The O'Keefes of O'Kanagan by Ken Mather

Founded in 1867, the Historic O'Keefe Ranch offers a fascinating glimpse into the life of an early farming community in the heart of the Okanagan Valley. The O'Keefes of O'kanagan, a welcome resource for any visitor to the site, is an in-depth look into the multiple branches and generations of the family that gave the ranch its name.

When Michael O'Keefe arrived in Canada a penniless Irish immigrant in 1819, he had no idea the impact his descendants would leave on the Canadian West. Michael's son Cornelius arrived in British Columbia, also penniless, in 1862, and over the course of fifty years became a prosperous rancher, farmer, and developer, marrying three times and fathering sixteen children. Indeed, the story of Cornelius O'Keefe, ranching magnate, is as much the story of the five strong women who lived and worked alongside him, persevering through the economic downturns and years when the family's very survival was a struggle.

This sweeping family history, the culmination of forty years of research by acclaimed historian Ken Mather, will appeal to anyone interested in ranching history, Irish settlers to Canada, the Syilx People of the Okanagan Nation, and the multi-faceted roles of women in early colonial British Columbia.

(From Heritage House) 

The O'Keefes of O'Kanagan is available in April 2025. 

Ken Mather has spent over four decades researching western Canadian heritage, holding curatorial, management and research roles at Fort Edmonton Park in Barkerville, B.C., and the O'Keefe Ranch since the early 1970s. He is the editor of the Okanagan Historical Society Report and was awarded the 2015 Joe Martin Memorial Award for his contributions to B.C. cowboy heritage. His previous books include Stagecoach North, Ranch Tales, Frontier Cowboys and the Great Divide and Trail North, which was a finalist for the British Columbia Lieutenant Governor's Award for Historical Writing.