The History of Red Rock Ranch
The current owners of Red Rock Ranch are the Third Generation to care for the 70-year-old property. The current owner is the great-niece of Sally Lindblom Hallermund who ranched in the area from 1938-1979 when the last cattle left Red Rock Ranch. Sally Hallermund passed away in early 1980 leaving the ranch to her niece Sally Anne. Sally Anne lived happily on the property for 31 years until 2011, at which time she passed away and left Red Rock Ranch to her niece.
California Sisters Discover Arizona
The current owner’s grandmother was the eldest of 7 children. The children were all raised in the central valley of California where their Swedish immigrant father and mother owned orchards and a general mercantile.
The owner’s great aunt Elsie, decided against attending college in California like her siblings. Her love of Native American culture drew her to Arizona’s Teachers College, now Northern Arizona University. Elsie earned her degree and teaching credential. She met and married Richard (Dick) Riordan of the pioneer Riordan Family of Flagstaff, in 1938.
Elsie and Dick Riordan, young newlyweds, became acquainted with a cowboy from Denmark, Otto Von Platen Hallermund who was a Danish count that traveled to America with his brother after World War I to seek a better life. Otto eventually made his way to Arizona and worked as a cowboy. Ranching came naturally to Otto, as his family owned a large dairy in Aalborg, Denmark. Otto was very handsome and single. Working as a ranch manager for one of the largest cattle companies in Prescott he was pleased when Elsie suggested he meet her two sisters, Sally and Lydia. Otto responded in a long letter to Elsie and Dick, referring to himself as a plain, lonely cowboy, who would love to meet the two sisters.
Sally and Lydia had plans to travel to Arizona to visit Elsie and Dick Riordan. Elsie, quite the matchmaker, told the sisters about this handsome and eligible cowboy in Prescott. The girls changed their plans and traveled to Prescott. Otto sent Elsie a letter instructing the girls to send a messenger out when they had arrived in town. The meeting was quite successful for Sally Lindblom. Otto and Sally were married in Kingman Arizona on June 5, 1937. Lydia Lindblom never married although she made many trips to visit her sisters in Arizona.
In 1938, Otto and Sally decided it was time to begin a ranch of their own and they purchased some land from Sedona pioneer Heinrich Schuerman and his wife Doretta. Otto Hallermund obtained federal grazing permits and also bought land in Sedona, Flagstaff, and Big Park. Sally, due to her age and health problems was unable to have children. Their lives were devoted to ranching, enjoying friends, and having their niece Sally Anne visit during the summers.
Elsie and Dick moved to Los Angeles, where Dick was a Los Angeles Sheriff’s Sergeant. They lived in Los Angeles until the war broke out and Dick became a pilot in the Air Force. At some point after the war, Elsie and Dick’s marriage ended but they remained friends until the end of their days. Elsie remained in Sedona and became a beloved elementary school teacher, avid Native American and Cowboy art collector, and helped her sister on Red Rock Ranch.
Two Sisters in 1950’s Sedona
In 1952, Otto and Sally land traded with the Bureau of Land Management for the property that is now Red Rock Ranch. They ended up divorcing just a year later. The handsome and charming, Count Otto Von Platen Hallermund, apparently had a wandering eye and Sally eventually got tired of it. Otto eventually remarried and continued to ranch in the area.
Sally Hallermund never married again. She kept Red Rock Ranch after her divorce, along with half of the property holdings and grazing permits.
Otto and Elsie Hallermund sold the land that would serve as the location for many movie locations near Coffee Pot rock. Sally and Elsie both loved the excitement of the movie lot and often visited the movie sets with their niece Sally Anne.
Sally Hallermund bought “The Telegraph Office” from the movie lot and had it moved to Red Rock Ranch. She added on living quarters. and lived in her tiny home for two decades. The Telegraph Office can be seen in the John Wayne film, Angel and the Badman. John Wayne walks into the office to send a telegram. The current owners of Red Rock Ranch were instrumental in getting the building donated to the Sedona Historical Museum. The museum raised the funds to move and preserve the last movie lot building. The Telegraph Office now sits on the museum property on Jordan Road and showcases Sedona’s movie history
Sally Hallermund – Sedona Rancher
A single woman, in the 1950’s, in a very rural part of Arizona (remember Sedona was a one horse town back then) was able to successfully ranch on her own. Of course, she had hired ranch hands and the help of her sister Elsie. Elsie built a home on Sally’s ranch and lived there until her death. The Lindlblom brothers and sisters would also come at certain times of the year to help with ranch duties such as moving and branding cattle. When Sally Anne grew up she became a frequent help for the aunts on the ranch.
Many of the Sedona ranch hands worked on local ranches so they could practice their true love, painting and sculpting. Cowboys artists Charlie Dye and Joe Beeler are among some of the artist ranch hands who helped Sally. George Phippen, Charlie Dye, Joe Beeler and several other cowboy artists started Cowboys Artists of America. Elsie, a lifelong art collector, did her part in supporting the artist cowboys by purchasing their art.
In 1970, as Sally Hallermund was advancing in age, her niece felt it was time for her to move out of the Telegraph Office and into a new home. The Telegraph office only afforded the very basics for living. The little home had no proper heating or air conditioning. Sally Hallermund agreed to the new house on the promise that Sally would handle all aspects of the build. She told her niece when it was finished and ready to be moved into, she would move. Sally Anne drew up a sketch of what she wanted, found an architect to draw up the plans and hired a local builder. She later added on an apartment so that her mother could come spend the summers with Elsie and Sally.
Sally Hallermund’s last cattle sale was in 1979 and she died early the following year at the age of 81. She died with over 240 acres to her name. An accomplishment to be admired for a cattlewoman who had to strike out on her own in the 1950’s.
Aunt Sally Anne
Sally Hallermund’s niece, Sally Anne, spent every summer on the ranch in Sedona, coming to love the rural life. Sally spent her time feeding the chickens, bottle feeding the cows, swimming in Oak Creek, and adventuring with the aunts.
Sally Anne grew up and worked for one year as a school teacher ( 1960’s) Her principal let her go because she wasn’t strict enough and her students were having too much fun. Sally Anne spent the rest of her life exploring the arts, music, helping the aunts in Sedona, and caring for her parents in California.
In the late 60’s, Sally Hallermund gave her niece a piece of land to build her own home. Sally Anne, who fancied herself quite adept as an architect, created plans for Sun Cliff. The building began in 1970. She called her little one-bedroom house on the red rock bluff her “Indian House.” Today, Sally’s casita (completely renovated in 2014) is a luxury rental property built especially for couples wanting the privacy and red rock views only Sun Cliff can provide. Hundreds of couples have visited Sun Cliff and many return, year after year.
Sally Anne never married. After her mother passed, she had to decide to remain in California or keep Red Rock Ranch. Her time spent with the aunts in Sedona were some of her fondest memories so she decided to move to Sedona in 1998. Sally Anne lived out the rest of her life, with her dogs, in a place that held so many loving memories for her. She named her Smoke Trail Lane home, Shifting Shadows, as she would sit on the patio at sunset watching the shadows play across the expansive red rock cliffs.
Sally Anne passed away in 2011, leaving behind an amazingly rich history. She passed the ranch along to her niece.
Three women owners (and their families) have been the caretakers of this special land that the Bureau of Land Management entrusted to them almost 70 years ago.
Contact Agent
Jack Johnson
Email: Jack@legacysedonarealty.com
Phone: 928-202-2720