What began as the organization of oral history manuscripts has led to the recent publication of three books on the history of Johnson County, Wyoming, by the Johnson County Libraries. Five years of hard work and dedication of JCL employees and volunteers have produced a treasure trove of stories from those who lived, worked, and played in mid-northwestern Wyoming long, long ago. With the help and support of current JCL Library Directory, Lindsey Belliveau, and former JCL Library Director, Steve Rzasa, these three insightful books about Wyoming’s history are now available to those who reside in our state now.
“Nancy and her volunteers have put their hearts into these publications and it’s taken a lot of time and planning,” said Lindsey.
Dolly Fraley, a longtime volunteer in the JCL’s Local History Room, had transcribed over 350 oral history interviews originally recorded by Patty Myers and archived by Nancy Jennings in the Library’s historical collection. Wanting a more streamlined indexing system for the manuscripts, Dolly, along with Nancy Tabb, JCL’s current Local History Librarian, and Jonette Goraj, another Local History Room volunteer, set out to make the information in these manuscripts usable. The three collaborators selected stories, fact-checked and edited them into two volumes of Johnson County history–Listen Closely as Johnson County Speaks, Volumes I and II. The first-person accounts captured in the Listen Closely books describe what life was like during the early days of Johnson County, Wyoming, including homesteading, farming and ranching, hard times, and fun social gatherings. Work has begun on Volume III of this series.
The third book published, Backtracking focuses on the life and times of long-time Johnson County resident, Fred K. Gray. Written by Fred himself and edited by Nancy, Jonette, and Dolly, Backtracking chronicles how Fred grew up in Buffalo, Wyoming, served in the South Pacific during WWII, worked for the Wyoming Highway Department, and lived and worked in the Big Horn Mountains. An anonymous donor financed the publication of Backtracking, and the memoir now serves as a window into Johnson County’s past.
“We are so excited to share all of these wonderful stories,” said Nancy.
Find more information about the Johnson County Library’s publications here.