Iowa History Journal Volume 5, Issue 4, Now Available

Monday, July 1st, 2013 | Iowa History Journal | No Comments

In the aftermath of World War II, George Stout of Winterset, Iowa, played a crucial role in America’s effort to save war treasurers from Nazi Germany. Stout’s story is told in a book called Monuments Men, and now that same story is being made into a major motion picture starring George Clooney in the role of Stout. In this issue, writer Michael Swanger tells the story that has captured the imagination of movie producers and military men alike.

In the summer of 1881, a farm girl by the name of Kate Shelley displayed amazing courage as she darted out into a fierce storm to try and save a train from possible disaster on a high bridge near Boone. Carrying a partially damaged lantern, the 15-year old crawled out onto the bridge and was successful in her heroic attempts to avert tragedy. Jeff Stein, one of the state’s foremost historians, tells the story of Kate Shelley and her irrepressible courage.

It’s hard to imagine a person working for the same company for almost seven decades – but that is the true story of Jim Zabel, perhaps the best known radio figure in Iowa history. Zabel died on May 23, 2013, at the age of 91 and left behind a legacy that will perhaps never be matched. IHJ publisher Mike Chapman offers a memorable tribute to the man who loved Iowa until the very end.

Click to see the full contents of the issue…

Tags: Boone, Charles City, George Stout, Jim Zabel, Kate Shelley, Lujacks, Monuments Men, Plowden, Winterset

Iowa History Journal Volume 5, Issue 3, Now Available

Wednesday, May 1st, 2013 | Iowa History Journal | No Comments

Adrian Anson was born and raised in Marshalltown…..and learned how to play baseball there, as well. In fact, he became so good at the sport that he played 27 years in the major leagues and was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. Known as Cap Anson, the native Iowan was also a controversial figure due to his stance on race relations in baseball. Don Doxsie, one of Iowa’s top sportswriters of the past thirty years, offers a penetrating look at the life and career of Cap Anson.

Today, the town of Sheldon, in the northwest corner of the state, is best known for being the hometown of Olympic wrestlers Tom and Terry Brands. Back in 1961, however, Sheldon made national headlines when one of its citizens was arrested for embezzling over $2,000,000! The story of Burnice Geiger and her shocking theft – in her own father’s bank – was front page all over the state and much of the country.

The gunfight at the O.K. Corral took place in 1881 in Tombstone, Arizona, and has since become a part of Old West folklore. Little known is the fact that the majority of the principals involved in that legendary event had Iowa backgrounds. Writers Kyle Martin and Mike Chapman offer an intriguing look back into the past.

Click to see the full contents of the issue…

Tags: Adrian Anson, Bob Feller, Burnice Geiger, Cap Anson, Claire Dodd, Herbert Hoover, Jacobson, Kinnick Autograph, Ok Corral, Sheldon

Iowa History Journal Volume 5, Issue 2, Now Available

Friday, March 1st, 2013 | Iowa History Journal | No Comments

To an entire generation of Americans in the 1950s and ‘60s, she was known simply as “Mamie”. She served as the nation’s First Lady from 1952 to 1959, when her husband Dwight D. Eisenhower was President of the United States of America. Eisenhower, known affectionately as Ike, was the hero of WWII and met his Mamie when they were just youngsters starting out on life’s journey. Mamie was born in Boone, Iowa, and she lived with her family in Cedar Rapids for a spell. Today, her legacy lives on in Boone – particularly at her birthplace home at 709 Carroll Street. It is a story that Iowans should take great pride in knowing.

A wild elephant on the loose in Iowa? Yep, way back in 1923 an elephant escaped from a circus car and went on a rampage through southern Iowa. The story is both humorous yet sad. Read the details in the current issue of Iowa’s elephant walk. In addition, Don Doxsie writes about the Fabulous Five basketball team of the 1950s and its back to back trips to the Final Four.

Also included in this issue:

• Saying goodbye to Abigail Van Buren and a Hawkeye Hero
• Fort Dodge lad survives the horrors of the notorious Civil War prison at Andersonville
• Earl May created one of Iowa’s most enduring businesses
• Mount Ayr combines the past with the future in amazing style
• The oldest Czech Catholic Church is the pride of Spillville
• Columns by our regulars – Arvid Huisman, John McNeer and Mike Chapman
• Iowa History quiz
• Letters to the editor

…and much more!

Click to see the full contents of the issue…

Tags: Abigail Van Buren, Andersonville, Earl May, Mamie Eisenhower, Mount Ayr, Spillville

Upcoming Speeches and Appearances

Sunday, February 10th, 2013 | Book Signing, Iowa History Journal, Speaking, WIN Magazine, Wrestling | No Comments

February 20 — Mike will be talking to the Knoxville Rotary Club on Wednesday, February 20, at noon at the Swamp Fox Pub and Grille in Knoxville. His speech is about famous Iowans and Iowa History Journal.

March 21-23 – Mike and Bev will be appearing at the WIN Memorabilia Show between sessions of the NCAA Wrestling Tournament in Des Moines on March 21-23. Mike and Bev created the WIN show 23 years ago and they will be greeting wrestling fans and showing memorabilia, as well as selling books, posters and videos. Numerous Olympic champions will be the special guests and an estimated 10,000 wrestling fans are expected to attend the WIN show. It will be located inside of the NCAA Fan Festival in the HY-Vee Hall. There is no charge to attend the WIN show.

July 9 – Mike will be giving a speech on the life and legacy of Frank Gotch, former world heavyweight wrestling champion, on Tuesday, July 9, at 7:30 p.m., at Joe Sheldon County Park in Humboldt. The talk is being sponsored by Project AWARE, which is a volunteer weeklong river cleanup. Each year, hundreds of Iowans join together for a week in canoes to remove trash from 80-90 miles of a different river. To date, more than 2,500 AWARE volunteers from across the state have cleaned up over 780 river miles, removing more than 250 tons of trash (70% of which has been recycled) from rivers all across Iowa. This year’s event will be held July 6-13 on the Des Moines River from Algona down through Humboldt and Fort Dodge.The event is open to the public.

Tags: knoxville rotary, WIN Memorabilia Show