage in 1976. At one time, the Badens ran a flock of 500 breeding ewes on the ranch, with up to 1500 lambs and ewes one year. They have wintered dozens of guest ranch horses on their rangelands, spring creeks, and their high quality hay fields.

Today, the Enterprise Ranch is criss-crossed with spring-fed creeks, four trout ponds, lush pastures, a 6,000 foot barn with a nice manager’s apartment, natural gas heated workshop, a spacious ranch home and an AirBnB vacation rental. The property has been placed in a conservation easement to ensure that its future use will be directed toward agricultural, wildlife, and recreational uses.

The Badens both come from a long tradition of family farming. John Baden is founding chairman of the Foundation for Research on Economics & the Environment in Bozeman, Montana. He was a founder of the Property and Environment Research Center, also in Bozeman. Ramona Marotz-Baden is professor emeritus who taught in Health and Human Development at MSU.