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African Ranches Ltd., a subsidiary of a Liverpool firm which later became part of the United Africa Company, was the only private cattle ranching enterprise ever established in Northern Nigeria. The company operated a 16,000-acre ranch in western Bornu province from 1914 until 1923, when it was given up to the government. Although ranching was officially discouraged, for a time it looked as though it might succeed. The vicissitudes of this early ranching scheme are chronicled in this paper, with data coming principally from the National Archives in Kaduna and Ibadan, Nigeria. and the Public Record Office, London. Although this is an historical study of a unique enterprise, it offers instructive comparison with recent state-owned ranches in Nigeria and elsewhere in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]