Grand Junction (Colo.) -- History
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Darwin Burford discusses growing up in Whitewater, Colorado in the early Twentieth century, and going to school in Mesa County, Colorado. Darwin talks about the early narrow gauge railroad that serviced Mesa County, about the Barnum and Bailey Circus, daily childhood chores, playing cribbage as a family, and his argument with John Otto. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries,...
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Bunk Weimer recalls settling on land at the current location of Colorado Mesa University as a child in 1903, where the boys slept in a cave and the rest of the family in tents before the land was leveled for farming. He talks about helping with the construction of the first Mesa County Fairgrounds (on the site of the present day Lincoln Park), including the Lincoln Park Barn. He discusses helping his father pour foundations for several prominent buildings...
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Fritz Becker, a former officer in the Grand Junction Police Department, discusses crime in Grand Junction, including: murders, the clean-up of prostitution and vice on Colorado Avenue, gambling houses and bootlegging. 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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Dorothy Evans discusses growing up in Collbran, Colorado and receiving her business degree from the Hoel-Ross Business College in Grand Junction. She describes the social life in Grand Junction in and around Main Street, and recalls details about the prominent members of Mesa County, railroad workers, local business owners, and characters who lived and worked in the area. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration...
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Frank Jonick describes his experiences as a railroad detective and special agent for the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad. He also details the Grand Junction train depot fire (involving munitions) that occurred during World War II. 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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Mary Corcoran talks about her parents and grandparents, pioneers in Mesa County and Eastern Utah. She also talks about her early life in Grand Junction, Colorado, and about ranch life above De Beque on the Grand Mesa. 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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Thelma Moore talks about her youth on a fruit farm in Pear Park, life in early Grand Junction, her involvement in 4-H clubs, the Locust Ranch fruit growing operation in Clifton, and the other members of the Kettle family to settle in that area. She discusses her career as a seamstress and work making drapes, county extension work with quilters, craft competitions at the Mesa County Fair, and chautauquas and variety shows. She also goes into her life...
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Mary Cox talks about her education at the Bryant School and elsewhere in Grand Junction, about corsets and other aspects of school fashion, the history of the Riverside Neighborhood, attending community dances and Glenwood Springs’ Strawberry Days, and boys swimming in the Colorado River. She also discusses old downtown businesses, going to movies at the Majestic Theater, a brothel that advertised at the Mesa County Fairgrounds during a baseball...
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Anna E. Craig discusses her upbringing in Mesa, Colorado, including her social experiences, her father’s life as one of the few doctors in the area, the Mesa County Fair, her holiday rituals, methods of preserving food, and what it was like to own a hotel in Mesa. She also talks about an instance in the 1890’s when hundreds of sheep were driven over a cliff by cattle ranchers on the Grand Mesa, and other strife between cattle and sheep ranchers....
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Al look talks about the many books he authored, the many speeches he gave, and his techniques for public speaking. He speaks about his endeavors in paleontology, the many places he visited during his travels, and his written contributions to local history. 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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Al Look talks about taking groups of teachers on tours of the Colorado National Monument and about the history of Grand Junction’s Avalon Theater. He describes the Biltmore, a gambling hall on Main Street owned by J.W. “Big Kid” Eames, and the murder of Eames by dance hall owner and would-be robber Fern “Bubbles” Sadler. He also discusses Pretty Boy Floyd’s brief stay at the Yellow Jacket in Delta, Colorado and his frequenting of Grand...
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Al Look talks about geologic formations in De Beque Canyon and about the first aerial photographs taken of the Grand Mesa. Margaret (Langen) Look speaks about air travel to Boulder, Colorado in the 1920’s. Al Look speaks about the publication of his book, Hopi Snake Dance, and about the return of his son from World War II. He describes his work with different people on archaeological and paleontological digs, and touches on the vandalism of certain...
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Levi Morse discusses the history of Mesa County, Colorado, including fruit growing, drinking water from the Gunnison River and its link to typhoid fever, the YMCA, and the creamery business. He also talks extensively about social events such as the Mesa County Fair, and gives a firsthand account of the first motion picture showing in Grand Junction. June Morse talks about teaching at Fruitvale High School, community organizations and social gatherings....
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Dudley Mitchell describes some difficult times working for the railroad, including a very serious accident that occurred in Grassy, Utah, when an eastbound train jumped the tracks and many people were killed. Dudley also discusses his daily tasks as a car distributor, including information about payroll, the terminals, filing systems, important job duties, and all the freight distributed by the railroad. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County...
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Susie Mendicelli talks about the life of her Italian-American family in Grand Junction, Colorado, the Mendicelli Bakery, canning and preserving at home, and making sausage and head cheese. She also discusses other Italian-American people and businesses, the history of Grand Junction and the changes she saw in town, and the history of Pitkin Avenue. This recording is made available via signed release by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration...
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Nellie Robbins describes the hardships she and her family faced when moving to Grand Junction, Colorado in 1931, and her longtime employment working with the Salvation Army. She also talks about the different charities served by the Grand Junction Salvation Army, its organizational structure, local people involved in the organization, and events it put on. This recording is made available via signed release by the Mesa County Oral History Project,...
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Glenn McFall talks about his various jobs around Mesa County and about witnessing the unveiling of Christo’s Valley Curtain installation in Rifle Gap. He also discusses fishing and battling snow storms on the Grand Mesa, the deer population around Mesa County, his experiences during childhood growing up in Clifton, the old Midland Trail automobile route, drinking and making bootleg whiskey, Italian-Americans making bootleg wine, the Book Cliff Railway,...
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Bertha Schlegel discusses growing up in Loma, Colorado and helping her family raise beets for Holly Sugar, and making sauerkraut, pickled apples, pickled watermelon and other ethnic food with her mother, who was a German immigrant from Russia. She also remembers her education and school activities throughout her childhood, including field days at the Fruita Central School and Grand Junction High School. She talks about obtaining a teaching degree,...
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Patrick Metoyer talks about negotiating with the Veterans Administration Hospital on his father's behalf and how this led to his cofounding of the National Alliance on Mental Illness Veterans Network, to his broader work as a veterans' mental health activist in Mesa County and nationally, and to his father's eventual turnaround. He also reads some of his poetry, discusses his beginnings as an artist and a poet, and goes into his participation in the...
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Cordelia Files talks about the history of her family as early homesteaders in Mesa County, Colorado. She remembers life in Fruita in the early Twentieth century. She recalls working on a ranch near De Beque for her first job at the age of fifteen. She speaks about her life as a teacher instructing all eight grades in a one-room school house, about different episodes from her career in education (including the time a cat came to school), and about...
