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Monmouth County's past encompasses more than just sandy beaches and rural farm life.

George Washington fought at the Battle of Monmouth as the region played a pivotal role in the birth of the republic. Henry Hudson anchored off Monmouth's shores in 1609 and was the first European to meet with the Lenape Native Americans there. A gun barrel of the USS New Jersey, the most decorated battleship in American history, was painstakingly transported to Battery Lewis, a fortification built along the county's highlands to protect New York Harbor during World War II. Bruce Springsteen elevated Asbury Park and the Stone Pony into a national music destination, and he remains the unofficial poet laureate of the Jersey Shore. Authors Rick Geffken and Muriel J. Smith highlight compelling stories of the seaside county's four-hundred-year history.

The stories of the Revolutionary soldiers of Bergen County as told by Revolutionary War expert Tood W. Braisted.

Bergen County saw much of the American Revolution from its own doorstep. Close to British-occupied New York City, this corner of New Jersey was divided by the Revolution. Some people were staunch Loyalists or Patriots, in disagreement with their families and neighbors. Others wavered or remained neutral, while others changed their minds as was expedient. In the end, the years of hostilities led to massive damage and upheaval within the community as men either left home or stayed nearby to fight for or against secession from Great Britain.

Visit the alleys of Philadelphia's Kensington and Fishtown neighborhoods for stories from the Speakeasy War and more.

The docks and alleys of Philadelphia's riverward neighborhoods teem with forgotten stories and strange histories. In the overlooked corners of Kensington and Fishtown are the launching of the Industrial Revolution, the bizarre double suicide of the Rusk twins and the violent Cramp Shipyard strike. With a collection of his "The Rest Is History" columns from the Fishtown Star, local historian Kenneth Milano chronicles little-known tales from the Speakeasy War of 1890 to stories of seldom-recognized hometown hero Eddie Stanky, who went on to play for the 1951 New York Giants. Join Milano as he journeys into the secret history of two of the city's oldest neighborhoods.

Proudly laying claim to the title of the first town in the first state, Lewes, Delaware, has a history brimming with little-known tales of gentleman pirates, desperate acts of cannibalism and a failed British bombardment in the War of 1812.

Another attempted invasion occurred in 1853, when raucous New England fishermen intent on having a good time were repelled by residents armed with clubs and an old cannon. In 1926, the Cape Henlopen Lighthouse toppled onto the beach. With the light extinguished, bootleggers had an easier time plying their trade. On January 5, 1932, a captured rumrunner was accidentally set ablaze when an oil slick caught fire on the Lewes and Rehoboth Canal. Author Michael Morgan explores stories of impromptu presidential dips, charismatic preachers, German POW camps and other lost tales from the history of Lewes.

The Garden State After the Great War

Post–World War I life was dramatically different for New Jersey than it had been prior to the war. By 1920, the war was over for the Europeans, but it was still on for America until President Harding signed a paper in a local living room after a golf game. Harding’s out-of-wedlock child was born in Asbury Park, and Atlantic City began the beauty contest that would become Miss America. Prohibition hit what was an unwilling state, and the governor tried to keep New Jersey liquor legally flowing, while bootleggers and rumrunners made illegal liquor generally available. Joseph Bilby and Harry Ziegler detail this frenetic era in the Garden State.

Author Dale Richard Perelman tells the tragic story of the 1978 murders and the mystery surrounding them.

In the summer of 1978, a mother and her four-year-old were stabbed to death in the quiet town of New Castle. Police suspected the husband, Lou Kadunce, but were unable to find either a weapon or a motive. Sitting in a Lawrence County jail in 1981, convicted serial killer Michael Atkinson accused Frank Costal - a carny, petty thief and Satanist - of having an affair with the Kadunce husband and participating in the murder. A series of intense trials ensued as Costal was convicted of the homicides and a jury found the husband not guilty. Questions surrounding the case gripped the region and grabbed headlines in the Pittsburgh Press.