In the 1870s, Mormon pioneers often paid tithes with livestock, crops, or labor rather than cash. The Southern Utah Tithing Office accepted many steers and heifers as tithes and sent the stock to Pipe Spring, where the ranch was managed by the tithing office for the Mormon Church. The Winsor, Pulsipher, and Woolley families, among others, worked this church ranch for 25 years, and Pipe Spring was not privately owned until the Mormon Church sold the property in 1895. In the years 1870-1877, 80-100 cows were milked here every day, producing about 60 pounds of cheese and 40 pounds of butter. Twice a month, 10 to 30 steers were driven from here to the tithing office in St. George, Utah, along with a load of butter and cheese. Hundreds of men who worked on public roads and the St. George Temple and Tabernacle received shares of beef, butter, and cheese.