Shelf Life

Tag: Dianna Stampfler

  • Kalamazoo County Characters by Dianna Higgs Stampfler

    Kalamazoo County Characters by Dianna Higgs Stampfler

    This fascinating book, featuring profiles of 50 notable figures in the Kalamazoo area history, will be released by The History Press in January 2025.

    Since its founding in the early 1800s, Kalamazoo has welcomed a variety of notable individuals who have shaped the community’s legacy in their own special way. From founding fathers to early innovators, groundbreakers to entrepreneurs, artists to authors and athletes to entertainers, author Dianna Higgs Stampfler celebrates 50 figures in her book Kalamazoo County Characters to be released from The History Press in January 2025 (ISBN: 9781467155922 | IMAGES: 53 | PAGES: 144 | DIMENSIONS: 6 (w) x 9 (h)).

    Dianna and her brother with Santa & Mrs. Claus, Darwin & Opal Brown.

    Individuals like Orville Gibson and Derek Jeter are nationally recognized, while others, such as Sue Hubbell or Donald Bonevich, may be less well known. Abraham Lincoln and Flora Temple briefly passed through town, and Mary Jackson and Gwen Frostic were among those who came here to attend college. Others, like Darwin and Opal Brown (aka Santa and Mrs. Claus) or Gene Rhodes (aka Gene the Pumpkin Man), were lifetime residents who have entertained families for generations.

     Stampfler is shown here with her father, stepmom, and kids with the Eagles backstage at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids in 2018. Her father helped launch the band to stardom – as a DJ playing a song that became their first hit. You can google Jim Higgs and Eagles for the full story.

    “Selecting the 50 individuals for Kalamazoo County Characters was a challenge as I had over 125 to choose from” notes Stampfler, who worked on the book with her father, Jim Higgs, a local genealogist, historian and notable Kalamazoo figure in his own right. The book is dedicated to her father, who passed away in May 2024 at the age of 79. “I was diligent in featuring people from different walks of life, with unique stories to share. Some I have personal connections to, as I spent a lot of time in Kalamazoo growing up in nearby Plainwell, but others I discovered through various other channels or by recommendation of fellow historians and authors.”

    This 1987 photo shows Dianna as  Miss Plainwell and Narada Michael Walden, who was the grand marshal of the Wine & Harvest Festival Parade in Kalamazoo.
     

    Beginning in January, Stampfler will present Notable Figures in Kalamazoo Area History(Kalamazoo County Characters) at libraries, bookstores, museums, conferences and events. The official book launch will be on Thursday, January 30, 2025 at 6:30pm at the Kalamazoo Public Library downtown branch.

    “I expect each presentation to be a little bit different, as I’ll be able to hand-pick the individuals to feature based on the venue,” Stampfler continued. “Plus, I am able to include some of those people who may not have made it in the book, but who also have compelling stories to share! Each profile in the book features just one photograph, and the presentations will also allow me to share more historical images and visual documents.”

    Upcoming presentations include:

    Additional events will be posted on the Promote Michigan Speaker’s Bureau online. Information about booking presentations for this and other themes can also be found on the Speaker’s Bureau page.

    Autographed copies of Kalamazoo County Characters are available for $24.99 (plus shipping/handling and tax) at PromoteMichigan.com. Shipping will take place by mid-January.

    Dianna Higgs Stampfler

    About the Author

    Dianna Higgs Stampfler has worked in Michigan’s tourism industry for nearly thirty years and is the founder of Promote Michigan, a public relations consulting company specializing in tourism and historical destinations of the Great Lakes region. Her articles have appeared in Michigan Blue Magazine, Lakeland Boating, Michigan Meetings + Events, West Michigan Carefree Travel, and Lake Michigan Circle Tour & Lighthouse Guide, among others.

    She is the author of several best-selling books including Michigan’s Haunted Lighthouse, available through The History Press (March 2019), a fun and fascinating compendium of spirited stories about 13 historic lighthouses around the State of Michigan and Death & Lighthouses on the Great Lakes: A History of Murder and Misfortune.

    Stampfler holds a bachelor’s degree in English with an emphasis in Community Journalism and Communications with an emphasis in radio broadcasting from Western Michigan University (WMU) in Kalamazoo. She is a member of the Historical Society of Michigan, West Michigan Tourist Association, Michigan Hemingway Society, Great Lakes Lighthouse Keepers Association, and Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society among other historical organizations.

  • “Ladies of the Lights” Showcases Female Lighthouse Keepers

    “Ladies of the Lights” Showcases Female Lighthouse Keepers

    “Ladies of the Lights” Presentation by Michigan Maritime Expert Dianna Stampfler Showcases Female Keepers of Michigan’s Historic Beacons

    “Ladies of the Lights” Presentation Showcases Female Keepers of Michigan’s Historic Beacons

    Michigan lighthouse historian and author Dianna Stampfler has announced a series of presentations of her popular “Ladies of the Lights” in honor of Women’s History Month. This program, which includes readings from newspapers and autobiographies, as well as countless historic photos, sheds light on the dedicated women who served at lights around the state dating back as early as the 1830s.

    These were women before their time, taking on the romantic yet dangerous and physically demanding job of tending to the lighthouses that protected the Great Lakes shoreline. Given this was also a government job, their involvement was even more unique. In all, nearly 50 women have been identified who excelled in this profession over the years.

    One of the most notable was Elizabeth (Whitney) VanRiper Williams who took over the St. James Harbor Light on Beaver Island after her husband, Clement, died while attempting to rescue the crew of a ship sinking in the harbor. She later became the first keeper of the Little Traverse Lighthouse in Harbor Springs, retiring after a combined 44 years of service.

    There is also Julia (Tobey) Braun Way who outlived two husband keepers at the Saginaw River Rear Range Lighthouse in Bay City, and some say who still haunts the place today. Anastasia Truckey served as the interim keeper at the Marquette Harbor Lighthouse in the 1860s while her husband, Nelson, was off serving in the Civil War. Mary Terry served 18 years before she died in a fire at the Sand Point Lighthouse in Escanaba in 1886 – her death still shrouded in mystery 137 years later.

    Stampfler has been researching Great Lakes lighthouses for more than 25 years and is the author of Michigan’s Haunted Lighthouses (2019) and Death and Lighthouses on the Great Lakes (2022) both from The History Press. She has penned countless articles and been interviewed extensively about the lighthouses and their keepers. She is also the president of Promote Michigan.

    The March 2023 program schedule includes:

    • Tuesday, March 14 (6-7:30pm)

    Chesterfield Township Library

    www.chelibrary.org

    • Wednesday, March 15 (10am-Noon)

    Saginaw Valley State University, University Center

    OLLI Class (Registration required: $20 members/$40 non-members)

    www.enrole.com/svsu/jsp/session.jsp?sessionId=275W23&courseId=275LADIES&categoryId=D488D638

    • Wednesday, March 15 (5-6:30pm)

    Harbor Beach District Library

    www.hbadl.org

    • Tuesday, March 21 (6-7:30pm)

    Livonia Public Library ZOOM

    https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88565136420

    • Wednesday, March 22 (6-7:30pm)

    St. Clair County Library, Port Huron

    • Thursday, March 23 (7-8:30pm)

    Novi Public Library Zoom

    www.novilibrary.org 

    Stampfler will be selling/signing copies of her books following each presentation.