Memories of Dodge City: Images from the Hetzel collection

The 2012 edition of the Dodge City Daily Globe calendar is included in
today's paper.
The calendar features photographs of Dodge City from the Claude Hetzel
collection at the Kansas Heritage Center.
Claude Hetzel ran a photography studio in Dodge City from the
mid-1940s until 1968 when he died. The studio was in the Hetzel family
home on West Trail Street, but Hetzel's lens captured the entire
spectrum of life in Dodge City.
When Hetzel's wife died in 1978, their daughter, Jean Hetzel (Krisle)
Blasi, inherited a large collection of her father's photographs.
Blasi, who now lives in east Texas, wanted the photographs to be cared
for and appreciated, so she contacted the Dodge City Convention and
Visitor Bureau (CVB) and offered to donate the collection to the city.
Jan Stevens, director of the CVB, contacted Barb Vincent, director of
the Kansas Heritage Center, and soon the photos were in Dodge City,
being sorted, identified, numbered and archived for future research.
The photos record people and places in and around Dodge City but they
were not identified in any way.
The Heritage Center is in the process of cataloguing and identifying the photos.
"My mom and dad were incredible people," Blasi told the Globe in a
phone interview Thursday.
"When there was a blizzard or severe storm or other disaster, dad
grabbed his camera, but while he was out there taking photographs, he
was also helping people. He would bring stranded people home and
mother would feed them. They had such big hearts."
Her father was the official photographer for Glenn Cooper's drive-in
theater, recording the Dodge City visits of many movie and western
stars.
"Dad also made friends with the owners of all the carnivals and
circuses that came to town every year and became their official
photographer as well," Blasi said.
Hetzel also loved getting involved with the political candidates and
their campaigns.
"But I think dad's extreme gift was outdoor photography," Blasi said.
"In fact, he was once flown to Hollywood to shoot photographs of a
movie setting, because word had gotten around about the quality of his
work."
Blasi, whose great-grandparents pioneered in early day Dodge City, has
fond memories of her father's studio.
The collection includes nearly 1,000 photographs and Kansas Heritage
Center staff worked with Daily Globe staff to choose images for the
calendar.
If you'd like another copy for someone, you may pick one up free of
charge at the Globe office (705 N. Second Ave.) while supplies last.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Dodge City Daily Globe.