Long before 1903, the mountain now known as Bull Hill stood unnamed—an uncharted mountaintop paradise waiting for its first settlers. That moment arrived in 1903, when Peter Ansaldo left San Giorgio, Italy, landed at Ellis Island, and continued west to Butte, Montana. Working the mines to save money for his wife Mary, Peter faced serious lung issues from his time underground. On his doctor’s advice, he moved to a region rich in forests—northeastern Washington—where some of his extended family had already homesteaded. Peter claimed land by what is now Ansaldo Lake and brought the area’s very first Hereford bull, “Curly,” giving Bull Hill its name.

In 1921, twenty-one-year-old Minot Guglielmino spent his birthday crossing the Atlantic to America. Maintaining ties with the Ansaldo family, Minot traveled north to Washington, first finding work in the Lead Point mine. There, he met and married Peter’s daughter, Katherine (Kate). Together, Minot and Kate expanded the cattle operation and turned Bull Hill into a thriving ranch.

By 1928, Minot and Kate welcomed their only child, Don Guglielmino, who grew up working the ranch and attending a one-room schoolhouse at the bottom of the hill. Don later met and married Kathleen (Kassie), and the couple raised six children—Jeanne, Susan, Don, Pete, Tom, and Joe. In 1995, brothers Don and Pete took the family’s ranching tradition further by opening Bull Hill Guest Ranch. What began with a cookhouse, a few tents, several horses, and a working barn has since blossomed into the destination it is today—an enduring place where the spirit of the West is alive and shared with every visitor.

Pete Guglielmino, alongside his wife Patsy, owned and managed the cattle and later the guest ranch operations beginning in 1981, shortly after he graduated from Eastern Washington University. He was a licensed aircraft pilot, a professional horse trainer, and a dedicated fly-fishing and hunting guide. Pete proudly served as President of the Washington Cattlemen’s Association and also served on the National Cattlemen’s Beef Board. He and Patsy, together with their three children—Tucker, Hunter, and Kassie—worked tirelessly to cultivate the land, care for the herds, and warmly welcome guests to the ranch. Most recently, Tucker returned to Bull Hill as Marketing Director after graduating from Washington State University, helping ensure the legacy Pete helped build continues to thrive for future generations.