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Show ; V f$ ' f 4 Flour Mill Prospers With Montezuma Valley, Cortez t - One of Montezuma Valleys most abundant crops is solely responsible for the steady growth of one f the principal industries in Cortez. From the fertile fields of the VaUey comes grain, primarily wheat, to the Wark Milling Co. Grains, particularly wheat, must be milled processed into quickly usable form such as flour and, in the Wark Milling Co. of Cortez, the Montezuma Valley possesses the second largest independent flour mill in the state of Colorado, and one of the largest and most modern in the west. With a capacity of 1,000 bushels a day, the Wark mill last year processed a whopping 200,000 bushels of ripe, golden Montezuma Valley grain. And, to illustrate the vastly increasing growth of the milling industry in the valley, this 40figure perrepresents" between 35 to cent more production than in 1953. We have been growing steadily secretjrear after year, Tom Wark, manary-treasurer and general ager of the company says, and We think well keep growing with the community and the area. Besides milling flour, the Wark mill also does custom grinding and feed mixing for the hundreds af farmers and stockmen in the broad and lovely Montezuma Valley. It also mills all other small rains such as corn and barley which are grown in varying quantities in the region. Storage capacity of the huge, aew mill at 309 No. Market St., tn Cortez totals 90,000 bushels and, during the height of the grain harvest in the valley, the mills nine Explorers Take to Air According to an announcement made by the Atomic Energy Commission, airborne radioactivity sur. veying is being expanded by both the government and private exploration groups. So it is now quite common to ee explorers climbing aboard email aircraft at airports through-cu- t the Colorado Plateau, bent on discovering new uranium fields. Used in the search are highly scintillation sensitive detection equipment, radar altimeters to cor. rect radioactivity measurements lor variations in altitude due to lopographic change, and newly developed and established systematic Curveying techniques. It has been estimated that used for such exploration raveled more than 500,000 miles n 1954. alr-tlan- Building Problems? Just pick up your phone and call 2421 Building: Materials Builders Hardware Roofing Materials Building Estimates Dolores $150,000. The Warks president W. C. Wark, vice president T. W. Wark Tom within eight and young months had rebuilt the mill on the site of the destroyed structure. The new mill was completed in time to receive the late summer and fall harvst. Since then, it has been operating steadily. The Warks W. C. and T. W. first moved to the Montezuma Valley in 1910. Tom was born in 1921 at Cortez and has lived in the community all of his life. In 1926 the two elder Warks decided they wanted to go into the milling business, as Tom explains it now, and so they started the mill, although they didnt From know anything about it. the first the mill which filled a need in the Valley prospered. It weathered competition from another, but smaller mill at Cortez, went through the depression era and World War II without serious trouble until the fire in 1949. Since the fire, the mill has grown steadily and the Warks are confident it will continue to grow. If the Montezuma Valley has Tom Wark explains, a future, then our mill has a future, too. And were sure the Valley has a brilliant future. Honey House Rooms Reasonable Rates Gaines LUMBER employes work 24 hours a 'day, three to a shift, to handle the heavy demand for its facilities. Much of the hundreds of thousands of bushels of wheat brought into the mill by western Colorado wheat growers is processed into several brands of flour which are sold throughout the west under brand names of the Wark mill. Locally, the Wark mill markets an excellent hard wheat, family type flour under the brand name of available in Valley Queen, nearly every retail food store in the area. Products of the Cortez mill are shipped to other parts of Colorado, to Utah, Arizona and New Mexico and sometimes as far away as California. A good portion of the production goes to the Ute and Navajo Indians on reservations near Cortez and to Indian trading posts where it is baked into bread. Tom Wark, a The tall, bespectacled young man with an engaging smile, points out that some 95 percent of the mills production goes out of the 6tate of Colorado and, in turn, sales result in a large amount of money being returned to Cortez for channeling into the local economy. The Wark mill Is the only one of its kind in the Four Corners area, the nearest outside mill being a smaller operation in Bayfield, 15 miles east of Durango. The present mill is a completely modern mill in every respect with the latest type of milling equipment, new buildings and milling procedures. The modern mill Is the happy result of a disaster. On the night of Dec. 28, 1949, a raging fire leveled the original Wark mill, destroying all the equipment, a considerable quantity of stored grain and feeds. The estimated loss was COMPANY Colorado Mrs. F. D. Powell, prop. Moab Utah SCINTILLATORS SALES - SERVICE MAPS G 8C 8C GEIGERS SC SUPPLIES MINING DATA H Uranium 629 Main Box 1467 ? S r. ar it Cortez Men Seek Uranium, Too . Although Cortez is situated on the eastern edge of the vast Colorado Plateau and there is little visible evidence of uranium activity as tourists walk or drive along its streets, the uranium rush is having a very definite effect on the city. Every day several men of Cortez go out into the rugged country in the district to seek uranium deposits; some have found it while others still search without success. Uranium has opened a new way of life to several Cortez people, although none have become enormously wealthy. Those who have discovered deposits of the ore on the Plateau have had to work hard with jackhammers, jack leg drills, wheelbarrow or ore car, picks and shovels, before the first ore is ready for shipment to mills which now dot the Plateau. Most Cortez men interested in searching out uranium deposits go to what is known as the Uravan Mineral Belt, about 75 air miles from Cortez, where deposits are larger and higher grade ore is found than in adjoining areas. is boom That the uranium having an effect on Cortez people and their living habits is evident in the large grocery orders packed by merchants for explorers to take with them, in the back-fenc- e talk, in the amount of money spent in Cortez stores for clothing, furniture, appliances, automobiles, and items. other luxury The flow of money for such articles has increased since the bom started and, although it has not been definitely traced to the uranium finds, local merchants have but little doubt about where the money is coming from. Buildings Named For Public Spirited Citizens CORTEZ Following a precedent set when the Mary Blake Guild Hall was named after a public spirited woman by the Episcopal Church congregation, public buildings in Cortez are now being named for educators and prominent local people. Mrs. Blake had served dinners for service clubs and church organizations at Cortez, receiving certain pay for the meals thus served. However, and not made known to the persons attending the luncheons and dinners, she turned over all money thus collected to the Episcopal Church, retaining only enough to pay for the necessary supplies. Mary Blake Guild Hall was erected in the early 1940s. Since then Calkins Jr. High School has been named for Dr. R. W. Calkins, formerly speaker of the House of Representatives in the Colorado Legislature, and the Manaugh Elementary School for Mrs. Lotta Manaugh, recently retired superintendent of schools. Durango, Colorado There are a lot of good things of the district by the cattlemen, eat in southwestern Colorado beef cattle were driven through but topping them all is the beet Disappointment country near Lone that is grown there. Cone, or over Lizard Head Pass, now Almost 15,000 beef cattle are to grazing in the fields of the area, according to an estimate based on the 1950 cattle census and normal herd growth. Most of the cattle are white faced Herefords, best suited to conditions in the southwestern corner of Colorado. There are a few other breeds being raised there, but Herefords are predominant. Excellent grazing pastures during the summer months and an ample amount of hay and pasture during winter months make beef cattle raising one of the major industries of the to Placerville, from where they were shipped to eastern markets. Placerville was once one of the points in largest the U. S. cattle-shippin- g Scientific Study Brings New Uses Only 60 years ago the hydrocarbon molecule, which resulted in the petrochemical industry (chemistry of petroleum), was thought to be useless. Today, this little wonder-district. worker is providing us with inDuring summer months the cattle are taken to the lower eleva- dependence from natural materials tions of the San Juan National for organic chemicals and supplies Forest, where the nutritive grass others which do not appear in adds to the weight of the ani- nature. All are the result of reWhen fall and winter search and development by the mals. arrive, the cattle are moved petroleum industry. to winter ranges in still lower elevations. Many cattle are wintered in McElmo Canon just south of Cortez, affording protection from severe cold and storms. around According to Cortez, Dolores, Dove Creek, and Durango, the cattle industry is the pioneer of the territory, originated when cattlemen pushed to the very edge of the Indian reservation to establish grazing grounds. In those days, the story goes, cattle roamed freely over the forests and the rich valleys, and into what is now area known as the Rainbelt northwest of the Cortez district. 8C In the first days of settlement CORTEZ Some of the greatest coal resources of our nation lie in the San Juan Basin but it is situated too far from markets to make it economically feasible to produce, is the complaint of resiarea. dents of this resources-ric- h Dean P. Hanson, manager of the Cortez Chamber of Commerce, reports that there are over tons estimated to be in the basin reserves. It is of good quality and offers a great potential for the basin, he says. Residents of Cortez use the coal mined in the district, but primarily butane and propane gas and electricity are the principal sources of fuel. Some fuel oil is used, and, says Mr. Hanson, natural gas is just around the corner and will be provided when Pacific Northwest (Pipeline Corp.) builds the new line from the San Juan Basin to Washington and Oregon next we He adds a careful year. to his comment. hope Fertilizer Seed Chicks Jerry & Floyds RADIO SHOP Complete Radio & TV Repair PROMPT LOUNGE Excellent Food Courteous SERVICE GEIGER REPAIR Service L DURANGO, COLORADO 209 Ph. Main 434 Cortez, Colorado Benson Montin Greer Drilling Corp. General Offices 1501 Republic Building Oklahoma City 2, Okla. .Telephone FO 46 Field Offices: 315i2West Main Street Farmington, New Mexico Telephones DA vis DAvIs 62 Jacuzzi Pumps FARMERS Rotary and Cable Tool Drilling Confraclors SUPPLY CO. 118 No. Chestnut Cortex Phone 323 i COFFEE SHOP PURINA Chows Feed ! STRATER HOTEL old-time- Plenty of Coal, No Market for ft Livestock Supplies Phone 603J Cattle Industry Contributes Much to Cortez Economy I |
