Ernest John Morton
Year Inducted: 2002
Kaonoulu Ranch | Maui
Ernest started at Kaonoulu Ranch “in the days when even the tame cattle were half wild,” and by the time he retired he had worked alongside four generations of the Rice family that owned the ranch.
While he probably enjoyed rough riding, wild cattle and adventure as a young man, Ernest is remembered as a wise, mature cowboy, who taught others that it was better to set machismo aside and learn how to work the cattle gently. He drove cattle by picking out the leaders of the herd and directing them, and letting the cattle “think they were getting away” while they were headed right where he wanted them.
Ernest’s strong point was his ability at handling large herds of cattle so smoothly that none of them would get wild and run off.
“He learned that life was a lot easier and safer if you did it right the first time,” says Freddy Rice, who looked up to "Ernie" as his mentor. Freddy remembers that whenever a group of cowboys were chasing loose cows, Ernest kept his cool.
“He always was the last person to pull his rope,” he recalls, “and he always seemed to be the one to catch it.”
He calls Ernest one of Hawaii’s most “complete” ranch foremen. “The ranch was his total life,” he says, a high compliment from one cowboy to another.