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Jack Bowes, a retired third-generation farmer in the Louisville area, talks about his family’s long history with coal mining, farming, and ranching after they arrived in the area from England in the 1880s. Initially coming to the area to mine coal, they quickly transitioned to a homestead at 9182 Dillon Road, where they raised hay, grains, and livestock. He describes his childhood on the farm, both his early days and how, after his father died when Jack was 13, he had to help his mother with the farming. Jack discusses ways in which farming has changed since his childhood, from the days of horse-drawn farming. Much of the water for their homestead came from the South Boulder & Coal Creek Irrigation Ditch, and in the 1990s Jack became president of the ditch company, as his father and grandfather had been before him. He describes the changes in the job responsibilities since his father’s time, and also changes in how the ditch was operated. He talks about his grandparents’ and father’s memberships in local fraternal organizations, his aunt telling stories of seeing Native Americans camping on Coal Creek in the 1890s, family picnics and parties in the apple orchard, the sale of part of his family’s property to Boulder County Parks and Open Space and Louisville Open Space, and the death of many of the apple trees. He closes with a story his father told him about being 13 years old in 1914 and watching the Colorado militia get off the train to deal with conflicts between mining companies and striking miners in Louisville.

This interview is part of a series focusing on the history of apples in Boulder County. Two cousins share oral traditions and personal recollections pertaining to a Boulder-area ranch that their family has owned for five generations. Cherry Moore provides historical and genealogical information concerning the migration of the Pruden, Barber, and Ruby families—early Boulder residents—from Iowa and Illinois to Colorado during the second half of the nineteenth century. Cherry also discusses the lives of Jennie and Charles Pruden, the first members of the family to take possession of the ranch. Using information from Jennie Pruden’s diary, Cherry describes the origins of the apple orchard on the property, which Jennie and Charles Pruden planted during the 1890s. She also reconstructs life on the property around the turn of the twentieth century. Charlie Robinson, who spent much of his childhood living on the ranch, shares memories of his mid-twentieth-century upbringing. Charlie explains the processes by which his family produced apple cider and other agricultural products. He also talks about butchering hogs, trapping animals, and fishing in the South Boulder Creek. Both narrators stress the importance of family and community ties. Many of their recollections are of Sunday dinners and other family gatherings.

This interview is part of a series focusing on the history of apples in Boulder County. A longtime resident of Longmont, Beth Wintroub discusses the land on which she has lived since the mid-1970s. She gives particular attention to three apple trees located on the plot. In addition, she discusses other fruit trees on the property as well as her vegetable and flower gardens. Wintroub talks about the Johnson family, the original residents who built the late-nineteenth-century house in which she lives. She describes modifications that she and her husband, Tim Schabacker, have made to the house and its surroundings over the course of their time in Longmont. She also talks about differences in the varieties of apples that her trees produce, techniques she uses to care for them, and ways in which she has processed their fruit. The interview ends with a discussion of changes in Boulder over time.

This interview is part of a series focusing on the history of apples in Boulder County. Dick Dunn tends a cider-apple orchard in Hygiene, Colorado. In this interview, he discusses his decision to plant trees and ferment apple juice. When he began planting in the mid-1990s, Dunn struggled to find information about growing cider apples on the Front Range. Dunn emphasizes the importance of networking in the cider industry. He discusses knowledge that he has acquired over the course of his decades-long experience as a cider-apple grower on the Front Range and also describes the fermentation process for creating hard cider. He lists apple varieties that do well in Colorado’s climate. He talks about common diseases and other threats to apple trees and crops. Among the topics he raises is a 2014 cold snap that damaged and killed many apple trees—both Dunn’s and those belonging to other growers—across a large geographic area. He describes changes in Boulder that he has observed over the years.