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One of Charlotte's early streetcar suburbs, the Plaza-Midwood neighborhood epitomizes the New South vision of Charlotte. Its history reflects the growing of the New South and the nation as a whole. Plaza-Midwood, known for its architectural and social diversity, has been through the years a proposed enclave for Charlotte's New South elite, an "at risk" inner city area, and ultimately an urban success story. Plaza-Midwood's current prosperity can be attributed to the strength and vision of its "citizens," who continue to preserve the character and history of their community. Plaza-Midwood owes its survival to a dedicated neighborhood organization. Through their efforts, much of the area has been declared an historic district.

Illinois may be known as the "Land of Lincoln," but Abraham Lincoln spent the formative years from the age of 7 until he turned 21 in southwestern Indiana, living with his family on a farmstead in the rolling hills of this beautiful rural area.

The Lincoln family moved from Kentucky, crossing the Ohio River and settling in an area known as Little Pigeon Creek in December 1816. Now known as Lincoln City, the town is just one of several stops on a back roads tour that takes wanderers through many historic sites, representing important moments in the life of a great man. Lincoln's mother, Nancy Hanks Lincoln, is buried here, and the cabin where his cousin lived and Lincoln spent the night still stands. Those who want to retrace Lincoln's life in southern Indiana can do so easily by following the narrow roads that traverse the 20-mile area where he lived and traveled during those 14 years when he called Indiana home. The people of the region still claim Lincoln as one of their own.

Referred to as ""one of the prettiest and pleasantest places of all New England towns,"" Georgetown grew rapidly, and by the mid-nineteenth century the population had risen dramatically.

This town, ""a pleasant and flourishing place,"" saw the Boston & Maine Railroad laid out in 1854, with depots at Pentucket Square and at Baldpate, and two street railways in 1896-the Haverhill, Georgetown & Danvers Line and the Georgetown, Rowley & Ipswich Line, both of which greatly facilitated the ease of transportation. Join the author in Georgetown as he takes you on a tour through the town's early years. Visit the schools and churches, the Old Home Week in 1909, the Georgetown Peabody Library, and the Baldpate Inn and Hospital. Experience the natural features, including Pentucket and Rock Ponds, and Bald Pate Hill, the highest elevation in Essex County. See the local tanneries during the pre-Civil War years, which produced enough leather for 32,300 pairs of boots and over 300,000 pairs of shoes.

John D. Hertz, of rental car fame, discovered Trout Valley (then a part of unincorporated McHenry County) in the 1920s.

He built a mansion, barns, and polo grounds on the banks of the Fox River, calling his new country estate Leona Farms. Famous landscape architect Jens Jensen designed its scenic landscape, fishing streams, and ponds. Here Hertz raised racehorses, including two Kentucky Derby winners, and hosted Gatsby-like parties for the rich and famous, including Myrna Loy, Will Rogers, and Walt Disney. Eleanor Roosevelt was once a guest too. In 1943, Hertz sold his estate to Otto Schnering, of Baby Ruth and Butterfinger fame, who transformed the grounds from a lush playground to the headquarters of a 10,000-acre farming operation. Old-timers still remember Schnering's six-pony hitch carrying joy-filled passengers down Main Street, the state-of-the-art livestock arena, and the trophy-winning cattle raised at Curtiss Farm.

In 1907, five years before Arizona's statehood, Walter Gist Tolleson and his wife, Alethea, chose the dry Arizona Territory for their sick son. In 1910, they purchased and later subdivided 160 acres just 10 miles from a young settlement known as Phoenix. And in 1912, the town of Tolleson was born. By the 1940s and 1950s, the community had become the "Vegetable Center of the World." The area that was once an agricultural mecca is now divided by suburban sprawl, but Tolleson's original spirit remains. It is bustling with growing schools and industry, as well as world-class sports, shopping, and entertainment facilities, all surrounding a 6-square-mile community with small-town pride. That inexhaustible spirit continues to make Tolleson one of the greatest places in the country to live.

Auburn, the county seat of Placer County, was founded during the Gold Rush in 1848. Unlike many such towns in the Mother Lode, Auburn has remained a vibrant and growing town ever since. This city's relevance since the initial influx of gold seekers is due in part to its location at a nexus of transportation routes, both old and new. Halfway between San Francisco and Reno and at an elevation of just over 1,000 feet--above the fog and below the snow--Auburn is a very attractive place to live. Furthermore, it is a place with sincere respect for its roots, as evidenced by its restored old town, preserved courthouse building, and other historic structures throughout town.

In the early part of the 20th century, Staten Island experienced an influx of Greek immigrants drawn to America by the promise of abundant opportunities. They settled in the farms of New Springville and Bulls Head and in the busy life of Port Richmond. Staten Island's Greek Community highlights traditional aspects of Greek culture and exults in the Americanization, accomplishments, and contributions of this group. The historic images in this book capture familiar scenes such as Greek farms and roadside stands overflowing with succulent vegetables, truck farmers venturing into Manhattan to bring their produce to the Washington Market, and the Candy Kitchen in Port Richmond.

The history of Atlantic is rooted in the story of unrelenting entrepreneur Franklin H. Whitney. His passion inspired a strong and enterprising breed of men who embraced his vision and settled in the lush hills and valleys of Cass County, Iowa, in the decade following the close of the Civil War. The railroad provided the impetus for rapid growth and prosperity, and Whitney's vision of a new city became a reality when his recommendation for a depot site was approved. Within six days, Whitney's agent, Thomas Miller, had built the first house from which Whitney ordered furrows plowed to the railroad grading. Atlantic was thus born. The town grew rapidly, and by 1869 civic and social organizations, churches, newspapers, banks, schools, and businesses were thriving. Atlantic also had its share of shady characters, outlaw gangs, and disasters. The photographs and stories in this book provide a glimpse into the lives of Atlantic's intrepid developers and the city they established in the valley of the Nishnabotna.

Lincoln, Nebraska's capital, grew from 45,000 to 55,000 residents in the years 1910-1925. The state's second-largest city, Lincoln was also home to Nebraska's second-largest African American community--a "small town" within the midwestern city. Local race relations were a study in contradictions. Public education and residential neighborhoods were relatively integrated; employment and social institutions were increasingly restricted. Within this setting, a laborer named John Johnson--a native of Lincoln and son of a black Civil War veteran--produced remarkable images as an itinerant photographer of the Lincoln scene, especially of its black community. Johnson left very little written record, so knowledge is fragmentary of his working techniques and of his collaborators or assistants. But his visual legacy takes people through the streets, onto the front porches, and into the backyards and living rooms of a vibrant community.

Hiltons is located in the southwest corner of Virginia and was named for the Reverend Samuel Hilton, who moved to the region from North Carolina in 1795. In the 1880s, Hiltons became a vital link for goods being transported both to and from the region when the railroad was constructed from Bristol to Appalachia. U.S. Highway 58 winds through Hiltons to Virginia Beach, providing many miles of scenic travel on what was, for many years, an important transportation route. The Hiltons area is blessed with natural beauty, including the scenic Clinch Mountains, a part of the Appalachian chain, and the lazy flowing north fork of the Holston River. Hiltons is home to the world-renowned Carter family of country music fame and is the location of the Carter Family Museum and Fold, which continues to provide old-time country music entertainment.