How Ree Drummond Became Known As The Pioneer Woman

Ree Drummond certainly never imagined moving to a ranch, nor did her friends. The daughter of an orthopedic surgeon, Drummond grew up around country clubs and in ballet classes. Carrying water to boil was never in the picture. All that changed when Drummond met a cowboy in a bar in Oklahoma. When she informed her family about her plans to move to a ranch, to say they were surprised is an understatement.

Though Drummond had plans to head to Chicago to attend law school, Ladd Drummond, a multigenerational cattle rancher, had other ideas. The two married in 1996 and moved to his ranch in Pawhuska, Oklahoma. Her friends started calling her "The Pioneer Woman" as a joke, but the moniker stuck. When the ranch lost water for months, Drummond began hauling water and making do without the luxury of running water. Even the neighboring ranchers were impressed, calling her a real Pioneer Woman.

Her husband encouraged her to start writing a blog, and in 2006, Drummond began documenting her life on the ranch online. She posted her own recipes, lifestyle content, and lessons learned in an approachable, personal voice. In the early days, she referred to her husband as the Marlboro Man. Her stories resonated with audiences, and within five years, her blog was generating 23 million page views each month. Food Network approached her for a TV show and what was originally a joke among friends had become a valuable brand, spinning off into Pioneer Woman cookbooks, a magazine, and a homeware lineup.

Drummond's show "The Pioneer Woman" has run for nearly 15 years, making it one of the Food Network's longest-running programs. Drummond now also runs The Mercantile, a store and restaurant in Pawhuska, and her hometown has become a destination for foodie tourists. Visitors can tour The Lodge on Drummond Ranch to get a taste of ranch life firsthand and perhaps leave with a little pioneer spirit of their own.