This weeks personality, Ira Emmer Kelly, was Clay Baders father-in-law. Clay was a good man to begin with but Ira took that dough and made Clay an even better man.
I was 17 the summer I stacked hay for Ira. Clay was 30 that summer and would often be on the stack with me. When things were pushed because of the weather, the Baptist minister and I stacked while Clay and Ira brought the hay in. I learned a lot that summer from the minister, Clay and Ira. I had no idea, however, of the depth and fortitude of Iras personality.
Ira was born in July of 1895. His youthful years were formed by hardworking and honest parents known and well respected in the community as Charlie and Jennie Kelly.
Ira learned early on how to saddle a horse and also how to pack a horse for a trip into Mesa Verde. Because of that, he saw little reason for going on with his education after the eighth grade. At the insistence of his parents, Ira stayed in school and graduated from Mancos High in 1913 along with his twin sister, Eileen and her future husband, Marvin Shideler.
Iras last few years of schooling were not the drag he had feared. He became a member of the renowned basketball team that traveled throughout much of the state and were the championship team in all of southwestern Colorado for two years.
Life began to change after Ira married Mary Cooper in 1921. He had helped his father convert the livery into an automobile business, but that took Ira away from the great outdoors. Through good timing and good contacts, in 1927 Ira was able to purchase what became known as the Kelly Ranch from A. Frank Hallford, the well-known barber in town, and at the same time was able to buy a herd of cattle. The bankers at the time were friends of the Kelly family and included Gilbert T. Cline, James A. Frink, Dr. J. R. Trotter, Augusta Bauer Roessler, O. E. Noland and John F. Bauer, all important in the history of the Mancos Valley.
The year 1927 was also filled with sadness and, even though Ira made numerous trips with his father to Farmington to specialists, Charlie passed away in June of 1927. Ira was able to sell the auto business and not only provided financial assistance to the family but also was able to pay off much of his ranch and cattle debt.
Ira quickly saw the importance of water and for many years pushed to have a dam built. There were others who also pushed but even when things looked bleak Ira continued on and even made trips to Washington D.C. on his own. When the construction of Jackson Gulch Dam was budgeted by Congress, it was largely due to the insistence and determination of Ira Kelly.
Next week Ira becomes not only my hero but a memorable figure in the Mancos Valley.
