Dell Rapids, A Walk Through History, By Craig Kumerfield. This book’s journey to being printed started with photos for a documentary and a series of newspaper stories about the history of Dell Rapids, South Dakota.
The Journey to a Printed Book Starts – Inspired by a Historian
Craig’s book began its journey in 1989 when he was asked by Roberta Merry DeVaney, a premier local historian, to help with a project. She needed someone to take photos for a project called “Scenic and Historic Dell Rapids.” Craig joined her, and for the next two and a half years he worked with Roberta taking pictures and co-producing. When done, the local theater had a screening of the slide show documentary. A video of the slide show has been made. The video won a national award from the American Association for State and Local History. Craig found a love for local history while working on this slide show.
History Book has Newspaper Roots
When Craig retired from the Dell Rapids Public Schools as a teacher, he reached out to the local newspaper about writing history snippets. Soon, the snippets became longer stories as positive feedback came in. Over the following four years, Craig wrote stories based on Dell Rapids history. The articles published in the Tribune were under the series title Little Piece of History.
Encouraged by locals, Craig began to create a book from the articles he had written. Although, there had not been any order to the articles, Craig started working on placing them into chapters. A fellow teacher proofread the book. Craig then began searching for a way to publish it.
Filled With Interesting and Fun History
Filled with engaging true stories of Dell Rapids and nearby communities, Craig’s book came together. For example, in the book is a story of native Doctor Roger Haugen and his influence on the revolutionary Heimlich Maneuver. Additionally, there are fun facts about the great local athletes including the basketball legend Jim Schmidt. Dell Rapids is also the birth place of several well-known musicians.
Finding a Printer – A Book’s Journey to Be Printed Continues
Finding a printer that was budget friendly and could help with formatting photos and text was difficult. Craig became so discouraged he almost gave up the idea of printing the book until friends from Crofton, Nebraska, suggested a company that had helped with a community cookbook. That information led him to Jumbo Jacks (now a part of Cookbook Specialists), and they happily answered his questions.
With pricing in hand from Jumbo Jacks and his questions answered Craig started the printing process in 2018 with a run of 300 books. Craig went with his Crofton friends to Audubon, Iowa to pick up the finished books. The truck held what Craig thought was a lifetime supply of books.
Successful History Book
A Walk Through History started flying off the shelves of local businesses that had offered Craig a place to sell the book. Because of the quick sales, Craig reordered 400 more books in 2019 and now, with the anticipated rise of paper prices, he has ordered an additional 200 to keep up with demand. With each printing Craig couldn’t be happier with the quality.
Get Your Copy Today!
You can purchase a copy of Dell Rapids A Walk Through History at any of the following Dell Rapids businesses or email Craig at ckfield@siouxvalley.net