Mary Ann Hill

Mary Ann Hill (Allred) was born to on July 28^th, 1930 in Monticello Utah to Horace and Ila Allred (Walton). She passed away on June 19th, at 92 years of age.

Growing up in Southeast Utah, Mary was part of a large active family, having 3 brothers and 4 sisters, numerous relatives, and close friends to grow up with and create a place she called home. The stories of her pioneer family history and her childhood experiences are cherished by her grandchildren, who were amazed at the historical events and enjoyed their grandmother’s unique way of expressing the details.

Mary graduated from Nucla High School in 1948, attended a year of higher education, then moved back to Monticello to be with family. After WW II, she met and married Adare “Mike” Hill on November 7^th, 1950, and started anew along the path of uranium exploration, helping her husband maintain remote mining camps, such as the “PackRat Claim” above Gateway Colorado. Many memories were shared of their trials while exploring for, mining, and transporting ore to Grand Junction during their early years together. These activities and the people they interacted with along the way were a testament to the couple’s toughness and built a strong bond.

They eventually moved back to the Cortez area with 2 young children and ran the Rio Grande Southern Hotel in Dolores for several years in the 1960s. They left to once again follow uranium prospects and didn’t return to Cortez until many years later.

Mary liked to interact with people and enjoyed working at various retail positions around the Cortez area. Early on with the S&H Green Stamp Redemption Center, then after moving back to Cortez in 1983, she worked at Penny’s and the Toggery. She was busy with the Cortez Library, an avid reader of historical fiction, and loved providing others food via Meal on Wheels. Vegetable and flower gardening was also a favored pastime.