Bruce and Beth White, Founders of Brush Creek Ranch
Our Founders
Bruce & Beth White
The Legacy
Brush Creek Ranch
Following a lifelong passion for the American West and the outdoors, Bruce White set out on a quest to find a destination ranch, originally with the vision to serve as a family vacation retreat. He was looking for a location that was very private, beautiful, and had great recreational opportunities, which meant it had to have water, particularly a river for fishing and wildlife for hunting. After eight months of visiting dozens of properties in Wyoming, Colorado, Idaho, and Montana, Bruce set his sights on Brush Creek Ranch. Bruce was fascinated with the Ranch’s history and wanted to preserve it.
After the first year of fixing up the property, restoring old buildings, and hosting extended family and friends, Bruce saw how much people enjoyed it, and decided he wanted to open the Ranch for more guests to experience with the purpose to educate, enhance, and enjoy.
Today, Brush Creek Ranch is a well-known luxury resort that pays homage to the hard work, recreation, and adventure instilled by the original founders. We educate our guests on not only the history of the Ranch and the ranching community, but also environmental education. That’s because we see ourselves as stewards of the Ranch, not owners, through tremendous investment into continuously enhancing its ecology.
The White’s vision unfolds as a refined 30,000-acre getaway that strikes a perfect balance between active outdoor recreation, shared experiences, and preservation of the land and its history.
After Bruce’s passing in 2023, Beth White and her family continue his passion for the Ranch, committing to restoring historic buildings, cultivating grazing pastures, and maintaining the natural ecosystem. Bruce’s legacy will carry on the rich traditions of ranching, hospitality, and environmental stewardship.
Bruce's Memoir
Forty years ago, Bruce White founded White Lodging in 1985 in Northwest Indiana with a single hotel and built the company into one of the largest and most respected hospitality companies in the United States.
Hospitalitarian: Bruce White’s Legacy documents and shares the stories and values-based leadership that built White Lodging from a small hospitality company into a player on a national scale.
As one of Marriott’s first franchisees, Bruce built a highly successful and widely respected hospitality company. From roadside hotels to some of the largest and most experiential urban hotels in the United States, White’s visionary leadership led to the development of over 200 hotels and 60 independently branded restaurants across the country.
He inspired hospitality entrepreneurs and introduced groundbreaking concepts such as the first dual- and tri-brand hotels. Bruce’s relentless pursuit of excellence and willingness to challenge conventional thinking set new industry standards, leaving behind a legacy of innovation, entrepreneurship, and a life well-lived.
Hospitalitarian, published by Spectrum Creative, is now available on most online platforms, including Amazon. The memoir features a foreword by hospitality industry icon Chairman Emeritus of Marriott International J.W. ‘Bill’ Marriott, Jr., highlighting White’s profound impact on the industry.
A film version of the book, titled “Bruce: Begin with the End in Mind” and narrated by television host Mike Rowe, is in the works and expected to be available to the public Summer 2025. Any income from the sale of the book or documentary distribution will be matched with donations to education initiatives from the White Family foundations.
