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Jean Urruty discusses his time in Mesa County, the history of Basque people in the Western United States, and Basque culture. 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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Jean Urruty discusses his time in Mesa County, the history of Basque people in the Western United States, and Basque culture. He also talks about his life as a sheepherder, discrimination he and other Basque people faced, and his eventual success as a hotel owner on Grand Junction's Colorado Avenue. 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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A Basque immigrant who came to Mesa County in 1925. Along with other Basque immigrants, he was a sheepherder in the Pinon Mesa and Green River, Utah areas. After approximately five years of herding sheep, he and other Basques pooled their money and purchased a sheep ranching outfit, which they did in the middle of the Great Depression. In 1935, he purchased the LaSalle Hotel on Grand Junction’s Colorado Avenue, and helped decrease prostitution and...
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Jean and Benerita Dolores (Velazquez) Urruty discuss Jean’s immigrant experience, the life of a Basque sheepherder, Basque culture, and sheepherding 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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Twentieth century resident of Mesa County. Wife of Jean Urruty.
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Father of Jean Urruty. He was a Basque smuggler aiding the Allies during WWII.
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At the annual Basque Festival in Grand Junction, Colorado, Evelyn Kyle interviews former Basque sheepherder and hotel owner Jean Urruty about Basque culture, speaks to other Basques, and records Basque war cries, singing, and folk songs. She also describes the dances of the Basque. This recording is made available via signed release by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries, the Museums of Western Colorado and...
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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 plays used interviews recorded by the Mesa County Oral History Project as inspiration. This archival recording contains the play Immigrants. This...
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Evelyn Kyle, the first coordinator of the Mesa County Oral History Project, discusses her role in expanding the program shortly after its inception in 1976, and describes colorful personalities that she met through the project. She also talks about her life in the performing arts, establishing and acting in community theaters around Western Colorado, about her experiences during the Dust Bowl and World War II, and about her marriage to Jim Kyle and...