| Jan Petersen, Shirley Spears, Kathleen Truman and Dottie Grimes, seated, pose with the new book which is available now at the museum. |
On Nov. 17, a year’s work for Kathleen Truman and Dottie Grimes was rewarded with their newly published book, Castle Valley, Emery County, Utah. This book focuses on the diverse beauty of the Emery County area.
“There are so many interesting and beautiful things and places in Emery County, that it was very difficult to hold the book to 35 pages,” said Grimes. She was responsible for the delayout of the new book.
“We wanted to tell the story of Emery County in a way that whether a person was a visitor or a resident of Emery County, this book would be of interest to them,” said Truman, who was the book’s editor.
This new book is divided into three parts, Our Towns, Our Deserts, and Our Mountains. Grimes and Truman have told the story of each part in pictures and histories, from the original settlers to the events of today. The book is an interesting blend of the past and the present.
The project began when a grant was received from the Eccles foundation that required the projects to promote and preserve the culture and heritage of Emery County. Along with Grimes and Truman, Shirley Spears of the Emery County Archives and Jan Petersen of the Museum of the San Rafael have worked on several projects from the grant.
Together, these ladies have funded an afghan that is decorated with images of the rock art found in the area, a cowboy poetry book, entitled Cowboy Poetry from the San Rafael which features local artists, and they have several more projects in mind. Their next project will be a pictorial and history of the barns and outbuildings in Emery County.
Proceed from the sales of the projects go to fund the ongoing projects and the Folk Art Festival. Both of the books, the rock art afghan, many porcelain Indians dolls and many more treasures made by local artisans can be purchased in the Museum of the San Rafael. “These items would make wonderful Christmas gifts,” said Petersen.