Grand Junction (Colo.) -- History Archive Search Results
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Frosty Tilton describes his career as a banker in Palisade and Grand Junction, Colorado. He talks about bank closures and runs on banks during the Great Depression, the economic impact of the peach industry, and the history of local fruit grower cooperatives. 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.
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In a lecture sponsored by Mesa County Libraries, Professor Don MacKendrick talks about the cultural history of the Grand Valley, framing that history in the context of the broader American settlement of the West. He reports on the rowdiness on Colorado Avenue that accompanied Grand Junction’s founding, followed by the quick establishment of social norms and cultural organizations. He describes Grand Junction’s early theaters and performance spaces,...
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Winifred Bull recalls the childhood of her father, Dr. Herman Bull Sr., and his life as one of the original doctors in Mesa County, Colorado. She talks about the prevalence of Typhoid fever and waterborne illnesses in Grand Junction, known among doctors as “Belly Ache Flats” before the advent of modern water treatment facilities. She discusses her father’s medical practice, his love of horse racing, and how he rode his horses to house calls....
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Ray Bernal talks about his early life in the Grand Valley and the wide variety of jobs that he held, including work as a "gandy dancer" on the railroad, mining, farming, thinning beets, janitorial work, and herding sheep. He also discusses a group breakfast he had with President Harry S. Truman, where Truman's daughter staged a musical performance. This recording is made available via signed release by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration...
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Voice Recording
Laird Smith talks about the life of his father, Silmon Smith. He recounts his father’s childhood trapping bear on the Grand Mesa at the age of thirteen, running a fruit and vegetable cart while in high school, and graduating second in his class from the Franklin School. He speaks about his father’s education at Colorado College, his position as editor of the college paper, and his work as the assistant weatherman in Colorado Springs. He recounts...
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Compound
Russell Johnson, a native of Grand Junction, Colorado, talks about his early life in town. He speaks about his long career working for the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad as a carman. He recalls the Grand Junction depot fire that was caused when munitions, headed for use in World War II, exploded on the tracks. He discusses his father’s career on the railroad, working on narrow gauge trains and helping to build the Colorado Midland Railway. He remember...
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Voice Recording
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...
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Voice Recording
Debrah Mahoney talks about the arrival of her grandfather in what would soon become Mesa County, Colorado, early in 1881. She recounts the accomplishments of her uncle John S. Gordon, who built Gordon’s Ferry over the Colorado River at the confluence in Grand Junction, Colorado in 1883, allowing passage over the river, and who also built Gordon’s Toll Road, which went from the ferry up to the sawmills of Pinon Mesa. She speaks about her father...
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Voice Recording
Bill Rump talks about his father Charlie Rump and his roll in developing the Redlands in Mesa County, Colorado as a member of the Redlands Company and the Redlands Water and Power Company. He recounts the efforts of those companies in creating orchards and other agricultural enterprises on the Redlands. He speaks about the Redlands School, roads, sports, youth activities, and other aspects of life on the Redlands and in Grand Junction. He remembers...