MEMORIES OF CRIPPLE CREEK & VICTOR, 1945-1962
By Mary Alice Orazen
By Mary Alice Orazen
During World War II, PVT Mary Alice Black worked in an American Can plant that made containers for ammunition. Mary Alice and her colleagues were known as WOWs -- Women Ordinance Workers.
In 1945 I moved from Chicago, Illinois to the small town of Cripple Creek. I had been working in a defense plant—a division of American Can. We made the containers for the shells that were sent overseas for our boys in WWII. I drove a fork lift truck. The containers were on a skid and I would lower the prongs to go under the skid, pick them up, and drive them into the box cars that were on the railroad tracks so the containers could be sent to the Ammunition factory where they would be filled with live ammunition.
Imagine moving from Chicago to such a small town such as Cripple Creek, Colorado! But I immediately loved it. Everyone was so helpful and friendly. I made friends right away, there was Sue Kolb, Loretta Milner, Phyllis Akin, the Mullins girls (Norma, Ruthie, Sparky), and a lot more that this 93 year old has forgotten.
My Aunt Ferryl Rutan helped me to obtain a position at the telephone company. Mary Swift was the chief operator at that time. So, if you don’t think I am old, the original board that I worked on is now in the Museum there in Cripple Creek. Being a telephone operator, believe you me, I had everyone’s number. In fact, eventually I had memorized them all.
Imagine moving from Chicago to such a small town such as Cripple Creek, Colorado! But I immediately loved it. Everyone was so helpful and friendly. I made friends right away, there was Sue Kolb, Loretta Milner, Phyllis Akin, the Mullins girls (Norma, Ruthie, Sparky), and a lot more that this 93 year old has forgotten.
My Aunt Ferryl Rutan helped me to obtain a position at the telephone company. Mary Swift was the chief operator at that time. So, if you don’t think I am old, the original board that I worked on is now in the Museum there in Cripple Creek. Being a telephone operator, believe you me, I had everyone’s number. In fact, eventually I had memorized them all.
Frank Orazen, the first 18 year old to be inducted into the Service from Victor, returned to the District after receiving the Purple Heart for injuries in WWII.
Jack Schwab ran the Cottage Inn at that time and they even had a face painted on the floor depicting that old poem--The Face on the Barroom Floor. Well, anyway, a bunch of us girls were in the Cottage Inn having a hamburger, when this nice looking fellow kept teasing us. He came over to the table where we were and proceeded to take all of our billfolds, including mine, and then he went back to the bar and sat down. The other girls didn’t seem to care, but I went up to him and acted like I was mad (just teasing) and said, “OK, don’t be smart, just give me back my billfold.” He didn’t say a word, but just handed it back. That is when I first met Frank Orazen.
I learned from the girls that Frank had just come back from Europe and had spent 16 months in Dejon, France in the hospital badly wounded from the War. For this he received the Purple Heart. Frank and I went together for about two months and he asked me to marry him. I was teased by a lot of the local people, and they said when they picked up the phone the first thing I would say is “Good Morning, I’M ENGAGED.”
On June 20th 1947, Frank and I were married. No big wedding, we just went to the Court House in Castle Rock and were married by the Justice of Peace. We spent a short honeymoon traveling around in Colorado. We ended up at a good friend of Frank’s that lived in Central City. We went to a bar called The Glory Hole, and Frank’s friends told some of the people that we were just newlywed. Well, this is Colorado for you. The patrons took up a collection, and the band played I Love You Truly. What a sweet memory.
I learned from the girls that Frank had just come back from Europe and had spent 16 months in Dejon, France in the hospital badly wounded from the War. For this he received the Purple Heart. Frank and I went together for about two months and he asked me to marry him. I was teased by a lot of the local people, and they said when they picked up the phone the first thing I would say is “Good Morning, I’M ENGAGED.”
On June 20th 1947, Frank and I were married. No big wedding, we just went to the Court House in Castle Rock and were married by the Justice of Peace. We spent a short honeymoon traveling around in Colorado. We ended up at a good friend of Frank’s that lived in Central City. We went to a bar called The Glory Hole, and Frank’s friends told some of the people that we were just newlywed. Well, this is Colorado for you. The patrons took up a collection, and the band played I Love You Truly. What a sweet memory.
The Orazen's first small house at 221 S 6th Street in Victor had an east-facing, round-arch window in the living room. From there we could see all over town. Click photo to enlarge.
We had already bought a small house at 221 South 6th Street in Victor. It had three rooms—a front room with a couch, a big chair, a desk, and an oil stove; a bedroom with a double bed, a dresser, and one closet; and a kitchen with a large granite cook stove and a gate leg table with two chairs. Since we didn’t have a refrigerator, we kept our milk and pop in a powder box and had our hose running to keep things cold. The house did have indoor plumbing, however, it was just a stool—no tub or shower. For the first part of our married life, we took a bath in a large tin tub.
We thought we had the world by the tail. We very quietly sneaked into town because Victor was well known for chivareeing couples. A gang of friends would bring a wheelbarrow to the house and put the bride in the wheelbarrow and take her up to a bar for a celebration. Of course Zekes Place was going strong at that time. I think Ohrt Yeager’s dad (George) was running it then.
Fratter McLaughlin lived next door on our left, and the McGowans lived on the right. The house next to Fratter was the Kelso’s. Next to the Kelso’s was Nellie Grater. She was the librarian in town. Some neighbors later on were the Davidson’s, June Moore, and opposite June Moore was the Cox family.
Downtown we had Dave Downes Grocery. I remember Mary Ann Downes. Did you know that Victor had a JC Penny store? Yes, at one time it did.
Then there was Charlie Clark’s Quality Cash Grocery Market. He and his wife Marguerite had three boys. You have probably read Chuck Clark’s book on Victor. We as Victorites are very proud of him. My girls and I went to visit him and his wife in Arizona on the way to Mesa where I was living after Frank passed. He will always be Sonny to me. His brothers were Kenny and Keith (twins). Kenny taught school later in life in Victor. All of his pupils adored him, especially the girls (my girl included).
We thought we had the world by the tail. We very quietly sneaked into town because Victor was well known for chivareeing couples. A gang of friends would bring a wheelbarrow to the house and put the bride in the wheelbarrow and take her up to a bar for a celebration. Of course Zekes Place was going strong at that time. I think Ohrt Yeager’s dad (George) was running it then.
Fratter McLaughlin lived next door on our left, and the McGowans lived on the right. The house next to Fratter was the Kelso’s. Next to the Kelso’s was Nellie Grater. She was the librarian in town. Some neighbors later on were the Davidson’s, June Moore, and opposite June Moore was the Cox family.
Downtown we had Dave Downes Grocery. I remember Mary Ann Downes. Did you know that Victor had a JC Penny store? Yes, at one time it did.
Then there was Charlie Clark’s Quality Cash Grocery Market. He and his wife Marguerite had three boys. You have probably read Chuck Clark’s book on Victor. We as Victorites are very proud of him. My girls and I went to visit him and his wife in Arizona on the way to Mesa where I was living after Frank passed. He will always be Sonny to me. His brothers were Kenny and Keith (twins). Kenny taught school later in life in Victor. All of his pupils adored him, especially the girls (my girl included).
Cynthia, Cherry, & Crystal Orazen
Living in Victor, Colorado was one of the happiest times of my life. Frank and I had three girls—Cynthia Jean, Cherry Lynn, and Crystal June. It was a wonderful safe place to raise our children. We could even send our girls at night up to Harshbargers for a tiny tasty—all kinds of ice cream and different toppings, yummy. Harshbargers was on the south side of main, and Eddie Seal’s Drug Store was on the north. Eddie Seal was married to Agnes (we all called her Aggie) and they had two children—Judy and Jimmy.
When we married, Frank was working at the Cresson mine. Our first daughter, Cynthia, was born March 21st, 1948. But the price of gold went down and the mine closed, so Frank was out of a job. He went to Denver and got a job working as an apprentice carpenter with the D&RG Railroad Company, and traveled back home to Victor every weekend.
When the price of gold came back up, Frank came back home and worked building the Carlton Mill. We bought a new home just down the street from where our little three-room house was—two doors away from where Lowell Thomas was raised. Our second daughter, Cherry, was born October 1, 1949.
Frank and Buster Peters worked together building the Carlton Mill. In fact, Frank always said that Bus was his mentor. Bus taught Frank so much. Emma Peters (Bus’s wife) and I got really well acquainted too at that time. Emma worked occasionally helping out at Zekes Place. During any celebration the bar was always packed. Emma asked if I would be willing to help her. It was my first attempt at being a barmaid, but as most of the patrons were local, it wasn’t really hard. Something really funny happened to us while working there.
One night Emma motioned to me to be quiet. Then she pointed to a hole in the floor. With further inspection, I looked down and saw an eye peering up at me. This is a true story. There was someone below us that had been watching us, for how long we really didn’t know. Later we found out who it was. I would never say his name, but it was an old bachelor and if you are over 70 years old you may have known him.
When we married, Frank was working at the Cresson mine. Our first daughter, Cynthia, was born March 21st, 1948. But the price of gold went down and the mine closed, so Frank was out of a job. He went to Denver and got a job working as an apprentice carpenter with the D&RG Railroad Company, and traveled back home to Victor every weekend.
When the price of gold came back up, Frank came back home and worked building the Carlton Mill. We bought a new home just down the street from where our little three-room house was—two doors away from where Lowell Thomas was raised. Our second daughter, Cherry, was born October 1, 1949.
Frank and Buster Peters worked together building the Carlton Mill. In fact, Frank always said that Bus was his mentor. Bus taught Frank so much. Emma Peters (Bus’s wife) and I got really well acquainted too at that time. Emma worked occasionally helping out at Zekes Place. During any celebration the bar was always packed. Emma asked if I would be willing to help her. It was my first attempt at being a barmaid, but as most of the patrons were local, it wasn’t really hard. Something really funny happened to us while working there.
One night Emma motioned to me to be quiet. Then she pointed to a hole in the floor. With further inspection, I looked down and saw an eye peering up at me. This is a true story. There was someone below us that had been watching us, for how long we really didn’t know. Later we found out who it was. I would never say his name, but it was an old bachelor and if you are over 70 years old you may have known him.
I was still working at the telephone office and had to take time off again when our third daughter, Crystal, was born June 1, 1951. For a small town, it seemed like there was always something to do. We had the Elks (of which Frank was a Past Exalted Ruler). I used to call him a Past Exhausted Rooster—Ha! We had the American Legion, the Rebecca Lodge, the Masonic Order, and the Eastern Star, besides the PTA and School functions. Frank and I participated in them all.
The American Legion had the “Juniors”, where the children of the members had their own club. Victor also had square dancing and we had dance classes for our kids. I don’t know how many square dancers dresses I made for the girls. They had yards and yards of ruffles.
The American Legion had the “Juniors”, where the children of the members had their own club. Victor also had square dancing and we had dance classes for our kids. I don’t know how many square dancers dresses I made for the girls. They had yards and yards of ruffles.
Juniors in the Victor American Legion: Back row--Lois Cox, Judy Seal, Tish Baker, ? Epperson; Front row--Becky Timmons, Cindy Orazen, ? Ashton, Debby Timmons, ? Gould, Crystal Orazen, Cherry Orazen.
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Juniors in the Victor American Legion: Third row--Verna Fisk, Barbara Lee Baker, Barbara Marshal, Georganna Peiffer, Tish Baker Allen; Second row--Lucky Fisk, Peggy Lorenze, ? Epperson, Mary Alice Orazen holding Crystal Orazen, Judy Seal, ?; Front row--Cherry Orazen, ?, Cindy Orazen, ?, ?.
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Victor's Dancing Classes: Becky Timmons, Cherry Orazen, Cindy Orazen, ? Hughes. Frank Orazen built the scenery for this dance.
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Victor's Dancing Classes, girls in checkered dresses: ? Hughes, Cherry Orazen, ? Hughes, Cindy Orazen, Becky Timmons.
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This was also the time when TV was just coming out and there were only three sets in Victor—the Elks, the Harshbargers, and the Orazens. The Carlton Mill was built and working at full speed. Frank had a chance to go to work at the Power Company. When you work for any utility you are pretty well assured to good wages, benefits, and a chance for promotions. Of course he took the job. He worked for some time in Victor and then a chance for promotion came up, but it was in Pueblo, Colorado.
Pueblo was like a big city compared to little old Victor. There were many things to consider. I was still working at the telephone company, and the kids were still in school. Frank took the test and qualified to be shift engineer. We decided that Frank would go ahead and move to Pueblo, and the girls and I would come down and spend the weekends with him. That would give me time to transfer to the telephone company there and take the girls out of school.
Eventually Frank had a new house built in Pueblo for the family and we moved from Victor to the “big city” in December 1962. We lived in Pueblo until Frank retired and then moved to Arizona where Frank died in January 1998. Eventually I returned to Pueblo to be closer to my daughters.
Submitted by Mary Alice Orazen, October 2016.
Pueblo was like a big city compared to little old Victor. There were many things to consider. I was still working at the telephone company, and the kids were still in school. Frank took the test and qualified to be shift engineer. We decided that Frank would go ahead and move to Pueblo, and the girls and I would come down and spend the weekends with him. That would give me time to transfer to the telephone company there and take the girls out of school.
Eventually Frank had a new house built in Pueblo for the family and we moved from Victor to the “big city” in December 1962. We lived in Pueblo until Frank retired and then moved to Arizona where Frank died in January 1998. Eventually I returned to Pueblo to be closer to my daughters.
Submitted by Mary Alice Orazen, October 2016.
Mary Alice Orazen -- As an operator for the telephone company in Cripple Creek and Victor, she knew everyone's number.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mary Alice (Forshier, Black) Orazen, daughter of James and Myra Forshier, was born September 18, 1923 in Hoopeston, Illinois where she grew up along with brothers (Jim, Dick, and Tommy) and sister (Jean) and graduated high school in 1941. Marriage to Tom Black led to a move to Chicago where she assumed a leadership role in the organization of “Women Ordinance Workers” (WOW’s) while employed in a plant that made containers for shipping ammunition to support the American troops during WWII.
She called herself a “War Widow” when Tom was inducted into the Army, sent overseas, and met someone else; but soon she became a “Post-War Bride”.
In 1945 Mary Alice moved to Cripple Creek to be near family including—her mother, then taking care of her youngest brother, Tommy, who was just five years old when her father died that year; her brother, Dick, who worked for the Trading & Transfer Company; and her cousin, Ferryl, who worked at the telephone office of Mountain Bell where Mary Alice also found a job.
Mary Alice (Forshier, Black) Orazen, daughter of James and Myra Forshier, was born September 18, 1923 in Hoopeston, Illinois where she grew up along with brothers (Jim, Dick, and Tommy) and sister (Jean) and graduated high school in 1941. Marriage to Tom Black led to a move to Chicago where she assumed a leadership role in the organization of “Women Ordinance Workers” (WOW’s) while employed in a plant that made containers for shipping ammunition to support the American troops during WWII.
She called herself a “War Widow” when Tom was inducted into the Army, sent overseas, and met someone else; but soon she became a “Post-War Bride”.
In 1945 Mary Alice moved to Cripple Creek to be near family including—her mother, then taking care of her youngest brother, Tommy, who was just five years old when her father died that year; her brother, Dick, who worked for the Trading & Transfer Company; and her cousin, Ferryl, who worked at the telephone office of Mountain Bell where Mary Alice also found a job.
Mary Alice Orazen—regaling new and old friends gathered at the Victor Hotel, September 2016. She still knows almost everyone's number and remains a WOW to everyone who meets her. That is quite amazing and delightful.
From reading Mary Alice’s story, you know she met and married Frank Orazen, and they moved to Victor, Colorado. The “After Victor” sequel to her story is included in the Memoirs of Mary Alice Orazen (available in the Victor Library). However, to quote Mary Alice, her story is “to be continued as long as my 93 year old mind can remember”.
In September 2016 LaJean Greeson (granddaughter of Buster and Emma Peters) hosted a group of Facebook (and other) Friends who met to share their memories at the Victor Hotel. To everyone’s great delight, at 93 years young, Mary Alice greeted by name and reminisced with friends she had not seen in decades. By the time she returned to Pueblo, Mary Alice could also call out the names of at least another dozen new friends.
All who met her could testify to applicability today of this quote from the Ammunition Container Newsletter characterizing Mary Alice and the Women Ordinance Workers Organization: “Little Mary, truck driver on the 8-4 shift, came to Ammunition in the early days of ’42. She was one of our Charter Members of WOW when we organized December 23rd, 1942. Mary has given whole heartedly to the efforts of WOW through drives and all Committees. Her activities are many and she is always ready to lend a helping hand. She bubbles with laughter and song—keeps the morale high and conveys the same spirit to those on her mailing list. She is to be commended for her fighting spirit here on the home front. It is a pleasure to work and serve with her in our organization.”
When contributing this story, Mary Alice Orazen commented: "As long as we have memories, yesterday remains. As long as we have hope, tomorrow awaits. As long as we have friendship, tomorrow is beautiful."
In September 2016 LaJean Greeson (granddaughter of Buster and Emma Peters) hosted a group of Facebook (and other) Friends who met to share their memories at the Victor Hotel. To everyone’s great delight, at 93 years young, Mary Alice greeted by name and reminisced with friends she had not seen in decades. By the time she returned to Pueblo, Mary Alice could also call out the names of at least another dozen new friends.
All who met her could testify to applicability today of this quote from the Ammunition Container Newsletter characterizing Mary Alice and the Women Ordinance Workers Organization: “Little Mary, truck driver on the 8-4 shift, came to Ammunition in the early days of ’42. She was one of our Charter Members of WOW when we organized December 23rd, 1942. Mary has given whole heartedly to the efforts of WOW through drives and all Committees. Her activities are many and she is always ready to lend a helping hand. She bubbles with laughter and song—keeps the morale high and conveys the same spirit to those on her mailing list. She is to be commended for her fighting spirit here on the home front. It is a pleasure to work and serve with her in our organization.”
When contributing this story, Mary Alice Orazen commented: "As long as we have memories, yesterday remains. As long as we have hope, tomorrow awaits. As long as we have friendship, tomorrow is beautiful."
THE PAST MATTERS. PASS IT ALONG.
The Next Generation Will Only Inherit What We Choose to Save and Make Accessible.
Please Share Your Memories and Family Connections to Victor & the World's Greatest Gold Camp by
Contacting Victor Heritage Society, PO Box 424, Victor, CO 80860 or e-mail VictorHeritageSociety@gmail.com.
The Next Generation Will Only Inherit What We Choose to Save and Make Accessible.
Please Share Your Memories and Family Connections to Victor & the World's Greatest Gold Camp by
Contacting Victor Heritage Society, PO Box 424, Victor, CO 80860 or e-mail VictorHeritageSociety@gmail.com.