Wicked Western Slope

Early promoters of Colorado's Western Slope would have had settlers believe the area was one of proper behavior and upstanding morality. But this was not the case. Hot tempers led to quick trigger fingers and Main Street shootouts. Drinking, gambling and thieving were popular pursuits, and law breaking of all kinds thrived in this wild land. From Charles Graham, whose jealous rampage in Grand Junction is still talked about today, and the mysterious Friday the thirteenth murder of Jeanette Morris to Abe C. Ong, the mischievous pioneer bootlegger of De Beque, and Riverside's Mrs. Barnes and her foul crime, "History Sleuth" D.A. Brockett reveals some of the most outrageous and remarkable crimes in Western Slope history.

D.A. "Debbie" Brockett loves western Colorado history, which is why she writes about it. Having lived off and on in Colorado for thirty-five years, she can't go anywhere in the state without wondering about its stories. Her expertise (and favorite place on earth) is the Western Slope city of Grand Junction. When she first moved there in 1981, the oil shale boom was in full throttle. Within a year, Exxon left and the region emptied out. Learning about the area's history helped Debbie endure the painful change. As she studied, she was intrigued by long-unsolved murders associated with Grand Junction and wondered if they could be solved with today's technology. When her three sons had grown, she began her series of "mystoricals" with Stained Glass Rose, which won a 2003 EVVY Award and was recently written into a play by Two Chairs Theater playwright Joe Wilcox. Debbie's most recent book, George Crawford's Attic: Dusting Off Grand Junction, Colorado's Past, won a 2009 EVVY Award for History. This fun compilation of little-known stories and facts commemorates Grand Junction's 125th anniversary.