Mesa County Libraries
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Voice Recording
Frosty Tilton describes his career as a banker in Palisade and Grand Junction, Colorado. He talks about bank closures and runs on banks during the Great Depression, the economic impact of the peach industry, and the history of local fruit grower cooperatives. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries, the Museums of Western Colorado and the Mesa County Historical Society.
*Photo...
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Voice Recording
Helen and Marion Bowman discuss Marion Bowman’s father, George Bowman, founder of the Palisades National Bank, United Fruit Growers Association, and the inventor of the Fruit Gathering Bag (Bowman picking sack). They also discuss the history of fruit growing in Palisade, Colorado. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries, the Museums of Western Colorado, and the Mesa County Historical...
Format:
Voice Recording
Doug Westcott talks about his youth in Southern California, and about playing music and making records with a band called the Esquires. He describes the deep US Marine ties in his family that led, in part, to his enlistment in 1960. He recounts his experiences as a Radio Relay Electronics Technician in the 7th Communication Battalion. He remembers training in jungle warfare techniques in the Phillipines, becoming an expert, and teaching jungle warfare...
Format:
Voice Recording
Ray Bernal talks about his early life in the Grand Valley and the wide variety of jobs that he held, including work as a "gandy dancer" on the railroad, mining, farming, thinning beets, janitorial work, and herding sheep. He also discusses a group breakfast he had with President Harry S. Truman, where Truman's daughter staged a musical performance. This recording is made available via signed release by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration...
Format:
Compound
William May talks about his upbringing on a ranch in Steamboat Springs and his life as a rancher, hunting guide, and outfitter. He plays guitar and sings songs that his father and others handed down to him, and songs that he made up. He tells stories from his life, and stories that his father and others related to him. Songs that he sings during the interview include: Mickey Mouse, Little Duck, Cuatro, Little Joe the Wrangler, Home on the Range, Oh...
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Voice Recording
Luella Morgan talks about starting work in the National Bank in Glenwood Springs in 1916, when she was fifteen years old, and details the Boston System of banking (also known as the Suffolk System) and what it was like working in a bank. She also discusses working at the Palisades National Bank from 1922 to 1978, changes in local banking over the years, women in banking, and selling Liberty Bonds during World War I. The interview was conducted by...
1247) All That Jazz
Format:
Video
This piece was included in the 2015-2016 Art on the Corner Temporary Exhibit.
Format:
Voice Recording
During a Mesa County Public Library program, Michael Husband speaks about the many cultural activities in early Grand Junction and Mesa County, Colorado, including music, dance, and theater. He names top performers who came to Grand Junction, including the Russian Ballet, John Philip Sousa, the New York Philharmonic, and the Chicago Symphony. He discusses the role of Walter Walker in supporting and promoting the arts. He lists the many venues that...
Format:
Voice Recording
Roy Schumann speaks about the history of his German ancestors in Russia, about the immigration of his parents from Russia to Colorado, and their marriage and move to the Western Slope. He describes the life of German people living in Russia in the early Twentieth century. He talks about the food and traditions of his family and other German Americans. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County...
Format:
Voice Recording
To mark the centennial celebration of the town of Grand Junction, Colorado in 1981, the Mesa County Oral History Project wrote and recorded several radio plays about local history. Beginning on September 26, 1981, local radio stations KSTR, KREX-AM, KREX-FM, and KMSA broadcast the plays. Authors of the plays used interviews recorded by the Mesa County Oral History Project as inspiration. This archival recording contains the play Dr. Edward Everett...
Format:
Compound
Bob Klenda, an accomplished saddle maker, talks in detail about the craft of saddlery and about the utility of different saddle types. He recounts how he got his beginning in the craft. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
*Note: Transcripts have been machine-created and do contain inaccuracies. In time, each transcript will be audited...
Format:
Voice Recording
To mark the centennial celebration of the town of Grand Junction, Colorado in 1981, the Mesa County Oral History Project wrote and recorded several radio plays about local history. Beginning on September 26, 1981, local radio stations KSTR, KREX-AM, KREX-FM, and KMSA broadcast the plays. Authors of the plays used interviews recorded by the Mesa County Oral History Project as inspiration. This archival recording contains the play Summer Fun, about...
Format:
Compound
Leonard Lewis recalls his upbringing in Gateway, Colorado. He remembers being drafted into the US Army, being stationed for nearly one and a half years at Fort Carson, and his eventual transfer to Vietnam in 1968 with replacement troops for the 9th Infantry Division in Ben Hoa. He describes patrolling the countryside with his reconnaissance unit and working as the radio operator to the forward observer. He talks about working with a mortar unit and...
Format:
Voice Recording
Ruth and Charlie Benson talk about running a hunting camp near Parachute, Colorado for several years and tell stories about foolish hunters. They remember songs they sang and games they played as children. Charlie talks about irrigation and building fences. Charlie speaks about his youth on a dairy farm in Parachute and on a nearby homestead. He recalls helping to build the Granlee Trail in the 1960’s. Ruth recalls the Granlee School, where she...
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Voice Recording
Bill Rump talks about his father Charlie Rump and his roll in developing the Redlands in Mesa County, Colorado as a member of the Redlands Company and the Redlands Water and Power Company. He recounts the efforts of those companies in creating orchards and other agricultural enterprises on the Redlands. He speaks about the Redlands School, roads, sports, youth activities, and other aspects of life on the Redlands and in Grand Junction. He remembers...
Format:
Compound
Helen Hyde talks about her family history and the vital role that music played in her family while growing up in Kannah Creek and Paonia, Colorado. She tells stories and plays songs on the piano about mines, people and places in the San Juan Mountains, such as the Tomboy Mine and the Camp Bird Mine. She plays cowboy songs, such as Streets of Laredo. She recalls putting on plays and musical programs with other youth while living with the Toothaker...
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Voice Recording
Ira Caley talks about growing up on a farm near Grants Pass, Oregon and in the town of Springfield, Oregon. He speaks about the difficulty of his home life and joining the Marines at the age of seventeen. He recalls basic training, early rumblings about the Vietnam War in 1963, being assigned to the 1st Batallion, 11th Marines, training for jungle warfare in the Philippines, and landing in Vietnam as part of an invasion force in October 1965. He describes...
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Voice Recording
Warren Kiefer talks about his career as a fireman and engineer on the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad, and working the line between Grand Junction, Colorado and Salt Lake City. He gives specifics about the technical aspects of the fireman position on a steam locomotive. He speaks about the relationship between the fireman and the engineer, and tells stories about comical and contentious interactions between different workers. He explains the purpose...
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Voice Recording
Eda Musser talks about her wedding day and honeymoon with Kelso Musser, and about evidence of Ute Indian habitation that was still present in Escalante Canyon in 1910. She also discusses travel through the canyon, its inhabitants, ranching practices in the canyon, and the fire that destroyed the Musser’s ranch house. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries, the Museums of Western...
Format:
Voice Recording
Alex Bauer talks extensively about this history of his family, part of the German community of Morganthau in Russia. He recounts their immigration to the United States in the years before the Russian Revolution. He remembers his dad’s career as a machinist for Missouri Pacific Railroad and then the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad. He also recounts his own career as a machinist. He speaks about his parrallel career as the shop steward International...
