People

: Wille, Gail Lynn Leslie

: Willeta "Billie" Miller

: William "Bill" A. Ranta; William "Bill" Arthur Ranta was born October 26, 1906, in Telluride, Colorado, to Jacob Ranta and Anna Ranta. His younger brother was Elmer Ranta. Bill helped to take care of Elmer while growing up. Bill lived his entire life in Telluride and was an avid basketball player for Telluride High. He graduated from high school in 1925. After graduation, Bill worked as a carpenter at the Smuggler Mill, with his father (Jacob) and then at the Meldrum Tunnel for a few years. He also worked as an assayer. During the Great Depression, Bill worked as a janitor at the post office. Bill enjoyed dancing and camping at Trout Lake in the family's cabin. William passed away in May of 1986.

: William "Bill" Burnett

: William "Bill" Cutter; An early Twentieth century Palisade resident. He was an avid hunter and fisherman. Grandfather of Palisade resident Marion Bowman.

: William "Bill" Dewar Stokes; He was born to Walter Stokes and Catherine (Dewar) Stokes, Scottish immigrants, in Coal Creek, Colorado. His family moved to Pear Park sometime around 1890 and he attended the Pear Park School, where his father tried his hand at farming. US Census records show that Walter had lived in Mesa County with his mother where he worked as a farm laborer in 1900. Sometime shortly after that, the family moved to Palisade. There, they ran the Stokes Coal Mine, which was located on the old wagon road between Palisade and De Beque. William hauled coal from the Stokes Mine to Grand Junction every day until his father purchased thirty acres next to the railroad for a coal yard in town. He also set explosives charges to blast tunnels into the mountain to expand the mine. He then resided in Grand Junction, where he married Jessie Hatton in 1909. They had a daughter. His wife apparently died during childbirth in 1910. After the death of his wife, the daughter came to live in Palisade with William’s mother. Because William lived and worked in Grand Junction, where he ran a coal yard for the family business, Ann Reese and her sister helped care for his newborn daughter. After his father got black lung from working in the mine, William came home to work in the mine himself. It was then that he met Reese. They later married. They adopted another daughter from an orphanage in Denver. He played on the Palisade town baseball team and was a member of the volunteer fire department. Due to his work in the mines, he had several bouts of pneumonia during his life. Seven years prior to his death he was hit by a bus, an accident that his wife believed cut short his life. He died of a heart attack.