Bud Lott’s “Hardway” Ranch

Down the street from the Sports Complex on 1700 West, and in the middle of quiet pastures, there is a little village of old sheds and granaries that have been circled together into a town. Bud Lott and his wife, Kathleen, sixth generation Lehi residents, have been collecting the structures for the last 20 years. Friends in Lehi will contact Bud when they sell their land and Bud will come by with his tractor to get an old shed or granary from the property and drag it back to his village. Bud has a great love for old, rusty things and his friends know these historic treasures are going to a good home.

The display outhouse, not to be confused with the real one across the street. Photo: Nicole Kunze

Each of the sheds is filled with items Bud has collected over the years. “Bud retired when he was 59 years old, so this property has saved our marriage because he has somewhere to go every day,” says Kathleen. (Bud will be 82 years-old this month.) Bud has added lighting and sleeping lofts to some of the buildings, as well as a theme and style inside each one. Bud and Kathleen served an LDS mission in Nauvoo, Illinois, from 1999 to 2000 and they went back to Nauvoo for an LDS Temple Mission in 2006. Bud collected old signs to put up in his village while he was in Nauvoo.

A gunsmith sign from Nauvoo, Illinois on one of the structures at Hardway Ranch. Photo: Nicole Kunze

Besides being the most fun place ever for their grandchildren, Bud’s “Hardway” Ranch (named because it is “too big for a shovel and too small for a tractor,” so he has to do everything the hard way) has been the backdrop for six movies, family pictures, Lehi Round-Up Royalty photos, and school club photos. They’ve opened up the ranch for family parties, Boy Scout campouts, church group parties, fund raisers, and Youth Conferences. The Lotts have an annual Easter party in the village where they host about 100 family members and friends.

Bud has a fun story for just about every item in each of his sheds. He can turn a “prairie diamond ring” for visitors on the spot. Kathleen’s grandfather ran a store in Lehi and the sign from that store is prominently displayed on the first barn-shaped shed as you pull into the village. Standing in the Lotts’ village is stepping back in time with Bud and Kathleen as the perfect hosts.

Kathleen Lott’s grandfather’s store sign at the Hardway Ranch. Photo: Nicole Kunze