Denise Hight - Fruita

WILLIAM PABOR, FOUNDER OF FRUITA. William Edgar Pabor came to Colorado from New York City in 1870 as secretary of the Union Colony that established Greeley. He then helped establish Colorado Springs and was cofounder of Fort Collins. Arriving in Grand Junction in 1883 to reorganize the Grand River Ditch, he was inspired to buy 80 acres a few miles west and establish Fruita in 1884. (Authors collection.)

SONG LYRICS BY WILLIAM PABOR. Before Pabor came to Colorado, he worked at a pharmacy, as a newspaper editor, and as a postmaster. Although he received no formal education beyond the age of 12, he was a nationally known poet and lyricist. His poems appeared in leading publications, including Godeys Ladys Book , Petersons , and Ballous . The music and lyrics for Cicily were published in 1856. (Authors collection.)

COMPILATION OF WILLIAM PABORS POETRY. Pabor traveled all over the United States and was active in many organizations. He served, for example, as secretary and poet laureate of the National Editorial Association. Each year, Pabor would address the NEA convention with one of his poems. Twelve of these poems, read before the association between 1886 and 1901, were compiled into a book titled Twelve Inspirations . (Authors collection.)

POETRY INSPIRED BY COLORADO. William Pabor continued writing poetry throughout his life. Among his many published works was a book-length lyric inspired by his love of nature and scenery, Wedding BellsA Colorado Idyll , that was published by his son Frank Greason Pabor, an editor in Denver, in 1900. A number of Pabors poems were published in Rhymes of the Rockies , an anthology of poetry descriptive of scenes... as viewed from trains of the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad, published in 1895. Pabor was probably the anonymous author and editor of that 64-page booklet. As well as being published under his own name in it, Pabor used the pseudonym Edgar P. Vangassen, composed of elements of his own name plus a phonetic respelling of his mothers maiden name, Wingassen. (Both, authors collection.)

WILLIAM PABORS AUTOGRAPH. Pabors interests were not limited to poetry and song lyrics. He was a relentless promoter of Colorado who edited and wrote for several newspapers and periodicals in the state, including the Valley Home of Colorado , Colorado Farmer , and Western Colorado . Pabor also wrote books on agriculture, including Colorado as an Agricultural State and Fruit Culture in Colorado , both published in 1883. He was an expert on agricultural irrigation, and a visit to Western Colorado in 1883 convinced him that fruit would thrive in the Grand Valley. This copy of Colorado as an Agricultural State was inscribed by Pabor to D. B. Kingsley in Grand Junction in 1883. This was probably Darwin Kingsley, an editor from Vermont who ran a printing company with Edwin Price. (Both, authors collection.)