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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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.
To Make the World Safe for Democracy: Museums of Western Colorado Presentation about World War I
In a radio broadcast and presentation produced by the Museums of Western Colorado, William Kirk Bunte speaks about Armistice Day and World War I. Interviews with Western Slope veterans of the war appear as part of the program. 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.
True Epics of Western Colorado radio plays: Episodes 1-4
Four radio programs written by Wilson Rockwell, based in part on short histories he wrote for his book Sunset Slope, and broadcast in the Grand Junction area on KREX during the late 1950’s or early 1960’s. The programs include: Episode 1 - Death of an Outlaw (0:00), Episode 2 - The Meeker Bank Robbery (14:52), Episode 3 - The Escalante Canyon Duel (29:34), and Episode 4 - The Disappearance of Howard Carpenter (43:10). These broadcasts are 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.
True Epics of Western Colorado radio plays: Episodes 13-16
Four radio plays written by Wilson Rockwell, based in part on short histories he wrote for his book Sunset Slope, and broadcast in the Grand Junction area on KREX during the late 1950’s or early 1960’s. The programs include: Episode 13 – The Escape (0:00), Episode 14 – The Meeker Massacre (12:48), Episode 15 – The Ambush (28:34), Episode 16 – Professional Killer (42:46). These broadcasts are 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.
True Epics of Western Colorado radio plays: Episodes 17-21, 26
Six radio plays written by Wilson Rockwell, based in part on short histories he wrote for his book Sunset Slope, and broadcast in the Grand Junction area on KREX in the late 1950’s or early 1960’s. The programs include: Episode 17 – The Double Cross (0:00), Episode 18 – The Black Mesa Gunfight (13:49), Episode 19 – The Monument Creek Killings (27:49), Episode 20 – The White River Canyon Indian Fight (40:49), Episode 21 – The Beaver Creek Massacre (56:00), Episode 26 – Friends Fall Out (1:07:30). These broadcasts are 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.
True Epics of Western Colorado radio plays: Episodes 25-28
Four radio programs written by Wilson Rockwell, based in part on short histories he wrote for his book Sunset Slope, and broadcast in the Grand Junction area on KREX in the late 1950’s or early 1960’s. The programs include: Episode 25 – The Price of Hay (0:00), Episode 26 – Friends Fall Out (13:20), Episode 27 - The Diamond Peak Story (27:47), Episode 28 – A Race for Justice (37:50). These broadcasts are 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.
True Epics of Western Colorado radio plays: Episodes 29-32
Four radio programs written by Wilson Rockwell, based in part on short histories he wrote for his book Sunset Slope, and broadcast in the Grand Junction area on KREX in the late 1950’s or early 1960’s. The programs include: Episode 29 – The Death of Chief Ouray (0:00), Episode 30 – The Last Days of Chipeta (14:57), Episode 31 – Conquest of the Black Canyon (29:15), Episode 32 – The Ute Indian Legends (42:03). These broadcasts are 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.

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