Les Wade Autobiography
Golden Memories...
(Photo by Jim Downey)
Les and Idella Wade
It was an honor to have the opportunity to work with Les Wade a few years ago when he asked me to help gather his stories into a book. I knew Les as an old time storyteller who was in his glory when tourists stopped by the gold mill he and his wife Idella had created. I frequently saw him surrounded by a group of people hanging on his every word. He had a knack for making any story interesting, and involving the listeners in his tale. More often than not, strangers who stopped at the mill went away friends who stayed in touch over the ensuing years.
Les loved telling stories as much as people loved listening to them, but at some level that went beyond his enjoyment of entertaining, I think he recognized that his stories defined his life, who he was and who the people were that he encountered along his life's journey.
Late at night, when Les couldn't sleep, he frequently rose from bed, sat in his favorite chair with his tape recorder on his lap, and recorded his memories as they came to him... thinking that some day he would gather all those stories together in a book he could share with others.
It was a privilege transcribing Les' stories and organizing them for him in book format. I visited him at his home many times to clarify certain things so that I could get them right. Les was always kind, generous, and patient. I learned a great deal from him and enjoyed every minute of it! The result of our work together is Golden Memories.
Specifics: 86 pages; 31 B &W photos; 52,600 words, inside pages 60# offset, color photo cover on white coated stock, finished size 8 1/2" X 11"
Learn More About Wade's Gold Mill and buy the book.
