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 William McHarg "Bill" Ela
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’ encounters with Ute Indians on Pinon Mesa. He and interviewer Al Look talk about the many Ute and Native American artifacts and sites on Pinon Mesa. He remembers his mother Lucy (Ferril) Ela and her longtime involvement on the Grand Junction School Board. He speaks about growing up at 1006 Main Street in Grand Junction and about playing baseball and other games in the many vacant lots. He remembers school life and spending time in the YMCA building. He recalls youth camping trips and excursions he took to the Four Corners area with a man named Rudy Albrecht, who ran the YMCA camp on the Grand Mesa. He recounts the escape of Betty the monkey from the Lincoln Park Zoo, and her capture by Ela and his two close friends. 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 William R. Hill
William Hill talks about joining the US Air Force in 1967, his training as an Airborne Radio Repairman, his assignment with the Strategic Air Command, and his training in cryptography with a top secret clearance. He remembers being stationed in Thailand during the Vietnam War, where he repaired radios and went on frag runs at night with the 2nd Detachment of the 834th Air Division, dropping flares to aid US troops, and flying classified missions. He describes off-duty life in Thailand. He speaks about his realization of the war’s horrors and his growing disillusionment with the war, but his ultimate pride in having served. 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 Willis "W.L." Blevins and Lotus (Hocker) Blevins
Willis Blevins and his wife Lotus discuss their life as farmers in the Redlands, the history of the Redlands Community Center and the Redlands Women’s Club, and Willis’s career as a lumberyard worker and owner. 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 Winifred Maud (Upton) McCaig
Winifred McCaig talks about her nurse’s training in San Antonio prior to 1917, and about her service in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps during World War I, working in a British hospital in Rouen, France. 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 Zelma (Jones) Parkes
Zelma Parkes discusses her early life in Grand Junction, Colorado. She also talks about ranch life with her husband on Clear Creek, near De Beque. 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 artist Cecilia Cardman
Artist Cecilia Cardman talks about her struggles with the English language and her experience in public schools as a young immigrant from Italy, and about her higher education in both Italy and in Boulder at the University of Colorado. She speaks about teaching art at early Mesa College and what the college was like at that time. She describes the “topnotch” teachers she had at Grand Junction High School. She discusses leaving her teaching career in order to pursue a life as an artist, working in a government-funded residence hall for women in Washington D.C., and life in New York City. She talks about her painting and study of artistic technique with various artists, her membership in the Salmagundi art club and the Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club, and assistance she received from friends in Grand Junction for her first art showing. She and interviewer David Sundal discuss the lives of her siblings and of other artists from Grand Junction. 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 1940 Grand Junction High School yearbook
Interviews with Ervin Merle Ormsbee and Richard B. "Dick" Williams
Ervin Ormsbee talks about the history of cherry growing in the Grand Valley. Dick Williams speaks about the history of fruit growing, canneries, and agribusiness 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.
Interviews with Fred Ames and Emma Lillian (Stocks) Ames
In an interview recorded November 8, 1977, Fred Ames and his wife Emma Lillian (Stocks) Ames discuss the history of Sinbad Valley and its settlement by his family and others. In second and third interviews recorded on November 15 and December 3, 1977 (transcript only*), Fred Ames talks about the McCarty Gang, their stomping grounds in Sinbad Valley and nearby Eastern Utah, and about meeting Tom McCarty as a child. He discusses homesteading and the difficulties of bringing horse drawn wagons into Sinbad Valley when his parents first arrived in the area. He and Emma Ames also talk about local people, buildings, and trails and roads, such as the Crack Trail and the Rimrock Trail. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado. *Includes a sound recording and transcript for Oral History Interview 2, conducted on Nov. 8, 1975. Includes transcript only for interviews on November 15, 1975 and December 3, 1975 (During digitization, the cassette for Interview 4 was found to contain the same recording as the cassette for Interview 2).
John Francis Goulet: Memoirs of Grand Junction and Western Colorado, Part Five
In the sixth, seventh and eighth of nine recordings, John Goulet, a former advertising salesman with the Daily Sentinel newspaper, relates his experiences and travels in Grand Junction and Western Colorado in the 1950’s and 1960’s. In the sixth recording, he talks about the people of the Daily Sentinel and some events that took place in Grand Junction during that time. During the seventh recording, he remembers a humorous, nonsense article written by reporter Sam Gadd. He recalls certain Grand Junction business owners, including Burt and Merian Rosenthal. During the eighth recording, he talks about the Telegraphic Union Strike at the Daily Sentinel in 1956. This recording is made available via signed release by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
John Francis Goulet: Memoirs of Grand Junction and Western Colorado, Part Four
In the fifth of nine recordings, John Goulet, a former advertising salesman with the Daily Sentinel newspaper, relates his experiences and travels in Grand Junction and Western Colorado in the 1950’s and 1960’s. He speaks about his friendship and admiration for Buford “Boots” Kellogg, an employee at Manuel’s Department Store and a popular person in the community. This recording is made available via signed release by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
John Francis Goulet: Memoirs of Grand Junction and Western Colorado, Part One
In the first of nine recordings, John Goulet, a former advertising salesman with the Daily Sentinel newspaper, relates his experiences and travels in Grand Junction and Western Colorado in the 1950’s. He talks about his arrival in Grand Junction from Boston, meeting H. Blake Manuel of Manuel’s Department Store, and his friendship with Al Look of the Sentinel. He describes trips that he and his wife took with Look and his wife around the Western Slope. He recalls visiting the set of the movie How the West Was Won, where he met Gregory Peck and Debbie Reynolds. He remembers going duck hunting in Escalante Canyon. He discusses his friendships with employees at the Daily Sentinel. He recalls time spent with close friends Dick and Jan Blackledge, and reads a poem inspired by Jan. He provides a recording of Sam Gadd’s poetry. Goulet also recites other poems and accompanies his performance with piano. He provides part of a piano piece that he wrote for Al Look, which was previously recorded on KREX radio (possibly part of the Western Colorado Fantasy). This recording is made available via signed release by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
John Francis Goulet: Memoirs of Grand Junction and Western Colorado, Part Six
John Goulet remembers a piano concerto that he played with the Grand Junction High School woodwind orchestra in 1958. He describes his recitation of the Cremation of Sam McGee at the Daily Sentinel party in 1959. He talks about night life in Grand Junction in the 1950’s. He recalls attending a concert of the Paganini Quartet at Mesa College, and meeting John F. Kennedy at Café Caravan during his campaign for president. He remembers his friend Boots Kellogg and Kellogg’s family, and writing advertising copy for Manuel’s Department Store, where Kellogg worked. He speaks about Father James Freld of St. Joseph Catholic Church and Sister Zita Marie of St. Mary’s Hospital. 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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