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.

Pages

Third Interview with Helen Lucile (Young) Johnson
Helen Johnson talks about the Hotchkiss family and their history in and around the town of Hotchkiss, Colorado. She compares the towns of Hotchkiss and Paonia in their early days. She speaks about moving to Grand Junction with her husband in 1923, living downtown, and her impressions of the town. A Rebekah and the wife of an Odd Fellow, she talks about the history of both organizations, recalls details of Rebekah and Odd Fellows membership, and remembers Odd Fellows dances and events at the Grand Junction Odd Fellows Lodge with fondness. She gives details about her home at 120 Hill Avenue. She tells what it was like to travel roads of dirt and mud on her honeymoon to California, and gives other details of the trip. She talks about giving birth to her children with the help of a negligent doctor, and of being born with rickets. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
Third Interview with Howard M. Shults and Helen L. (McFarland) Shults
Howard Shults talks about life growing up in Collbran, Colorado in the early Twentieth century, including farming, local schools and his father’s teaching career in “trouble” schools, local people, and his juvenile hijinks. He also discusses breaking horses, “leaded horses” exposed to the pesticide lead arsenic, wild horses, raising and driving hogs from Collbran to De Beque, and winning the Ft. Logan Military Training School boxing championship. His wife Helen Shults also chimes in with her occasional insight. 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.
Third Interview with James B. "Jim" Franklin
Cowpuncher, cowboy, and horse trainer James Franklin shares his extensive knowledge of the cattle and horse industry in the early days of Garfield County, Colorado. He talks about old remedies used for different horse ailments and goes into other aspects of horse care. He talks about the use of horses in roundups and gives extensive information about training horses. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
Third Interview with John Jay Collier
John Collier talks about his upbringing on a farm in Grand Junction, Colorado, on ranchland and farmland in the Redlands, and on a homestead in Pinon Mesa. He speaks about the history of the Sleeper and Ela family’s ranching operations on Pinon Mesa. He describes his Uncle Joe Collier, who served as the Mesa County Sheriff during Prohibition, and a bootlegger’s attempt to blackmail him. He discusses what he perceives as the effect of uranium prospecting near Gateway on deer migration patterns, and the arrival of more deer on Glade Park. He talks about aspects of ranch life such as securing water and supplies, and moving the cattle between seasonal ranges. He remembers riding horseback with a pillow as a saddle when he was around four years old and meeting the artist Harold Bryant at their family’s cabin near Enoch’s Lake. 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 1931 Grand Junction High School yearbook
Third Interview with Joseph John Egger
Joseph John Egger discusses his family’s history in Mesa County, and Mesa County agriculture in the late Nineteenth and early Twentieth centuries. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
Third Interview with Marie (Becker) Young
Marie Young talks about her life as a homemaker on a ranch. She discusses methods of preserving butchered cows and pigs, and gives a detailed description of making head cheese. She also talks about sidesaddle riding and about the African-American cowboy Charlie Glass. 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.
Third Interview with Mary Belle (Powers) Plaisted
Mary Plaisted talks about early days in Mesa County, Colorado, her marriage to Thomas Pierce, a farmer in Loma, and the busy life of a homemaker on the farm. She discusses various locations and institutions around the Western Slope, including the Paradox Valley, the Cowpuncher’s Reunion, and the Little Book Cliff Railway. She speaks about her warm family life as a child in Kansas, and life in Western Colorado after her father’s death. She also talks about her love of painting, weaving, and of Mount Garfield. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
Third Interview with Velma E. (Borschell) Budin
Early Fruitvale resident Velma E. Budin discusses the history of Fruitvale and Fruitvale High School, the extensive pioneering history of the Borschell family in the Grand Valley, the biographies of several prominent Fruitvale families, fruit farming, and early irrigation methods of 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 Colorado. *Photograph from the 1925 Colorado Agricultural College yearbook.
Third Interview with Vesta (Price) Fitzpatrick
Vesta Fitzpatrick speaks about a railroad accident that occurred west of the town of New Castle, Colorado around 1900. She talks about her father, a Union Civil War veteran. She discusses poetry and short stories that she wrote about her youth. She remembers working in a rooming house in Uravan for workers from Oakridge, Tennessee during secretive mining for the first atomic bomb, and receiving a letter of appreciation for her work after the first atomic bombs were dropped on Japan. She talks about her sons’ military service during World War II. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
Third Interview with Wayne Aspinall
Wayne N. Aspinall describes his enlistment in the Air Service of the United States Army at the start of US involvement in World War I and his enlistment for World War II at the age of 48. He speaks about the necessity of discipline in upbringing and in the military, changes in basic training from World War I to World War II, the necessity of military training, the obligation of military service, and his philosophy on war and the duties of citizenship. He talks about his service as a legal officer in the Allied Military Government during World War II, administering liberated territory in Belgium and France. He discusses his career in public service as a representative of Colorado’s Fourth Congressional District. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.
Third Lecture by Al Look: A Speech to the Fruitvale Lions Club about Colorado's Natural and Cultural History
During a speech to the Fruitvale Lions Club of Mesa County, Colorado, Al Look discourses on all manner of subjects related to Colorado History, including the geologic history of the Grand Mesa and Grand Valley, the lack of rat species native to Western Colorado and Eastern Utah, Ute and American Indian History, and dinosaurs. 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 the Mesa County Historical Society.
Thirteenth Interview with Al Look
Al Look talks about some of the colorful people that lived in Durango during the 1920’s, and about the history and growth of the town. He also tells about his marriage to Margaret Langen and their honeymoon in Mesa Verde National Park, and touches on his boyhood in Kansas. Look discusses his days working for both the Grand Junction News and the Daily Sentinel, and describes his role in providing publicity for events sponsored by the Sentinel. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries and the Museums of Western Colorado.

Pages