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Ted Albers, Bob Hall, Lowell Heiny and James “Jim” Kyle discuss the early history of Grand Junction and Mesa County, Ute Indians, and the formation of the Mesa County Historical Society at the September 22, 1975 meeting of the Society. This recording is provided by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries, the Museums of Western Colorado, and the Mesa County Historical Society.
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William Ela talks about his family’s arrival in the Little Dolores River area of Mesa County in 1881 and their establishment of the 2-V Ranch. He tells stories about his grandfather, the pioneer rancher and Grand Junction town mayor William Phillips Ela. He remembers his grandfather’s horse Looney and his escapades. He speaks about the dangers of travel to and from Glade Park in the early days. He recalls stories passed down about his ancestors’...
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Don and Mary Roth discuss ranching on the Colorado National Monument and surrounding area, John Otto, and interactions with Ute Indians. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
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Longtime Fruita residents and photographers Will Minor and Lee Warner discuss their experiences in the Colorado National Monument and the surrounding areas of Western Colorado and Eastern Utah. They also talk about meeting John Otto, and about Minor’s discovery of the rare Papilio Indra Minori butterfly on the Monument. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of...
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Charles Burg tells stories from his father about his interactions with the Ute during a US Army deployment near Montrose, Colorado. He talks about settlers and ranchers of the De Beque area, including Dave Knight, a Cherokee from Oklahoma who utilized native plants in a traditional way. He describes a “garter” brand on a horse, horse breaking techniques for wild horses, the origins of the wild horse population in the Bookcliffs, stray cattle gone...
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Siblings Ella O'Brien and Earl Foster talk about the history of their pioneer family in the Paradox Valley area of Montrose County, Colorado, about living near and working in the mines, about their father John "Peg-leg" Foster and his involvement with labor issues in Telluride's mines, and the murder of Henry "Indian Henry" Huff by their stepfather John Keski. They also discuss the discrimination that Utes and other Native Americans faced from whites...
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Four radio programs written by Wilson Rockwell, based in part on short histories he wrote for his book Sunset Slope, and broadcast in the Grand Junction area on KREX in the late 1950’s or early 1960’s. The programs include: Episode 33 – Ute Indian Scares (0:00), Episode 34 – The North Fork Hermits (14:40), Episode 35 – The North Fork Hermits II (29:46), Episode 36 – Escalante’s Journey (43:23). These broadcasts are made available via...
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Jeanette LeBeau, an early Mesa County resident, talks about climbing Independence Monument with bare feet, Ute Indians who visited her grandparents in pioneer Fruita, summers spent at Leach’s cattle ranch in Pinon Mesa, means of transportation, law enforcement, and prejudice against Catholics in the Grand Valley. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western...
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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 radio plays used interviews recorded by the Mesa County Oral History Project as inspiration. In this recording the listener will hear the play, The...
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Lucy Ela discusses John Otto, the Colorado National Monument, and the settlement of Glade Park. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado. *Photograph from the 1936 Grand Junction High School yearbook.
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Will Watts talks about coming to Colorado in a covered wagon in the 1890’s, growing up in Delta and Telluride, and running away from home at the age of thirteen to work various labor jobs in the Olathe area. Edith Watts speaks about growing up on a homestead north of Olathe, encounters with Ute Indians, her schooling at the Number 8 School on Ash Mesa, and her work caring for children, sewing, and tailoring. She and Will remember life in Telluride,...
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Sisters Dorothy (Raber) Beard and Marjorie (Raber) Likes talk about the history of their family in Fruita, Colorado. They speak about Will Minor, the goat herder and self-educated photographer, author, and amateur lepidopterist who discovered the butterfly Papilio Indra Minori on the Colorado National Monument. They discuss homesteads that the Beard family owned in the canyons that comprise the current day McInnis Canyons National Conservation Area....
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Al Look talks about his family and about his grandparents’ immigration from Germany. He speaks about life on the farm in Kansas and the important role of women as homemakers. He discusses travels in Colorado and New Mexico, encounters with Ute and Navajo people, and filing for a homestead in the Dove Creek area. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western...
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William “Mose” Burkitt and Estella (Gavin) Taylor discuss the early history of Fruita, Colorado and Mesa County. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
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Levi Clark discusses the history and agriculture of Palisade, Colorado. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado. *Photograph from the 1909 Palisade High School yearbook.
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On the occasion of the Mesa County Historical Society annual picnic (circa 1980), Julia Harris, an early Grand Mesa resident, lectures about the history of the area, with information about a 1910 earthquake in the Cameo area, the construction of the Plateau Canyon Road, De Beque in the 1880’s, the captivity of Josephine Meeker on the Grand Mesa after the Meeker Massacre, an old Native American cemetery near De Beque, and Republican Party happenings....
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Ruby Luton discusses the history of Atchee, the Uintah Railway, and the early history of Fruita. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
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Anna Cunningham describes her family’s journey out West from Connecticut, and their pioneer life living on a homestead near Meeker. She also talks about her life living in Mesa County. 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.
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Arvid Muhr talks about his family of Swedish Immigrants, about peach farming on East Orchard Mesa in Mesa County, and about the development of irrigation water in the Grand Valley. Mr. Muhr also discusses the Teller Institute baseball team, made up of American Indians that attended the school, and about working on a hydroelectric dam near Palisade. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County...
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Al Look discusses his days spent in the Durango, Colorado area, including his time as a homesteader near Dove Creek, his exploration of Mesa Verde’s Anasazi ruins, and his job as an advertising agent for the Durango Herald newspaper. He also talks about his knowledge of the Durango Silverton Railroad. This recording is made available via signed release by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums...