Memories of Living in the Fruita (Masser) House

“I am Virginia Little Paul. My parents lived in the house from 1950 into 1978. Even though I went off to college after a couple of years, it was the home to which I came on school breaks, holidays and summers. Even after I started my teaching career, especially when I was teaching in Colorado and in Utah, it was that house that was home.

To my children, it was the home of the “grandparents with the ditch.” As my nephew Mitch has noted in his piece, the ditch and the creatures there were a source of great fascination for my kids, too, who were not used to ditches. My father, A. J. Little, was pleased that my older son’s initials (A. J.) were the same as his. At one time, he put those initials on the horizontal cross bar of the swing, made with railroad ties, as someone else in the Little family noted – whether painted on or burned in, I don’t remember.

Dad had always made sure there was a swing wherever we had lived, as children. The one in the yard in Fruita was put up when the grandchildren came along, I imagine. As has been noted, he also recognized the first grandchildren by putting their names in that concrete sidewalk in the backyard!

My bedroom was on the front, over the living room. Another great vantage point from which to watch weddings at the Methodist Church across the street. 🙂
At first, the heat came from a big stove in the living room, the only heat in the house, except for the kitchen range. There were open grates to the second floor for the heat to rise to warm the bedrooms and bathroom. My parents installed wall heaters in several first floor rooms, and added the bathroom on the first floor.

In the 50’s, the Fruita Hospital was in a house across Elm from our house. One evening, LuAnn, my now sister-in-law who was my childhood friend, and I were in the house alone. The front door wasn’t locked. A man walked right in the front door, to our surprise and a little alarm. When he realized it was not the hospital, he quickly left, to our relief.

All for this time…”

Virginia is Roger Little’s sister and Mitch Little and Leslie Bean’s aunt.  We are delighted to be learning so much about the House and its history.  We love being able to look through windows and imagine weddings, for example.  Donna says she’ll be sure a swing makes its way back to the property–maybe a porch swing!  🙂