02/27/2026
Joe William Mussey
Joe William Mussey of Alpine, Texas, died Wednesday, February 25, at his home in Alpine, Texas. He was born May 18, 1930, in Del Rio, Texas, to Reuben and Stella Mussey.
Joe grew up in Sanderson, Texas, where he spent a busy childhood roaming and exploring the surrounding mountains, looking for rocks and arrowheads at an early age. He was a Sanderson Eagle and especially enjoyed football and track and field events. After graduation from Sanderson High School in 1948, he worked one year at Pyote Bomber Base before joining and serving four years in the United States Air Force during the Korean War. Receiving an Honorable Discharge in 1953 for honest and faithful service and earning the GI Bill, Joe enrolled at Texas Western College in El Paso, Texas. Texas Western College (TWC) later became The University of Texas El Paso (UTEP).
During the enrollment process at TWC, he was asked what he had chosen for his major. He immediately replied “Archeology” and was told that it did not exist at TWC. He turned to the man behind him to ask what he was declaring as his major and was told “Geology.” As the man had a beard and looked older as did Joe, he trusted his judgment and answered, “me too, Geology.” That fellow became one of Joe’s lifelong friends and Alpha Phi Omega-1919 social fraternity brothers.
Although Joe worked nights while in college for Southern Pacific Railroad Company as a crew dispatcher, he was actively involved in social events of college life. Stories and friends from college days could fill volumes. Joe was President of APO Fraternity and many of his APO friends stayed in touch and became involved both with donations and volunteer hours when he and Jack Burgess began planning and designing the Chihuahuan Desert Mining Heritage Exhibit at The Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute.
Joe graduated from TWC in 1958 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mining Geology and began his vagabond years in Alaska, Canada, and the Southwestern United States working in uranium, silver, lead, and gold mines.
In the early 1970’s, Joe moved to Pecos, Texas, to work as a geologist with the highway department. His dream job became available and he was soon named Mining Geologist at Duval Sulfur Company, later to become Pennzoil Sulfur Company. Joe and School Marm Sweetie Joyce Croft met in Pecos in 1974 at an apartment complex where many singles lived and visited around the swimming pool. A friendship developed and they were married in 1976 in Stephenville, Texas. Forty-nine years of marriage were filled with adventures, happy and productive careers, many friends, and all-around good times.
Joe retired from the sulfur mine in 1992, Joyce resigned from Pecos Schools, and the new chapter of their lives began in Fort Davis, Texas. Joe supervised the building of their home on Sproul Road while Joyce was Principal of Dirks-Anderson Elementary School. Joe became involved as a volunteer at CDRI beginning with the collection of ores to design the geologic timeline near the Powell Visitor Center. Once this project was completed, he and Jack Burgess began to design and plan the Chihuahuan Desert Mining Heritage Exhibit. Once completed, he presented programs for hundreds of students and adults, sharing his knowledge of geology and mining. Students gave him the name Miner Joe. Twenty-five years, thousands of dollars and thousands of volunteer hours spent building the exhibit made it a labor of love for Joe. Until August 28, 2025, Joe and Joyce travelled weekly to CDRI to help maintain the Mining Exhibit.
Joe was an almost- movie star in the movie, “There Will Be Blood” and enjoyed sharing his knowledge and treasures with Paramount Studios and working alongside Daniel Day-Lewis.
In 2015, Joe and Joyce moved to Alpine and once again enjoyed city life while continuing to be involved with the Mining Exhibit.
Joe is preceded in death by his parents, Reuben and Stella Mussey, brothers Sy and Dick Mussey, sister Bennie Prejean, sister-in-law Betty Mussey, brother-in-law Danny Croft, father and mother-in-law Floyd and May Croft, beloved aunts, uncles, cousins, many lifelong friends, and his beloved dogs Pooch and Dulce.
Joe is survived by his wife Joyce, brother-in-law F.H. Croft, nephews Bruce (Jane) Mussey, Stephen (Lynda) Prejean, Richard (Tua) Prejean, and Chris (Stacie) Croft, nieces Judi (Michael) Richard, and Marla Croft as well as many grand nieces and nephews, cousins, and friends.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Chihuahuan Desert Mining Heritage Exhibit, P.O Box 905, Fort Davis, TX 79734 or Alpha Phi Omega Social Fraternity Endowed Fund, University of Texas at El Paso, Institutional Advancement, Mike Loya Building – Ste 223, 501 W. University Ave., El Paso, TX 79902-9900.
A Ceremony of Joe’s Life will be held on Saturday, March 21, from 1-4 p.m., at the Alpine Memorial Funeral Home, 209 W. Sul Ross Avenue, Alpine, Texas. Please wear blue and dress casually.
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