Thought some of you might be interested in this post from the
blackhillsrr group.
Rick Briney
Sturgis, SD
--- In blackhillsrr@yahoogroups.com, Rick Mills <rmills@b...> wrote:
Railroad writer revisits industry history
By Dan Daly, Journal Staff Writer
RAPID CITY ? Rick Mills didn't intend to write a new book. He simply
wanted to reprint an old one.
The 40-year-old author, photographer, memorabilia collector and
historian has been writing about railroads most of his life. Mills
grew
up in Hermosa, a few blocks from the Chicago and North Western
Railroad
line, and he has been fascinated with railroading his entire life.
He
has published seven previous books on railroading.
In 2001, he started his newest project with the idea of simply
revising
and reprinting his first book, "Making the Grade ? A Century of
Black
Hills Railroading."
That book, published in 1985, was a railroad-by-railroad look at the
companies that helped turn the Black Hills from a series of isolated
mining camps into an economic entity that brought the world
everything
from timber to tourism.
But as he began rereading the 1985 book, he realized that a complete
reworking of the subject would be a better approach.
"It is an undeniable fact that as soon as works are printed, there
will
be a change, or more information comes to light. And so it goes on
the
topic of Black Hills railroad history," Mills wrote in the new
book's
preface.
He also was a bit frustrated by the railroad-by-railroad approach in
his 1985 book. Railroad projects, moves and other events were
happening
at the same time, and Mills decided it would be better to place
those
activities in context with each other.
The result is a book that covers the history of Black Hills railroad
industry chronologically. It spans 10 chapters. The first chapter
covers the years before 1879, the pre-railroad era ? at least for
the
Black Hills ? when the nearest jumping-off places were the rail
towns
of Cheyenne, Wyo., and Sidney, Neb. The following chapters cover the
industry's rise to economic prominence and slow decline as
transportation shifts to highways and airways.
However, the industry has found its place in the modern market. Much
of
the final chapter, dealing with the years from 1986 to 2004,
discusses
the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad, a startup firm that has
flourished despite the challenges of old track and giant competitors.
But like all of Mills' books, "125 Years" is more than an industry
tome. It's part scrapbook, featuring photos, timetables, advertising
materials and other memorabilia. It's part history book,
highlighting
in words and pictures the early years of railroad towns such as
Edgemont, Hot Springs, Rapid City, Belle Fourche and Deadwood.
"I tried to reach the history buffs as well as the railroad buffs,"
Mills said.
With his new book, Mills has taken on a new publishing partner,
Black
Hills Central Railroad, operator of the 1880 Train in Hill City. The
steam-powered tourist train runs from Hill City to Keystone in the
summer. Also, Mills and the Warder family, owners of Black Hills
Central Raiload, are working to establish the state Railroad Museum
in
Hill City.
"I wanted to work with them, and support what they're doing," Mills
said. In addition, the Hill City train station has been a good venue
for selling this book and other publications by Mills.
Another related project is a video tape and DVD called "Railroads of
the Black Hills, Then & Now." The 59-minute video was produced by
Rapid
City native Chris Laskowski and his Minneapolis-based production
company, C.Vision Productions (www.cvisionproductions.com).
Laskowski, who is also a railroad buff, asked Mills to write the
script. They gathered a lot of home movie footage, railroad
promotional
films and other materials to produce the program. Mills said the
film
includes a lot of rare 1960s 8-mm movie footage shot by Joe Douda.
Laskowski converted the footage to broadcast quality video.
The books are priced at $29.95 and are on sale at most local
bookstores
and outlets. The VHS videos and DVDs are $24.95 and are available at
the C. Vision Web site.
Contact Dan Daly at 394-8421 or at dan.daly@r...
--- End forwarded message ---
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