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Photos in the book reveal the architectural and physical evolution of a vibrant Main Street, which was and still is the very heart of the town. After 1872 town life began to interact with that of the new state university placed in Blacksburg; this study includes many engaging images of life at Virginia Tech over the years. Fascinating photos of people, places, homes, businesses, and important events in the town's history complete the collection. In this contribution to the Images of America series Straw has provided us with an informative look into an earlier period of life in this most interesting and appealing community.

A fascinating look into the beginnings of one of Tennessee's oldest counties, Blount.

Blount County is the 10th county formed in the state of Tennessee. It was carved out of Knox County in 1795 and named for William Blount, the governor of the Territory South of the River Ohio. Maryville is the county seat and was named for Blount's wife, Mary Grainger Blount. The abundance of natural resources that once drew hardy settlers now attracts tourists from all over the world, especially to Cades Cove, a pioneer settlement in the Blount County section of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Blount County has been home to the legendary Sam Houston; U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander, who also served as Tennessee's governor; and Bessie Harvey, a world-renowned folk artist.

These pictorial images of Greek heritage illustrate the people and events that have shaped the culture and history of Tarpon Springs.

Beginning in 1905, large numbers of Greeks from the Dodecanese and Saronic Gulf islands settled in Tarpon Springs to work in the sponge business. They significantly expanded the industry and changed Tarpon Springs forever. Greektown flourished with residences, stores, churches, restaurants, and recreational facilities stretching from the sponge docks to downtown. Sponge fishing and related activities served as the economic base for the community. By 1913, as many as half of Tarpon Springs residents were reputedly Greek, and many businesses displayed both Greek and American flags. Today, Tarpon Springs' Greek community preserves a strong ethnic and maritime heritage. While some major US cities have a larger Greek population, no other has a greater percentage with Greek heritage than Tarpon Springs.

Author Erik T. Robinson takes the reader through the city's colorful past up to its promising future using both familiar and never-before-seen photographs.

Located in the rolling hills of Florida's Panhandle, Tallahassee has long stood as a capital city. It has been home to prehistoric Native Americans, who built the Lake Jackson Mounds in the 13th century; the Apalachee Indians, who learned to live with the Spanish Mission in the 17th century; and to European settlers and the American residents of today. Tallahassee's tree-lined, canopied roads and bountiful dogwoods and azaleas have always been associated with the leadership and history of the state. The presence of institutions such as Florida State University and Florida A&M have also made Tallahassee an attractive center of higher learning and diversity. Throughout prosperity and adversity, both Tallahassee's population and complexity have continued to increase. Combining historic landmarks, such as the San Luis Archaeological Site and the Old City, and new neighborhoods, such as Frenchtown and Lafayette Park, the capital city is a unique representation of Florida, from its days as a territory to its status as one of the country's most visited states.

Explore the daily lives and the history of German and Italian POWs in WWII in camps in Georgia and their impact on the Peach State.

During World War II, many Georgians witnessed the enemy in their backyards. More than twelve thousand German and Italian prisoners captured in far-off battlefields were sent to POW camps in Georgia. With large base camps located from Camp Wheeler in Macon and Camp Stewart in Savannah to smaller camps throughout the state, prisoner re-education and work programs evoked different reactions to the enemy. There was even a POW work detail of forty German soldiers at Augusta National Golf Course, which was changed from a temporary cow pasture to the splendid golf course we know today. Join author and historian Dr. Kathryn Roe Coker and coauthor Jason Wetzel as they explore the daily lives of POWs in Georgia and the lasting impact they had on the Peach State.

Known as the birthplace of black capitalism, Richmond had one of the largest black business districts in America at the turn of the 20th century.

Richmond, Virginia boasts a proud legacy of achievement among its African-American residents. Medical pioneers, civil rights activists, education leaders, and enterprising bankers are listed among the city's African-American sons and daughters. As individuals these men and women made their mark not only on Richmond's, but also the nation's, history. As a community, they have endured centuries of change and worked together for the common good. In their determined faces and in unforgettable scenes of the past, we celebrate and pay tribute to their history.

A collection of photographs that highlight historic Druid Hills in Atlanta, Georgia and the history behind the influential suburb.

Three remarkable people were responsible for the beginnings of Atlanta's historic Druid Hills. The first was entrepreneur Joel Hurt, who having already experienced success with his rail-served development of Inman Park set his sights on a second community. With remarkable vision, Hurt hired renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted Sr. to plan his new subdivision. Druid Hills would be Olmsted's last design and also his only one in the Deep South. Hurt eventually sold the land for his subdivision to a group of wealthy and influential businessmen, headed by Coca-Cola owner Asa Griggs Candler. The men retained Olmsted as landscape architect and planner. The story of historic Druid Hills weaves the genius of America's father of landscape architecture with the acumen of the owners of the Druid Hills Corporation. With its central linear park, curvilinear streets, and an abundance of trees, Druid Hills succeeded in becoming an ideal suburb that eventually became home to the civic and business lions of Atlanta.

Daytona lays claim to being The World's Most Famous Beach, and with good reason. Experience the birthplace and home of NASCAR in 100 years of racing on the sands.

NASCAR, one of America's favorite pastimes, got its start on Daytona Beach--""The World's Famous Beach."" For decades people have flocked to Daytona's 23 miles of white sand not only for relaxation and spring breaks, but also for the racing action once offered on its hard-packed sand shore. Dozens of records were set on the beach during low tide before promoter Bill France Sr. organized the National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing at the Streamline Hotel in 1947. From those humble beginnings years ago, France turned his vision of what NASCAR could become into the brand of racing known today. Daytona Beach: 100 Years of Racing follows NASCAR's evolution from grassroots racing to its rise as one of the most talked about spectator sports in the world. The more than 200 images in this photo history illustrate why this sport--once known only to those south of the Mason-Dixon Line--is now aninternational phenomenon. Travel the course of racing's famous and lesser-known heroes like Sir Malcolm Campbell, Lawson Diggett, Clessie L. Cummins, Richard Petty, and Dale Earnhardt Sr. Experience the pile-ups, victories, and defeats, and understand why NASCAR history is incomplete without Daytona Beach.

Author Robert Thompson recounts the harrowing story of Phebe Tucker Cunningham, from her marriage at Prickett's Fort to her return to the shores of the Monongahela.

Life on the West Virginia frontier was a daily struggle for survival, and for Phebe Tucker Cunningham, that meant the loss of her four children at the hands of the Wyandot tribe and being held captive for three years until legendary renegades Simon Girty and Alexander McKee arranged her freedom. Thompson describes in vivid detail early colonial life in the Alleghenies and the ways of the Wyandot, providing historical context for this unforgettable saga.

Rare and vintage photographs document the fascinating history of Gulfport, from small port city to modern urban hub.

Gulfport's name says it all. The port and railroads were the foundation for this community. In 1900, at two years old, its population was only a little over 1,000. However, by 1906, that number had grown to over 14,000. A wide channel and deepened basin provided for the 36 ships anchored in the harbor. Capt. William T. Hardy's railroad was complete. Wealthy oilman Capt. Joseph T. Jones had made good on his promises of a train depot, an office building, banks, schools, churches, and stores. The luxurious Great Southern Hotel stood as a star costing over $350,000 to build. Gulfport was a thriving port city. The golfing, hunting, and waterfront activities were an early appeal. Images reflect great fortune and the desperate losses in Gulfport.

Mention Daytona Beach, and most people would have images of brilliantly painted stock cars roaring over the racetrack at over 200 miles per hour.

Some would envision sun-worshipping beach-goers covering the beaches during spring break. However, the Daytona Beach area has a colorful history that reaches back decades before the town became one the world's key auto racing centers as well as one of the most famous and beautiful beach communities.

Engulfed by the bayou, Lafourche is a parish rich in history and culture known for its close-knit, family-centered communities.

The parish was originally inhabited by Native American tribes and later by European, African, and English settlers, and many of the residents of Lafourche can trace their ancestry back to these early settlers, strengthening the sense of community that is distinctive to southern Louisiana. The fertile bayou delta fostered small vegetable farms as well as large sugarcane plantations that continue to thrive. The numerous waterways and marshes of the parish produce bountiful catches of fish, seafood, and other wildlife, giving rise to its reputation as a sportsmen's paradise. The parish's economy is also made up of a shipbuilding industry as well as the oil industry, and because of the continuous pattern of homes and businesses that sprung up organically along the bayou, many refer to the town as the "Longest Street in the World."

Journey into the Ashe County of yesteryear, a time dominated by horse and buggies, dirt roads, and early farms.

The mountain region of North Carolina possesses an uncommon grace and beauty, a landscape full of breathtaking peaks, lush forests, and winding rivers and creeks. Within this picturesque scenery, pioneering spirits settled in Ashe County and established communities in an environment both enchanting and perilous. Officially formed in 1799, Ashe County stands as one of the High Country's oldest and most intriguing areas. In this volume, containing over 200 black-and-white images, readers will journey into the Ashe County of yesteryear, a time dominated by horse and buggies, dirt roads, and early farms. Starting in the 1870s and stretching into the twentieth century, this stunning visual history allows today's reader to meet the resilient and rugged families that carved towns and communities into this mountainscape, to ride the Virginia Creeper railroad as it carries lumber and other goods to waiting markets, and to stroll along the banks of the historic New River, now recognized as a national Heritage River.

This pictorial history of Hendersonville illustrates the people, places, and events that have shaped the area's history.

Resting in one of Western North Carolina's scenic valleys near the continental divide, Hendersonville offers a rich culture and intriguing history in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Hendersonville was chartered as a city on January 7, 1847, and the coming of the railroad in 1879 sparked its growth. The summer arrival by train of both wealthy and middle-class visitors bolstered Main Street businesses and gave rise to fashionable inns and innumerable boarding houses. The photographs in Images of America: Hendersonville illustrate the history of a town still populated with founding families, seasonal residents, and summer tourists. This volume explores the early pioneer days, the Civil War period, the land boom of the 1920s, the Great Depression, and the growth of this now-thriving city.

Large landholders sold property in this unknown paradise to working-class people, and since the 1950s, Port Charlotte has had a colorful history of progress.

In the '50s, General Development Corporation created Port Charlotte by expanding the canals previously dug by John Murdock to drain the swampy land. The Mackle Company carved Arthur Frizzell's 80,000 acres into small, perfectly rectangular lots for resale to middle-class retirees--the targets of mass advertising and sales practices that included displaying models of Port Charlotte in department stores throughout Chicago and New York. Encouraging retirees to come to Port Charlotte resulted in the area having one of the highest concentrations of residents aged 65 and older in the nation. Port Charlotte's boom-and-bust history is a microcosm of the frenzied social and economic growth that transformed Florida in the second half of the 20th century.