The Iowa Great Lakes draw thousands of people each summer and the largest lakes Big Spirit Lake (5,684 acres), West Lake Okoboji (3,847 acres), and East Lake Okoboji (1,835 acres) still have many operating resorts.
What is now the Jerry Dyhrkop Iowa Great Lakes ACBS Chapter was organized in 1981 by a group of men who owned and maintained wooden boats on the Iowa Great Lakes. These boats were predominantly kept on West Lake Okoboji, but other members joined from East Lake Okoboji and Big Spirit Lake.
On July 23, 1981 a non profit corporation (504-A) was filed with the State of Iowa. John Wachter of Okoboji was listed as President. William E. Kunze was Vice President and Secretary/Treasurer was Jack Textor. Founding trustees listed on the non-profit application included Claire DeKoster, Irving Jenson II, Frank Griffith, and Peter Holt.
Dues paying founding members numbered twenty people including officers and trustees.
The major project was to establish an annual classic and wooden boat show to be held each summer, a goal that was accomplished with the first show in 1982. The show continues to this day at the Iowa Great Lakes. There were 23 Wood Boats and Canoes on the docks that first year and today the show has grown from 1,000 onlookers to boasting over 7,000.
In November 1983 the Iowa Great Lakes Chapter turned over its operation to one of the founders, Don Schroeder, who owned and operated Wilson Boat Works (the original Chris-Craft dealership on the Okoboji Lakes). The following year, boat show was moved to the docks of Wilson Boat Works where it stayed for ten years. After Schroeder sold Wilson Boat Works to the Richard Mau family, the Maus continued to host the wooden boat show until 1993 at the renamed Mau Marine.
Eventually, the show moved to the long docks in front of Arnolds Park Amusement Park and the new theme became: Wooden Boats Amidst the Wooden Roller Coaster.
In 2001, the membership tried hosting a two-day boat show. That same year, Classic Boating Magazine’s Norm and Jim Wangaard came for a two-day shoot of all boats in the chapter which were published in the March/April 2002 issue.
The Iowa Great Lakes Chapter became the Jerry Dyhrkopp Iowa Great Lakes Chapter in 2004, renamed for “Dr. Chris-Craft” who operated a wooden boat restoration shop as a part of Wilson’s Boat Works in the 1970s. The shop was later moved to Dyhrkopp’s own building and Blue Water Restoration was founded to restore and maintain almost everyone’s wooden boat. In Jerry’s memory ACBS granted the name change of name.
The Jerry Dyhrkopp Iowa Great Lakes Chapter holds their annual show on West Lake Okoboji. This clear and deep lake, just south of Minnesota’s 10,000 lakes, at 136 feet, offers twenty miles of shoreline and many bays.
We hope you’ll join us in 2025 when on Friday and Saturday, June 25 and 26, we’ll meet again for our annual show. Cruise this beautiful lake, tour the Maritime Museum to learn the history of the Iowa Great Lakes, see in water and land displays of antique and classic boats. Visit our website for more details at www.okobojiclassicboats.com
Thank you all so much for adding my dad’s name in front of your chapters name on Okoboji. Jerry Dyhrkopp was my dad and I remembered meeting some of you at Wilson Boat Works in the days, when dad worked there.
I hope all went well today for all of you in the chapter and I’m thanking you ahead for letting my dad’s memories live on with you and your families too.
Please thank my brother Steve for caring for your boat/s too, through out the years. Maybe your chapters name should be Dyhrkopp’s Wooden Boat Society of Okoboji? It’s just a thought. Mark probably helped too.
Wish I could of made it this year to the boat show, but I’m aging and having some back and knee to get through surgery and or epidurals.
Thanks again for being our friends from years ago and future family friends. We all should gather and mingle, have lunch, just stand /sit and just reminese some of the past and share future ideas. I’d like that.
Friend,
Jami Dyhrkopp Hassett