August Dressler, an emigrant from Muhlhausen, Germany, landed in New York in the middle of the 19th century before moving to Minnesota. In the Midwest he worked on a few ranches and farms before deciding to look for his opportunities in the vast new lands out west that opened up after the Civil War.

Though his final destination wasn’t clear, when August entered the Carson Valley in 1862 he decided to make his home at the foot of the Sierra Nevada. Once settled in Nevada, August met his future wife, Wilhemena, and started a family.

When August found it time to pass the ranch to the next generation, it was given to his oldest son, William (Bill) Frederick. It was William who brought the Dressler Ranch to its greatest prominence. Under his control the spread grew to cover nearly 80,000 acres in the Carson Valley, neighboring Smith Valley and in an area around Bridgeport, California. William was also active in the community and the state. He was a director of the Farmers’ Bank in Carson Valley, one of the few banks that lasted through the great depression. He also served as a Nevada state senator for roughly 25 years.

It was upon William’s death in 1946 that the ranch started to diminish in size. At the time of his death the Dressler family was responsible for approximately $100,000 for inheritance, death and property taxes. To cover this debt William’s son Frederick Hugh was forced to sell off large portions of the property. A section in California was sold to the Trust for Public Land which then transferred the land to the California Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Forest Service. Upon Frederick Hugh’s passing in1996 a similar financial burden was placed on his children Frederick William and Luetta. The two decided to sell more of the property to cover the taxes.

The remaining land was divided between the two siblings. Luetta, under the pressures of sprawling suburban development decided to sell the majority of her property to private investors. But Frederick William has chosen to hold on to the remaining portion of his family’s legacy as long as he can.

The Dressler Ranch is currently leased and operated by Frederick William's son Devere, his wife Laura, and their young son Garrett.