Monticello

2017 Monticello Buckaroo cross country preview

THE BIRD SCOOPby Walter & Becky Bird Girl’s TeamSuccess in cross country is all about numbers. Unfortunately for the Monticello High School girls Cross country program, one big number has been lacking in recent teams – girl’s actually running. This has been unusual for a program...

Local soldier killed in Afghanistan

*Originally posted August 17, 2017. Updated August 22, 2017* Aaron Butler, a Special Forces soldier from Monticello, was killed in action in Afghanistan on August 16, 2017. Butler, age 27, was killed when he entered a booby-trapped building that exploded while his group was fighting...

“Jewell of Monticello” is parade Grand Marshall

The “Jewell” of Monticello will lead the 2017 Pioneer Day celebration parade as the Grand Marshall. Adams was selected for her tremendous pioneer spirit. At 88 years old, Jewell is an amazing example of the pioneer vitality San Juan County was founded on. Jewell is hardworking,...

Monticello considers private business proposals

by Eric Niven Two economic expansion proposals were discussed at the July 11 meeting of the Monticello City Council. Kevin Francom, owner of Monticello Mercantile, proposed the purchase of 12 acres of land in the Monticello Industrial Park. Francom had previously negotiated the purchase...

Doug Wright named new Monticello City Manager

Doug Wright is the new Monticello City Manager. He takes the place of Ty Bailey, who recently resigned to accept a similar position in Morgan, UT. A committee that included members of the city council and city staff, and Blanding City Manager Jeremy Redd, interviewed seven applicants...

New owners at Blue Mountain Foods

by Katie Boyle After 30 years, Blue Mountain Foods is under new ownership. While Doug and Chris Allen have retired and sold the business, the only grocery store in Monticello will stay in the family. Two of Allen’s children, Jeff Allen and Stacy Young, along with Stacy’s husband Jeramy...

Monticello City Council discusses need for transparency in City matters

by Eric Niven Transparency seemed to be the public’s focus of the June 13 Monticello City Council when Tom Wigginton addressed the Council during Public Comments. Wigginton raised an issue regarding a new Verizon cell tower which is being built next to his property within the city...

Jackalope Trading Company newest addition to the local business scene

by Mary Cokenour The Jackalope, aka The Warrior Rabbit, was first encountered by John Coulter, the first white man to set foot inside what is now known as the State of Wyoming. By the 1940s, Douglas, WY was known as the “Jackalope Capital of the World”, being overrun by the pesky...

Marie Ogden and San Juan County’s Home of Truth

by Andrew Gulliford In 1933 in the depths of the Great Depression, 49-year-old Marie Ogden, a spiritualist and millennial Christian, moved to Dry Valley in San Juan County, UT to establish a religious colony and to await the end of the world. Two years later when one of the commune’s...

Local teacher earns fellowship

Lynda Boyle, a teacher at Monticello High School, has been awarded a James Madison Fellowship by the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation of Alexandria, VA. A total of 53 fellowships were awarded in 2017. James Madison Fellowships support further study of American history for...