Charles Dell
No Colorado town is complete without their notorious cowboys. Guffey, Colorado had quite the cowboy in Charlie Dell. Charles Alfred Dell, born October 28, 1904 in Guffey, Colorado began his life as a cowboy as a ranch hand for Gene Rowe at the CN Ranch just outside of town. Following this, he took to the road, landing in Arizona, then New Mexico, and finally in Nevada where he worked as the ranch foreman for Rex Bell, who is most recognized as the spouse of Hollywood film star Clara Bow.
Charlie Dell didn’t stay away from Park County for long. He felt called to return and did so, taking up the helm as president of the Guffey Community Center. Charlie Dell was also well known as a fence mender, an important skill in ranch land.[1]
Park County has a long musical history with many members, current and past, taking up an instrument to entertain and pass the time. When Charlie Dell returned to Colorado, he also worked with the Rhythm Roundup in Cañon City. Charlie Dell was also quite the banjo player. He seemed to enjoy playing a vast variety of songs, including country, folk, rock, and ragtime. He was also known to “cut a rug” now and again and could tap dance. In her retelling of her interview of him, Lori Kennedy shares “he enjoyed singing songs, some of which he wrote. He wanted to install a bar in his cabin so he could teach me to tap dance. He said I could hang from the bar so that I'd be much lighter on my feet.”[2]
These days, if you’re lucky on a trip to Guffey, you may hear the soft sweet twang of Charlie’s banjo, or you can give a listen to the rare recording he shared prior to his death in 1983. Whatever the case, in many ways the cowboy, Charlie Dell, lives on.