Sue Gray, museum director for the Carbondale Historical Society, will teach about the Town’s history at 6pm on March 11 and 25 at the Carbondale Library. The first talk, “The Early History of Carbondale,” is told from early entrepreneur William Dinkel’s perspective. “Our Gal Hattie: A Pioneer Woman’s History” is the title for the second event. Gray was kind enough to join The Sopris Sun for a question and answer session ahead of the presentations.
Sopris Sun: What will the format be?
Gray: A PowerPoint slide show that I will narrate.
Sun: How many Carbondale people will you talk about?
Gray: Over a dozen.
Sun: What are their names?
Gray: Ottawa Tanney, Mary Jane Francis, Thomas McClure, Sam Bowles, Myron Thompson, Oscar Holland, Frank and Edna Sweet, Eugene Grub and more.
Sun: How did you choose them?
Gray: They are the early pioneers of Carbondale mentioned in local historical records.
Sun: How did you research them?
Gray: I read books and records of Carbondale’s early days contained in the Historical Society’s Log Cabin Museum.
Sun: What years will you cover?
Gray: The Dinkel Era is 1883 to 1918, but I’ll also cover the history of the Ute tribes and early explorers like Richard Sopris.
Sun: You’re talking about people from the perspective of William Dinkel. How did that idea come about?
Gray: Because we have the most complete record of Dinkel’s time in Carbondale, thanks to his descendants donating all of his records and photos. Also, much of the Dinkel biography material comes from Iva Dunklee’s article in The Colorado Magazine, in which Dinkel speaks first-person. I wanted to keep true to that perspective. Plus, it’s just more interesting to hear someone tell their own story.
Sun: How long did you work on your presentation, or when did you start your research?
Gray: I have been doing research on the history of Carbondale ever since I joined the Carbondale Historical Society in 2016. This presentation took about 32 hours to put together.
Sun: Any visual aids or artifacts?
Gray: I will have a selection of Dinkel artifacts from the museum at the presentation.
Sun: Did you learn anything that surprised you?
Gray: Yes, I’ve learned a great deal about the people and incidents that shaped Carbondale’s early history. I was surprised at the prominent role played by the women pioneers in shaping the Town’s character.
Sun: Will you be giving this presentation elsewhere in the future?
Gray: Probably not, but it will be posted on the Carbondale Historical Society website at some point.
Sun: Is there anyone in particular who you would like to credit?
Gray: Shelle de Beque (Dinkel’s great-granddaughter) and all of the past historians and researchers who provided the material I use in the presentation.
Sun: Anything else you want to add?
Gray: If you’re a fan of western history, or just want to learn more about how the place you live came to be, this presentation will be both informative and entertaining.