Mesa County Oral History Project

The Mesa County Oral History Project began as a joint project of the Museums of Western Colorado and Mesa County Libraries (MCL) in 1975. The Oral History Project collected tape-recorded interviews with pioneers of Mesa County and surrounding areas, and interviews with the children of pioneers. The Central Library housed the duplicate audio cassettes and provided patron access to the histories. The Museum stored the master tapes and kept files and transcripts related to the oral history collection. The Mesa County Historical Society also contributed significantly to the Oral History Project by collaborating with the library and museum to select interviewees, and by providing interviewers and other volunteers. Mesa County Libraries no longer partner with the Museum in housing duplicate copies of tapes. But the library now works with the Museum to digitize interviews from the Mesa County Oral History Project and to provide online access to the interviews through Pika, the library catalog. The Museum continues to house the original audio cassettes, interview transcripts, and other source material for the project. The Library and the Museums of Western Colorado still record oral histories with residents who have important knowledge of the area’s history. Please note that some interviews contain language that listeners or readers may consider offensive. Mesa County Libraries does not condone such language, but has included interviews in their entirety in the interest of preserving history.

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Interview with Lyle Aubrey McNames
Lyle McNames talks extensively about his enlistment in the U.S. Army during World War I and about his time in basic training. He also describes the life of a soldier, and discusses the conflicted feelings that different soldiers had about the war. 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.
Interview with Mabel (Harp) Cowden
Mabel Cowden discusses her pioneer father, who owned a stagecoach line in Meeker and Rifle, Colorado, and her pioneer mother, who was active in the community and Methodist church affairs of Rifle. She goes into her education as a teacher and her teaching position in Harvey Gap. She talks about meeting her fiance, his service during World War I, and about the service of her brother, sons and grandsons in other wars. She also talks about raising a family and running the general store in Silt. This interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
Interview with Mabel Jane (Purcell) Hart Johnson
Mabel Hart Johnson talks about life in Meeker, Colorado in the early 1900’s, Teddy Roosevelt’s mountain lion hunting trip in the area, and what the life of a woman was like in Meeker. She also discusses her battle with the illness St. Vitus’s Dance, using scrip during the Great Depression, homesteading near the White River, raising a family in Grand Junction, and bowling. Her husband Murl Hazen Johnson talks about working as a truck driver for the Milne Transfer company. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
Interview with Malessa Addeline "Addie" (Keel Hester) Mudgett
Addie Mudgett talks about her engagement to her first husband. She remembers coming to Mesa County, Colorado with her second husband and settling on land in the Pomona area. She discusses her life on the farm and the many labor projects she took charge of that were typically done by men. She speaks about working as a registered nurse prior to leaving Nebraska and nursing neighbors to health in 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.
Interview with Margaret (Irvine) Snook
Margaret Snook describes the voyage to the United States from her native Scotland in 1910, and life in the Van Houten mining camp near Raton, Colorado. She and her daughter Ida May (Snook) Waggoner talk about William T. and Clara P. Snook, and their establishment of a homestead in what became known as Snooks Bottom. Margaret Snook discusses life in Craig and Axel, Colorado, where she and her husband Guy Snook worked supplying homesteaders with various goods. She also talks about moving to many other locations on Colorado’s Western Slope. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado. *Part Two of the interview includes only the first 30 minutes of the audio recording. The last 30 minutes of the original audio cassette recording are inaudible.
Interview with Margaret (Purcell) Golden
Margaret Golden discusses her school days in Grand Junction, Colorado and her life as a homemaker. She also talks about old theaters and entertainments and touches on other facets of town life. 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.
Interview with Margaret Angeline (Hargis) Stump
Margaret Stump talks about her childhood on a fruit farm in Fruitvale, Colorado, growing up without electricity or plumbing. She also discusses her lifelong involvement in local churches, and her education at the Ross Business College and subsequent job as a bookkeeper. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
Interview with Marguerite Elizabeth (Miller) Beede
Marguerite Beede talks about moving with her husband and children to Loma, Colorado as part of a resettlement program during the Dust Bowl. She reminisces about teaching at the Loma School for over 20 years. She describes the establishment of the Loma Community Hall and its vital place in the community. She remembers some of the town’s locals. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
Interview with Marian "Mary" (Tananbaum) Gordon and Gilbert Gordon
Gilbert Gordon talks about growing up in Trinidad, Colorado in the early Twentieth century and at length about the different ethnicities present in Trinidad at that time, with an emphasis on the Jewish population. He discusses some of the activities of the Ku Klux Klan around 1923, and how prejudice from the organization affected him. He also talks about operating Gordon department stores, a family owned chain. Both Gilbert and Mary go into life and religious services in the Grand Valley’s Jewish community. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
Interview with Marie (Geir) Spomer
Marie Spomer describes her younger years living in a German settlement in Russia, including homemaking tasks and funeral ceremonies. Marie also recalls what it was like moving to America, the jobs she took on after leaving school, meeting her husband, and moving to Mesa County to work on a sugar beet farm. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
Interview with Marie (Pate) Edwards Marshall
Marie Edwards talks about her work as a civilian employee at Camp Hale, Colorado, headquarters of the U.S. Army’s 10th Mountain Division, during World War II. She describes life at the camp, ski training for soldiers, and post-war reunions on Tennessee Pass of soldiers and others who spent time there. 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.
Interview with Marie Ellen (Corn) Tipping
Marie Tipping talks about the history of her family in Mesa County, Colorado and on the Western Slope. She speaks about her grandfather Thad Duckett, a miner, an early rancher on Pinon Mesa, and the operator of the Duckett Burgman Sawmill on East Creek in the 1880’s. She describes the Duckett Burgman Sawmill company. She gives the history of George Corn, a rancher and foreman on the S-Cross Ranch, and of the Corn family. 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 1962 Grand Junction High School yearbook

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