The Charles J. Belden collection at the American Heritage Center consists of approximately 3,000 original negatives. Most of these images were taken in the 1920s and 1930s on the legendary Pitchfork Ranch near Meeteetse, Wyoming. Located at the base of the Absaroka Mountains, the 250,000 acre ranch proved fertile ground for Belden's photography.  By photographing cowboys and cattle against the spectacular backdrop of the Rocky Mountains, he created some of the classic images of the American West.  His photographs convey a sense of energy, vitality, and adventure and indicate an understanding of dramatic scene composition as well as the hardships of the Wyoming range.

A full inventory of the collection can be accessed online at: http://rmoa.unm.edu/docviewer.php?docId=wyu-ah00598.xml.

The AHC is also digitizing this collection in its entirety. The digital collection can be accessed online at: http://digitalcollections.uwyo.edu:8180/luna/servlet/uwydbuwy~23~23.