Williams News Logo
Grand Canyon News Logo

Trusted local news leader for Williams AZ and the Grand Canyon

<center>Letters to the Editor</center>

Williams

and rodeo go

great together

I would like to thank the Route 66 Rodeo Co., the two Jerry Tates and Shasta and Will Wells for the all-around cowboy saddle and belt buckles that I won at this year’s summer series rodeos.

We are very fortunate to have the Route 66 Rodeo series in Williams. If you didn’t attend this year, you missed out on a lot of fun. This rodeo attracts mainly local contestants and we appreciated the opportunity to compete against each other as some of us don’t have the opportunity to compete in the other rodeo associations.

Williams is a great place for rodeos, we have a good facility, and great summer climate. We could be the cowboy capitol of northern Arizona as well as the gateway to the Grand Canyon. I think they go hand in hand. I encourage the community and local business owners to support Route 66 Rodeo as well as the Arizona Cowpunchers and the professional rodeo. We are very lucky to have them in our town.

Mike Oden

Williams

Forest closures were difficult,

but necessary

We want to thank you for your help and support during the recent forest closures on the Coconino and Kaibab National Forests. While closing the forests is a very difficult decision, we are confident it was the right one given the extremely dry conditions and potential for devastating wildland fires. The forest closures allowed us to keep human-caused fires to a minimum, which was truly critical in this year of unprecedented fire danger.

The vast majority of people abided by and supported the closures. We know that closing the forests affected many of you in some way, whether personally or professionally. We are grateful for the support that you showed us despite the hardships that the closures may have caused you.

Many of us live in northern Arizona because of the multitude of opportunities provided by the national forests here. These are wonderful places to hike, enjoy the scenery, connect with nature, and just cool off on a hot summer afternoon. As you know, we implement closures in order to protect these values that are often taken for granted until we can no longer enjoy them. We simply could not have been successful in protecting these precious resources had it not been for your support.

Jim Golden, Coconino National Forest

Mike Williams, Kaibab National Forest

Family tree has roots in Williams

I am Suzahn St. Romain Smith. I am married to Calvin Bond Smith and we live on the J Bar Ranch in Crane County. The ranch is about 40 miles southwest of Odessa, TX.

I am searching for Smith family history, and hope that the information might be worthy of a story in your paper. Calvin’s great-grandfather had two brothers and sisters that lived in the Williams area. Hopefully, some descendants might respond to this letter if you see fit to print it.

My husband’s great-grandfather, Rasler William Smith (called R.W.), was born Dec. 28, 1868 in Louisiana to Thomas M. Smith and Salena Tabon Smith. They moved to San Saba, TX in 1870 where seven more children were born. Alice Smith was born Aug 13, 1881. Lucy M. Smith was born May 7, 1886. Issac (Ike) S. Smith was born April 8, 1871 and died Aug. 23, 1939. Ike may have worked in the sawmill business. Dink Daniel Smith was born Sept. 12, 1879 and died April 1. 1927. Thomas Smith died July 29, 1909. Salena Smith died Aug. 30, 1886.

R.W. and his wife left their ranch 12 miles north of Odessa, TX on June 20, 1927. They were taking a trip to visit kinfolk in New Mexico, Arizona and California. They spent time in Williams with a brother, Ike, family of a brother, Dink, a sister, Alice and possibly a sister Lucy. Lucy was married to Walter Parker and had a daughter named Thelma. We are not sure which sister, Lucy or Alice, was a post-mistress for Williams.

Mrs. Suzahn Smith

P.O. Box 1832

Penwell, TX 79776


Donate Report a Typo Contact