Bios, Doll - Frank & Imogene, Eagle County, Colorado Contributed by Jean Winthers October 10, 1999 Imogene & Frank DOLL III From the Vail Daily's Locals Corner By Jean Winthers (Used with permission) Tucked in among the modern condos and duplexes on Hurd Lane in Avon, bordering the Eagle River, and secluded from traffic by magnificent trees and foliage, is an authentic piece of an Eagle County ranch, still owned by descendants of the original settlers. Frank and Imogene Doll have lived at 2000 Hurd Lane since 1970. They built their house on property once owned by Emmett Nottingham, Imogene's father, who bought it from his mother, Nancy Angeline Tracy Nottingham Hurd, who with her husband William Nottingham, settled in the valley in the late 1880s. Next door, to the west, lives Imogene's cousin, Maurice Nottingham, and his wife Nancy, also on Nottingham land. "We built our house here because Frank's favorite fishing hole was here," Imogene said. Frank and Imogene's marriage in 1948 was a merging of two pioneer ranching families, the Dolls of Gypsum and the Nottinghams of Avon. The couple met in high school "officially" but the families knew each other as all the ranching families did. Imogene and Frank had similar upbringing, including strong pioneer grandmothers whom both remember well. Frank's grandparents, Franklin and Lucy Slusser Doll, came from Ohio to the small settlement of Dotsero, where the railroad ended, in 1887. The next year they moved to the town of Gypsum where they lived the rest of their lives. "Grandfather was in the horse trading business, and Grandmother ran the house," Frank said. "It was a big house, built in 1912, with a huge yard and garden. She worked in the yard every morning. Grandmother was a very strict Christian Scientist, and although there was no church, she had her Bible. Her grandsons had to read to her from the Bible." The Dolls had three daughters and two sons, one of whom died of pneumonia when Grandmother Doll refused to take him to a doctor. Their remaining son, Hiram Frank, was Frank's father. Hiram Frank married Helen Herres, who came from Denver and taught at the Gypsum High school, right after World War I. Hiram Frank and Helen lived next door to the elder Dolls and young Frank grew up helping his parents and grandparents on the ranch. Meanwhile, Imogene Nottingham, three years younger than Frank, was following a similar lifestyle on the Nottingham ranch in Avon. Her father, Emmett, was one of five children, two girls and three boys, born to William and Angeline Nottingham. Angeline, after the death of William, and later, that of her second husband, Ernest Hurd, eventually ended up owning much of the land in the valley from Vail to Squaw Creek, including all of where the town of Avon is now. The original homestead was located north of the Eagle River where Eagle-Vail is today. Imogene remembers her grandmother Angeline well. "She had a very dynamic personality. She was all business, not a real loving grandmotherly person. Angeline was stern and had a very colorful life. She ended up owning the whole ranch. Uncle Clyde and Angeline ran the ranch, and later sold it to my father, and my uncles Clyde and Harry." Emmett married Myrtle McGrady, from Ireland, his second wife. Imogene was one of four children, two girls and two boys. Her sister, Charlotte Nottingham Oleson, and her husband Jack, live in Eagle-Vail. Frank Doll joined the Army in 1943. Imogene went to Germany to meet him after they married and they spent the next 25 years in the military, with Frank retiring in 1968 as a Lt. Colonel. Throughout those years the couple had kept their residence in Eagle County, and they returned there after Frank's retirement. Frank was area manager for Meadow Mountain Ski area, located at Dowd Junction, for a few years, until it was sold to Vail Associates. He then worked as an insurance agent and as an accountant for various companies. In 1978 he went to work for the Eagle-Vail metro district and continued there until his retirement in 1989. Imogene worked for five years after high school graduation in the office at the Gilman mine, driving daily to and from the office, picking up co-workers in Minturn. "I was the only one with a car, and they each paid me twenty-five cents to ride with me," she said. Although Imogene had several part-time jobs after her marriage, she was kept busy with the couple's four daughters. Three of her daughters still live close by, Kathleen Doll, in Edwards, Sharon Doll in Avon, and Patricia Medeiros in Wolcott. A fourth daughter died at the age of five after surviving one of the first congenital heart defect repair operations. Frank and Imogene have two grandsons, Matthew and Levi Medeiros. The Dolls celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary just last year. Many descendants of the Nottinghams still live and work in the Eagle Valley, but Frank's daughters and his brother Morton, who lives in Eagle, are the only ones remaining of the Doll family. Imogene is well known for the beautiful, unusual wedding cakes she makes, although she said she has "slowed down" on cake baking now. Following a knee replacement several years ago, the 75-year-old is back on her feet and taking her daily walk with her daughter, Sharon. Last year Imogene discovered she had ovarian cancer, but fortunately it was found in time and following a course of chemotherapy, she has recovered completely. "My prayers and my good friends pulled me through," Imogene said. "You never know how many friends you have until you go through something like that." Frank, well known throughout the valley as a local historian, works at the Hyatt every Friday and Saturday evening, talking to whom ever wants to listen about the history of the county and life in the early days. He also does some private parties for interested people, and is the person to call whenever a question of local history comes up. He has served through the years on several community boards, including the planning and zoning commission. "Some people are very interested in the history of the area, and some could care less," he said of the people he meets at the Hyatt. Frank still fishes occasionally, and he used to ski, but now is into golf. He also provides information for the National Weather Bureau. "I don't know what I do, but I'm busy all the time," he said. At 78 years old, he is hale and healthy and looks much younger. "I'm just a jack of all trades and master of none," Imogene said with a laugh. "But I really am a collector," she added, pointing out her extensive collection of iron trivets, which covers several walls in her home. Several unusual lazy-susan fireplace trivets with long handles set on the hearth. She also has a wonderful collection of early irons, including fireplace irons with rounded large handle to accommodate plenty of padding, one of the earliest electric irons, and an early gas heated iron. Imogene also collects other antiques such as glass jars, Fiesta Ware and Hummel figurines. "I like to paint, oil and water, just for my own enjoyment," she said. In their secluded retreat on the Eagle River, Frank and Imogene Doll keep alive the history of the Eagle Valley, and a way of life that is now gone. =================================================== Contributed for use by the USGenWeb Archive Project (http://www.usgenweb.org) and by the COGenWeb Archive Project USGENWEB NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by other organization or persons. 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