Show u Background Report eEor Opportunities Have increased in M rah Ob Returned Native Son Believes Theres There's old superstition connected with the Colorado river spring that seeps out bf ft n cliff d down wn by the Moab bridge Whomever drinks from the spring will always alway come conic back Whether It was thirst for fora a sip of the cool water or orth orthe the th dramatic uranium boom hat was to start him on a busy career when Moab's native s son n. n Curt Robertson come back he came t to stay When Curt was a young man there was not much to keep youths In the valley There were only a few busInesses businesses bus bus- messes and d a fIN few flourishing flourish ing farms When he graduated graduated grad grads from an Oakland Cal Cal- business college he stayed on the Coast worked for for a food distributing company cont com pany parry and married his at attractive attractive at- at wife Lucille i In though things thing began to pick up In his home town The uranium Industry opened Up and prospectors slipped In to hunt for the magic ore Curts Curt's late brother bro bro bro- ther Maurice saw the writ- writ Ing on the wall walt and moved moved from Grand Junction to open op Ope open en a tire recapping shop inthe in the old Utah Garage now now razed on 2nd North The business proved too much for him to handle alone from the start and he sent his his his' brother Curt an SOS S.O.S. Robertson Brothers Brothers' r recapping rd- rd cap capping was the first of Its kind In Moab They soon moved to bigger quarters on Center and Main present site Of or the cafe where they operated for 8 years yeal's before their flourishIng flourishIng flourishing flourish flourish- ing business demanded more space an and they built bunt the first modern service station In the city on N North rth Main By ny the early 5 s 's there was little doubt the uranium uran uran-t lum ium hunters meant business In the midst of ofa a aj boom From their little e 2 2 pump station the Robertson Brothers dispensed gallons of Bas cas per ner month ort ori top top of their re recapping work That was baby business however compared to their first year In their new sta stag tion when they pumped thousand gallons of gas and employed as many as 18 men Strangers In town were more numerous than natives by this and Curt was not alarmed when a man drove in one day with an order to be charged to Who the devils devil's Curt I wanted to know and was Informed It was Charlie Steens Steen's outfit Curt said he had heard idle talk of the l uranium uranium uranium ura ura- strike but talk was cheap In those days Yet the theman theman theman man looked honest and he let him have the gas The chance he took netted Robertson Robertson Rob Rob- ertson Brothers a nice account account account ac ac- ac- ac count which often ran inthe In Inthe the four lour figure mark each I month It was about that time that Steen began to hire every available truck In the county from a ton on up to haul his ore And that's I when the business really started Soon they were servicing a continual stream of ton 35 ore trucks Those uranium seekers who poured in during those days used Robertson Brothers Brothers Bro as an Information cen cen- ter They had a typical collection col col- collection col- col lection of questions where can we find uranium where can we find a place to sleep and some surprised sur sur- praised that the town which had received such nationwide nationwide nation nation- wide acclaim was so small asked s Wheres Moab l It wasn't much of ot a town then Curt recalls There were no businesses south of Main and nd Center with the exception of the Christensen Ford Garage There was one small ladles ladies apparel store stare a tiny grocery or two and Millers Miller's Coop op where everything every every- thing was sold There were three motels too but Charlie Char Chars Charslie lie Steen bought one of those and turned it into headquarters House trailers began to arrive and when the few tew existing filled th they y parked parke in private yards ditch banks were lined with tents I i I It was a fantastic era ra t r 1 l t wi 1 0 v 1 f tt i 1 i i j Curt Robertson Curt recalls One man he knew slept In his his- hiscar car for six months then sold his claims and left with a milb million mil lion dollars Jh They y netted the buyers a Oa fortune Another came am In as a a carpenter and left with a paid for ranch in Colorado The claims he sold were worthless Many who came In bustlIng bustling bustlIng ing with hope stopped a a few months later to pawn their spare tires to get e enough ough money to leave on Its funny though Curt recalls most of them didn't leave disgruntled They seemed to feel It was a great exper experience exper- exper i lence anyway The city was beginning to I build by this time Life was to be far different than during during during du du- du- du ring the years In the early when he served on the City Council at a salary of per month Then finances finances fin fin- finances ances were their only pressIng pressing press press- Ing worry The City's only major Income was from water water water wa wa- ter sales and Class B Broad road funds The They did start construction con on- on of the first sewer sewer system which replaced a tank way Of ti this In the matter of ten Jen ten short y years ars was to be out out- ant and replaced They had no police department td worry aboUt just the town marshal Jim Stocks w who o ohad had kept the city in line for years eats There were always wat water r problems though Th The Council doubled the rates tej td during the he heavy vy use months to curtail use but I they always ran out of wa wa- ter It came direct to the users from springs In the theold theold theold old city park through gh a pipeline Installed In the early early early ear ear- ly by two enterprising enterprising ing Moab businessmen John Peterson and J. J T T. T LoverIdge Water was not chlorinated and there were no settling tanks but it was pUre mountain mountain moun moun- tain tarn spring water and the best tasting In the world The present commissioner Mars Pope was the City Mayor when Curt was on the Council Mr Robertson's two stints on the Grand county School Board noard from 1956 to 1964 were not so easy going The schools were bulging then The Helen M M. M Knight school had just been completed and the Southeast elementary elementary elemen elemen- tary was under construction All schools were still on double sessions and during his term th the high school bond wil wits was a approved SchO Schools Were held In makeshift classrooms class classrooms rooms In the tM old LUS church building the DUP DUl Hall Ball and tar If Hall all Say what you ou want about federal funds Curt says but the Grand county school district district dis dis- dis could hever never have made It through those years without with with- but out Public Laws and which assisted areas atea overpopulated due to government gov projects A tremendous 1 tremendous dous doug of students Were from homes parents pa pa- r rents were connected with the uranium industry stry the Moab schools received from to per year in federal aid ald i iThe The Moab natives came came through the trying years With flying colors People assessed the needs and every every every ev ev- ery bond Issue presented was approved Looking back on these rushing years It Is hard to believe this busy found time for so many other activities He lie and his wife Lucille were charter members' members of the Moab 1 Dinner Din ner Dance bane Club now In Its Us year The group held their first social events In tn Inthe inthe the Uranium Club which played such a part In boomtown boomtown boom boom- town entertainment now the Moab Elks Lodge Curt is also a member of the Moab Chamber of Commerce the Elks and past treasurer and director of the Moab Rotary Club He has served ort on the Grand county Recreation Board since its creation Mrs Robertson recently retired as partner in a fashionable fashIonable fash fash- dress salon in Moab and on many occasions has hasI I has taught m modeling classes I for young ladies ladles She has taught Primary and Sunday School conducted fashion shows and helped with numerous numerous nu nu- nu drives One Of the nsf st sl activities howl how ever ever Is is dance instruction For yet 13 out of their 20 years In Moab they have b been en choreographers and instructors instructors instructors tors for the annual Grand rand county high school Junior Prom floor shows Their three California California- born sons ate are away from home p pursuing their own lives Mel the oldest and his family recently moVed to California Keith is a student at the of Utah and Rick flick left last month for a tour of duty in the U. U S S. S Army Their two Greg and Loy Ann are still In school in Moab Greg will be a senior sene sen sen- for Loy Ann a grader this year D BUt dt t Curt thinks his children children chil chil- dren probably return to Moab Valley to live someday some someday someday day after all they've all had a drink from the river spring |