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The Civil War never left South Carolina, from its beginning at Fort Sumter in 1861 through the destructive, harrowing days of Sherman's march through the state in 1865.

Included here are the stories of Confederate civilians and soldiers who remained true to their cause throughout the perilous struggle. An English aristocrat risked his life to run the blockade and become one of the defenders of Charleston. The Haskells of Abbeville sent seven sons into Confederate service. Many South Carolina women made heart-rending sacrifices, including a disabled woman from Laurens County whose heroic efforts preserved Mount Vernon, the home of George Washington, from wartime ravages. Author Karen Stokes details the lives of men and women whose destinies intertwined with a tragic era in Palmetto State history.

Located approximately 50 miles north of Disney World, the small community of Mount Dora, Florida, has become a peaceful oasis in the bustling region

It offers a respite to the weary traveler and a refreshing connection to an earlier time. The town rests on the shores of the beautiful Lake Dora, named for early settler Dora Drawdy by government surveyors in the 1840s. Looking at the quaint city streets, placid lake, and turn-of-the-century homes, it's easy to imagine life long ago in Mount Dora as inordinately idyllic, but like all communities, Mount Dora has faced challenges to its growth and prosperity. The collapse of the real estate boom in the mid-1920s was quickly followed by the Great Depression, ruining lives and fortunes in Mount Dora and around the state. But from the beginning, one of Mount Dora's strongest assets has been its inviting lake, an advantage that has helped a thriving tourism industry to develop in this small town. Visitors flock to Mount Dora, not only for the tranquil setting, but also for the community's old-fashioned charm, antique district, and architectural distinctiveness.

See how New Orleans became a place where several cultures met and blended to create a city and lifestyle unlike any in the United States.

Few cities boast a heritage as rich and a local color as dynamic as that of New Orleans, which is known around the world for its unique architecture, exquisite cuisine, flamboyant celebrations, and exotic peoples. Founded in 1718 as a backwater outpost of France, New Orleans was the catalyst for the greatest land deal in the history of the world, the Louisiana Purchase. Discover in these pages what made one city so appealing that one-third of the continental United States was purchased in order to obtain it. Images of the old city streets and such well-known districts as the French Quarter reveal the charm and mystery of New Orleans, and are complimented by informative and historical captions. A virtual tour of the city, New Orleans provides readers with a glimpse into the past and preserves the images of landmarks that have vanished. A scrapbook of memories for longtime residents of the city, this unique pictorial history will also be embraced by the millions of visitors who are captivated by the Crescent City.

A town with a significant place in American history as the Birthplace of the Atomic Bomb, this pictorial history takes a visual journey pre-war and post.

Nestled in the foothills of East Tennessee, 25 miles west of Knoxville, is a small town bordered on three sides by the Clinch River. The land first existed under other names - Elza, Robertsville, Scarboro, and Wheat - but in 1942, 59,000 acres of this unassuming rural land were transformed in a matter of weeks into a "secret city" that became known as the mysterious Manhattan District. As a direct result of the letter written by Albert Einstein to President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1939, the Manhattan District was created to develop new atomic weapons. Finally named Oak Ridge in 1943 and now thriving with a population of over 27,000, the town continues to be a significant center for the advancement of science and technology used throughout the world. In this pictorial history, photographs and personal descriptions guide readers on a visual journey of the construction of a city and the creation of the atomic bomb, to the post-war transformation of Oak Ridge into a major scientific community in the South.

Journey through the mountains with North Carolinian Alice Sink as she investigates the history of life in western North Carolina that traditional accounts have overlooked.

Hidden History of the Western North Carolina Mountains reveals the people, customs and folklore of the region, exploring bygone traditions, fascinating real-life characters and tales so tall they rival the peaks that shape the landscape. What was life like for workers in the gristmills? Was Abraham Lincoln actually born in Bostic in Rutherford County? Who was Amos Owens, and why was he known as the "Cherry Bounce King"? Buried deep within the hills and hollers of North Carolina's majestic Appalachian Mountains are stories, traditions and a proud cultural heritage unlike any other.

Located halfway between Jacksonville and Key West is a bedroom beach community known as Hobe Sound. With a population of about 14,000, this old-Florida beach town is considered a gem of the Treasure Coast of Florida.

Hobe Sound is known for its pristine beaches and unspoiled landscape along both the Indian River Lagoon and the Loxahatchee River as well as among the coastal sand hills and scrub forests to the west. Among the large homes associated with notable and newsworthy owners on Jupiter Island and the more modest and historic homes located in Old Hobe Sound lie Jonathan Dickinson State Park, Blowing Rocks Preserve, and Nathanial P. Reed National Wildlife Refuge. Hobe Sound has held many identities throughout the years, including Olympia and Picture City, its most famous moniker. This illustrative history offers a glimpse into the evolution of Hobe Sound during the 20th and 21st centuries.

Author Jennifer Gilliland, a local resident and historic preservationist, has taken her love of history and Hobe Sound to compile a tribute through photographs and documents in the hopes that residents and visitors alike will enjoy and appreciate what makes Hobe Sound so unique and special.

St. Augustine conjures up images of Spanish architecture, a massive fort, splashes of color against a backdrop of river and ocean, and always, always the omnipresent tourist.

This ancient town, established along the banks of the Matanzas River in 1565, is the oldest city in America. Founded to protect Spain's trade route from South and Central America to Europe, this colorful community was thriving years before the Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock and decades before Jamestown was settled. No other place in the United States embodies more charm than this hallowed city. Within these pages, images taken from the St. Augustine Historical Society's archives will educate, enthrall, and entice history buffs, tourists, and residents alike. These vintage photographs will link readers to the past and transform them into more than mere spectators visiting a popular tourist attraction. Rediscover the Spanish connection and see how early settlers built their homes, harvested their crops, educated their children, and protected their land. Walk the same worn and winding paths that the town's forefathers trod and acknowledge both the good and the bad times of life before modernday conveniences.

Key West's free-spirited ambiance and magnificent coral reefs help to create a unique and historic legacy and much more than a vacation destination.

For centuries, explorers and adventurers, immigrants and entrepreneurs, artists and wanderers have come to the island oasis known as Key West. And today, this Florida city is like no other and home to them all. Through hurricanes, fires, labor strikes, and the tourism boom, the community of Key West has sustained a unique way of life and attracted a wide variety of people to its shores, including such famous figures as writers Ernest Hemingway and Tennessee Williams, President Harry Truman, and musician Jimmy Buffett. Whether strolling through the downtown historic district, searching eclectic shops for one-of-a-kind treasures, enjoying a piece of key lime pie, or participating in the look-alike contest during Hemingway Days, Key West offers endless opportunities for pleasure. The landmarks, the people, and the continuing story of Key West are the entertaining subject of this new photographic tribute.

This isolated Tennessee valley has been home for generations of early settlers and Native Americans alike, today welcoming millions of tourists annually as the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Though the land has existed for millenia, the village known as Cades Cove came into existence in 1821, when William "Fighting Billy" Tipton was granted 1,280 acres of fine fertile land in the first recorded legal land title to Cades Cove following the Calhoun Treaty of 1819. At its peak in 1900, the census showed that there were 125 families living in the cove and over 700 individuals. The Cades Cove people were self-sufficient and had many conveniences that others did not. Some residents made their own water system, and there were blacksmiths, coffin makers, farmers, storekeepers, postmasters, and many more occupations - there was no need to go out of their beloved cove for anything. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, with a good deal of opposition from the Cades Cove residents, the area was incorporated into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Celebrate the story of one of southwest Florida's most renowned beach resorts.

Founded as a place where "invalids can escape the chilling blasts of winter," the distant paradise known as Naples was accessible only by boat during its tenuous beginning in 1885. By 1890, the new town boasted a pier, the Naples Hotel-and little else. With train service arriving in Naples in 1927 and the opening of the Tamiami Trail a year later, the once-remote resort was finally open to development, but the Depression turned the dreamed-of boom into a bust until after World War II. The picture-perfect beaches and warm winter climate were soon "rediscovered," and by the time Hurricane Donna stormed ashore on September 10, 1960 and nearly destroyed the town once hailed as the "Summerland in Wintertime," Naples was the fastest-growing city in Collier County.

Savannah's Historic District is a steadfast remant of the Old South that continues to amaze residents and visitor to this day.

Covering just less than two-and-a-half square miles, Savannah's air is still sweetened by the scent of tea olives and jasmine, her streets are still lined with the rich palettes of azaleas and camellias, and her people are generous and welcoming. Savannah has enchanted residents and visitors alike for more than two-and-a-half centuries with a rich architectural heritage and a remarkable natural beauty. Founded on February 12, 1733, by Gen. James E. Oglethorpe, Savannah has played an active role on the American stage, in times of war and hardship, as well as in times of peace and prosperity. The city's location at the mouth of the Savannah River created one of the largest seaports on the east coast, and her history is as colorful and varied as the numerous industries that made their way to her banks. Within these pages readers will visit Savannah's signature squares and parks, including Forsyth Park and Colonial Park Cemetery, as well as buildings long since vanished from the city's landscape, such as the old DeSoto Hotel and the City Market. Also showcased are some of Savannah's private homes and public buildings, such as the Telfair Museum of Art, the Chatham County Courthouses, and Christ Church, and such memorable events as the fire of 1889.

Critically acclaimed author Joe Guy serves up a stout batch of East Tennessee history in this latest collection of articles from his popular newspaper column.

From Chattanooga up to Knoxville, and every town and holler in between, Guy recounts the absorbing and oft-forgotten history of this great region with stories of revenuers, Overmountain Men, Confederate cavalry girls, and the lost tribe of the Hiwassee, just to name a few. Discover how easy it is to get lost in The Hidden History of East Tennessee.

Whether you call it the Gateway to the Americas, the Capital of Latin America, or even the Magic City, Miami is a city that has enchanted millions for many years.

The city we know as Miami only came into existence in 1896, but evidence suggests people lived in the area for over 2000 years before Europeans ever set foot on the continent. The land was conquered by the Spanish in 1566, but Florida didn't become part of the United States until 1821. Miami holds the distinction of being the only major city founded by a woman - Julia Tuttle was a wealthy citrus grower who originally owned the land the city was built on. When a prolonged bout of cold weather known as the Great Freeze throttled crops further north, farmers arrived to the area in droves, and Tuttle convinced railroad tycoon Henry Flagler to extend his Florida East Coast Railway to the region, for which she became known as "the Mother of Miami." Miami has weathered yellow fever epidemics, the 1920s boom and bust, two World Wars, hurricanes, and numerous other economic ups and downs to become one of the world's great cities and the growth of South Florida.

The stars were in alignment to transform the isolated hamlet of White Oak Flats into the major tourist destination that Gatlinburg is today.

Settlers arrived at the end of the 18th century to farm, and a community emerged. When the ladies of the Pi Beta Phi Women's Fraternity established a school in Gatlinburg in 1912, the mountain people learned they had the skills to produce marketable, handmade items. With interest in a national park developing in the 1920s, people began to visit the area to buy handcrafts and to enjoy the scenery. Enterprising residents then built hotels and shops to accommodate them. Today, Gatlinburg supports approximately 11,000 people with an active chamber of commerce, a prize-winning community center, an outstanding public school system, a national art education center, and a nationally known public library.

The remains of more than twenty historic plantations rest beneath the waters of Lake Marion and Lake Moultrie, and Charleston historian Douglas Bostick raises them from the depths in this haunting visual journey.

South Carolinians have long desired a route for water navigation from Columbia to Charleston. An early Santee Canal effort ended in failure by 1850, but interest was reignited in the twentieth century. Roosevelt and his New Deal provided the necessary hydroelectric power and a boost to the state’s economy through the funding of a navigable route utilizing the Congaree, Santee and Cooper Rivers. This ambitious undertaking would become the largest land-clearing project in the history of the United States, requiring the purchase of more than 177,000 acres.

Anna Maria Island was once inhabited by Native Americans, but as the beauty became known to its first homesteader, George L. Bean, the island's destiny was to be a beacon to paradise.

In spite of mangrove forests and throngs of mosquitoes, people came by boat to enjoy the white sand beaches and the turquoise waters of the Gulf of Mexico, with their cool onshore breezes and blazing sunsets. The Islander newspaper of the 1950s heralded, "Where life is good and the fishing is great." Anglers came from afar to test their skills against tarpon, the world's greatest game fish, and to hunt goliath grouper in the depths of Tampa Bay. Two modern bridges connected the island to the mainland in 1957, and with that the seven-mile-long island was on its way to becoming the jewel of Manatee County.

The railroads and coal industry permanently changed both the economy and culture of Floyd County, Kentucky.

Floyd County, named for Kentucky pioneer John Floyd, was formed in 1799. Originally encompassing all of the Big Sandy River Valley and much of eastern Kentucky, the boundaries included portions of what are now Pike, Martin, Knott, Magoffin, and Johnson Counties. Because of its river access, Floyd County developed earlier than many counties in eastern Kentucky; Prestonsburg, the county seat, became a major river port and center of trade in the region. With the coming of the railroad in 1903 and the coal industry, the county rapidly grew, in no small part thanks to the rapid rise in population due to the migration of white Americans from around the country, European immigrants, and African Americans from southern plantations and coalfields. What had been an agrarian, white population suddenly took on a whole new face, one more reflective of the nation. The history of coal production plays a large role in this book, particularly the Wheelright Coal Camps, but we know how much Kentucky has given to contribute to the story of America.

Many are surprised to discover that picturesque Cape Coral's history dates back further than the boom of the 1960s.

Indeed, homesteader families were living a rough-and-tumble life in the Cape's wilderness for much of the 20th century. Still, there is no denying that the city took a turn with the arrival of Jack and Leonard Rosen in 1957. These visionaries brought their Gulf American Land Corporation to Southwest Florida and built a modern city from scratch. Model homes, roads galore, an airport, a police force, the Cape Coral Country Club, the Nautilus Motel, and the famous Rose Gardens-all rising out of the woods on the north shore of the Caloosahatchee River. Hundreds of miles of canals were dug so that nearly every home was on or near the water. Hollywood celebrities turned out to promote properties to Northerners looking for the good life in sunny Florida. It was one of the largest planned developments ever in the United States-and it was a rousing success.

Nearly 200 vintage images capture the development of the tiny Eureka Springs, Arkansas and the story of a closely held secret that cured the ill.

For hundreds of years, Osage and Cherokee Indians knew of the healing waters that sprang from the rocks in the dark reaches of the Ozark Mountains. Around 1828, pioneers from Tennessee pushed west and began to settle in the area that would eventually be named Eureka Springs. Captured here in almost 200 vintage images are the growth and development of this tiny town and the story of a closely held secret that cured the ill. Dr. Alvah Jackson discovered the healing power of the spring's water when his application of the waters surging from the ground cured his son's chronic eye problem. Word spread, and people began to come in droves. The area was incorporated in 1879 and named Eureka Springs, meaning ""I found it."" Featured here are the residents, buildings, and events that shaped the tiny hamlet in the mountains, including the Crescent Hotel, the Carnegie Library, decades of visitors to the springs, and the local heroes of the First National Bank Robbery of 1922.

Lake Lure, North Carolina, is known as the ""Gem of the Carolinas,"" surrounded by majestic mountain cliffs and fed by the idyllic Rocky Broad River.

Twenty-five years after Dr. Lucius Morse and his brothers Hiram and Asahil purchased Chimney Rock in 1902, their dream of creating Lake Lure and the town of Lake Lure was realized. A popular tourist destination, Lake Lure hosted famous figures through the years, including Franklin D. Roosevelt and F. Scott Fitzgerald. Also significant in film history, it provided the backdrop for Dirty Dancing and Last of the Mohicans. Lake Lure showcases the rich community, tourism, and recreational history of this mountain community.

Explore the life and early times of Stuart, Florida through the lens of vintage images.

On the southeast coast of Florida in the 1880s, a quaint little community was nestled along the tranquil waters of the St. Lucie River in a wilderness of tropical beauty, one of the region's last frontiers. As lucrative pineapple crops and the commercial fishing industry began to flourish, trade boats brought necessary supplies, and new settlers arrived on river steamers. With land available for homesteading or for sale at $1.25 an acre, the small village soon to be known as Stuart would become a mecca for innovative, hardworking young men seeking business and financial opportunities. By the dawn of the 20th century, the railroad had been established, and the town, forged by the fortitude of early pioneers, thrived, eventually becoming a beautiful, friendly incorporated city.

Staunton, Virgina is a town of architectural beauty, a major economic and transportation hub, and renowned state facilities.

For over a century, Staunton has been known as the ""Queen City of the Shenandoah Valley,"" not only because of its economic and geographic location in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley, but also because of the architectural beauty found in the city. Since the early 1800s, prominent architects and builders have left their mark on the hilly terrain of Staunton, resulting in a rich architectural fabric rarely found in small American towns. Once the largest community in the western part of Virginia, Staunton was located in the center of the state until the creation of West Virginia in 1862. The region was a major economic and transportation hub throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries and was home to an affluent mix of people and businesses with the resources available to build handsome buildings. Two of the earliest state facilities were built in Staunton--Western State Lunatic Asylum (later Western State Hospital) and the Virginia School for the Deaf and Blind (VSDB). These find structures established a precedence in the city that the rest of the state clamored to follow.

A destination for many tourists eager for sun, sand, and a simpler way of life, and a far distant cry from the glitter and neon of more traditional, commercial oriented beaches, the Outer Banks of North Carolina is a natural wonder sheltering and buffering Eastern North Carolina from the volatile temperament of the Atlantic Ocean.