Prock May Interview 

---

Prock May interview by Deniane Gutke (Kartchner). Summer 1987, Blue Mountain Shadows Oral History Project Jimmy Morris and Prock May as CCC boys in 1935 (Georgan Burtenshaw photo)

Gutke: Could you tell me a little about the set-up of the CCC camp in Blanding?
 

Entrance to the CCC camp in Blanding.  (Bo Montella photo)

 
May: Well, it was up in the northwest end of town. I understand it was supposed to be a park. Bayles's gave the land to the city for a park. There was the recreation building, and then the doctor's infirmary, and then there was a row of barracks running north and south. Then on the east side of it, right after the administration building, there was another row of barracks running north and south. Then there were the mess hall and the showers. On up in the north end of it was the shop where we parked the trucks and worked on them, and all the equipment, the rubber hose and the shovels and all that was up in there. This big recreation room had the pool tables in it. It had the PX in it, and it had books.
 
 

CCC men getting ready to leave in Army truck in Blanding camp.  (Donna Wozniak photo)

Gutke: What was the PX?

May: It was the store. Post exchange is what it stood for. They had candy bars and writing materials and all of that.

Gutke: What was the set-up as far as officers went?    May: We had a captain and then a lieutenant in the Army part. Other than that there weren't any other army officers implicated in it. It was all made up out of men of the company. Our first sergeant was a man chosen out of the company of men, and so were the leaders and assistant leaders. The foreman out on the job chose the man to work for them. I was under Floyd Nielson. A leader they called me.
 
 
  

Camp officers:  Jerome Ginno, Capt. Seibert, Capt. Campbell, and Dr. Black  (Frank Montella photo)

    We'd build reservoirs, fences, trails, develop springs for water, corrals. We hauled gravel on the dirt roads there in Blanding. The water was bad when we got there. We'd go out to Westwater and haul in water for the camp
 

Dry Valley Reservoir projects completed by CCC boys.  Rocks were hauled in and bottoms of ponds and sides were stabilized so that cattle would not ruin the water.  Sometimes sheep were run over the ground first to pack it.  (Donna Wozniak collection)

Most of the economy of San Juan County was based upon ranching and farming; thus the water projects completed by the CCC's were greatly appreciated.  (SJHC photo)

Gutke: I read an interview with Carol Lyman. She said how the town really treated the boys in the camps with not very high regard. They didn't want their daughters to go out with them. But, the boys say they were accepted well.

May: Well, personally, I can't say that they were indifferent to us. I think we got an overwhelming reception.

 Gutke: Why do you think that?

May: I don't know. I just figured the people were that way all of the time.

Gutke: What did the CCC camps do economically for Blanding?

May: Well, they did the things that they couldn't have done themselves, like developing the country for their cattle and their sheep. I don't know how they looked at it. I guess it was all right or we wouldn't have stayed.

Return to San Juan Sampler Table of Contents