Father Puhl’s life started here in Montrose and it is well documented in a book authored by him. The book is dedicated to the memory of his parents and other immigrants who “sacrificed and endured privations that their children be born into and reared in an atmosphere of freedom…”.
Puhl’s parents were John Peter and Katherine Schmitt Puhl who were among the immigrants from the Volga in Russia. John Peter’s sister, Anna, married Anton Schmalz, who had a large family with many of the descendents still living here. The Puhls crossed the international border into El Paso, Texas in 1907.
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Just days after his birth, Albert was baptized by Father Sasse in St. Mary Catholic Church in Montrose, with Manuel (Monte) Schmalz and Lucy Nusse as godparents. He was given the name Albert after Lucy Nusse’s brother, whom the Puhls greatly admired. Emanuel was Manuel Schmalz’s given name. At Puhl’s confirmation in 1929, he added a third name, Anthony. He said, “St. Anthony of Padua had been so faithful in finding misplaced and lost articles for me.”
Puhl had many memories of growing up in Montrose and the Delta area. While living on the Rose farm, they were traveling in their Model-T Ford to visit a neighboring family when they were met by two young men in a “much classier car,” traveling at a high rate of speed—at least 35 miles an hour. His father’s driver stopped, just sure they were going to be hit, but the boys veered off the road and hit a telephone pole. The young men jumped out of their car with clenched fists and threatening gestures, charging toward the Puhls. Albert said, “Dad, in a regal posture and tone of voice, simply turned to our driver and directed him to continue home…The lads were lucky that they never challenged Dad because he had been trained in the art of karate while serving in the Russian army.”
Puhls lived on the Krebs farm south of Montrose in 1921 and ’22. The farm was covered with alkali. To help the family survive, Albert’s mother worked for the Paige family, doing laundry and scrubbing floors. It was while living there that Albert remembered some of the locals distilling whiskey. He said when federal agents came to the area, the distillers were tipped off and sometimes lowered their stills into underground cisterns and fed the mash to the pigs. He wrote, “The pigs loved the stuff and after gorging themselves on the mash, wobbled around until they collapsed.”
The family also lived on the Houston and Miller farms. Albert loved the Miller farm, which was about three miles west of Delta. That’s where he spent the most vivid and happiest days of his youth. The Gunnison River served not only as a fishing hole, but as their swimming pool, where they cooled off after sweltering from the heat while working in the fields. Their mother was thrilled when they came home with a string of fish.
Albert enjoyed the quiet moments of herding the cattle and picked wild currants on his walk home. He said, “I began to understand why the Blessed Mother often appeared to children while they were tending flocks of sheep on lonely hillsides or meadows. The long hours of silence cleared their minds of distractions and worldly thoughts.”
In September, 1925, Albert started school at St. Michael’s Catholic School in Delta. It was very strict, and students learned well. He attended Delta High School his freshman and part of his sophomore year before moving to Oakland, Calif. where he entered the seminary in 1937.
Father Puhl touched many lives throughout Colorado and made such a difference in our state. The 50th anniversary of his ordination, as well as his retirement from the priesthood, took place in June 1994.
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