Description

A biography of Reptile Gardens founder and Black Hills tourism legend Earl Brockelsby entitled Rattlesnake Under His Hat by Sam Hurst tells not only the story of Brockelsby and Reptile Gardens but also the development of the Black Hills tourism industry from the early 20th century. The book is being published by Vantage Point of Rapid City.
 
A native of Kadoka, SD, Brockelsby’s giant personality and inventive mind cast its influence over South Dakota for half a century. He spent his childhood exploring for fossils and minerals in the box canyons of the badlands, but a lifelong fascination with reptiles led to his starting Reptile Gardens in 1937. With hard work and fearless showmanship, Brockelsby built what would eventually become the world’s largest reptile zoo and a pillar of the South Dakota business community.
 
A World War II veteran and former mayor of Rapid City, Brockelsby led an adventurous life exploring the far corners of the earth and had a wide variety of interests. Along the way, he coped with numerous setbacks and personal difficulties.
 
The author of Rattlesnake Under His Hat, Sam Hurst of Rapid City, is a former NBC News producer, documentary filmmaker and Emmy Award-winning journalist. Hurst paints a vivid portrait of Brockelsby's complex life as a hard-driving entrepreneur, civic leader, politician, and family man — a unique individual in an unusual business that became a South Dakota icon.