American History Books

Berlin focuses on the townspeople-the doctors and merchants, artists and artisans, poets and painters. The town has three population centers: East Berlin is separated from Kensington and Berlin by a highway and a line of hills, and each of these sections has retained its villagelike atmosphere. The book highlights the diversity of Berlin's religious community and the spirit of ecumenicalism that spread throughout its neighborhoods. Individuals who appear include the Leatherman, a gentle person who traveled through Berlin in ages past, and the Goat Man, the personification of the kind neighbor. Dr. Willard Wallace said it very well, "Berlin is just Berlin . . . people of many different religious and ethnic backgrounds who live successfully together."

A fascinating documentation of Fair Lawn and its complex and interesting history, featuring vintage and rare images.

Although its land had been settled by Dutch, English, and French homesteaders as early as the seventeenth century, the borough of Fair Lawn was not established until 1924. It had been part of Saddle River Township and, before that, of New Barbadoes. As late as 1876, it was an agricultural community, home to several vegetable and fruit farms and dairies. The need to house workers in the mills of nearby Paterson led to the rapid suburban development of the town. Noted for its residents' civic volunteerism and for its history, Fair Lawn is home to eight sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places-sites such as the Cadmus House and the Dutch House-all of which are included in Fair Lawn. This book contains images of the nationally famous Radburn planned community and the construction of Memorial Park and Pool, completed entirely by volunteer efforts, beautifully combining the borough's agrarian past with the community spirit of the twentieth century. This richly detailed book is a testament to the devotion of Fair Lawn's residents to their hometown.

Step back in time and view photographs from the milestones of history of Harrodsburg.

Harrodsburg is the oldest permanent settlement west of the Allegheny Mountains and was founded in 1774 by James Harrod. Images of America: Harrodsburg covers the city limits from the late 1770s to the early 1960s and provides over 220 images from the Armstrong Collection, the Harrodsburg Historical Society, the Mercer County Public Library, and the Kentucky Historical Society. Within these pages, experience and explore Harrodsburg during the pivotal era at the beginning of the great commonwealth--from the settlement of Old Fort Harrod to the ""Saratoga of the West"" mineral springs and spas. Follow the growth, hard times, and recovery of Harrodsburg, including government and growing businesses, advancements in education, the rise of religious institutions, and local and visiting celebrities. These well-preserved photographs from entrepreneurs, grand openings, and expert news reporting allow the reader to step back in time.

Monroe Township and Jamesburg includes photographs, store receipts, old postcards, and images of early potato sacks-all of which illustrate the early development in the hamlets. Forsgate Farms, Bernarr McFadden's Physical Culture City, the Camden & Amboy Railroad, and Manalapan Lake, known today as Thompson Park Lake, are rediscovered. This book shows in detail what Jamesburg looked like at about the time it officially separated from Monroe Township, and it highlights the forgotten hamlets of Applegarth, Half Acre, Prospect Plains, Union Valley, Pleasant Grove, Pleasant Hill, Rhode Hall, Outcalt, and Texas.

Pawtuxet Valley is an introduction to the people and places of the valley, from its heyday of industrial power to its suburban evolution in the late twentieth century. Even more, it is a tribute to the many thousands who settled here and their descendants who left a legacy now being rediscovered. In this book, you will visit the Paine House, a Colonial-era tavern in Washington Village; St. Mary's Church, the oldest Roman Catholic church in Rhode Island; the annual St. Patrick's Day parade; and the many factories and mills that helped shape this exciting community.

Gathered from many local archives, including the Piersaull Collection, the rare and previously unpublished images presented here transport us to Hyde Park's past.

With Hyde Park on the Hudson, Margaret Logan Marquez chronicles the town's fascinating history from 1821 to 1962. We see farmers and their families, wealthy estate owners, ice boating on the river, and local churches, businesses, and schools. Through this exciting pictorial history, we experience the golden era of the region, when the popular and the powerful seemed to be playing the same tune. The outstanding example of this social harmony was the Roosevelt family, who turned this way of elegant small-town living into a national goal and a world dream. The revival of Dutch Colonial architecture brought about by President Roosevelt, the restoration of the Italian gardens at Vanderbilt, and the recent volunteer efforts to restore the stonewalls along the Post Road are testimonies to a past that is still living.

-George A. Gray

Retired Chairman and President, The Gray Printing Company President, Fostoria Area Historical Society

"Paul Krupp was a friend of mine. He may not have known it, but I knew his writings very well. I read all of his material that he had printed in our local Fostoria Review Times. He would write about an old neighborhood of his, and then take a "walk" down the street, without missing a house, and tell you who lived there, and the makeup of each respective family. . . . this gives me the opportunity of speaking of the great admiration I had for him. If Paul Krupp wrote something, it was true."

-Mel Murray, former owner, WFOB Curator emeritus, Fostoria, Ohio Glass Heritage Gallery

"I thoroughly enjoyed reading Paul Krupp's columns in the Fostoria Reveiw Times when they appeared. His recounting the history of Fostoria in his columns explained the past and also helped to explain why some present situations exist, which was very beneficial as the mayor."

-Barbara L. Marley, Mayor, 1990-95

"The always interesting, informative columns of Paul Krupp constitute a community treasure. Collecting and publishing them will provide a wonderful addition to the historical record of Fostoria."

-James E. Bailey, Mayor, 1996-99

"Paul H. Krupp's Fostoria, Ohio book is a great historic account of a great city. By compiling historical articles that appreared for over twelve years in the local newspaper, this book captures the essence of the wonderful way of life in Fostoria, Ohio. It is a must read for every Fostorian as well as all Americans."

-John Davoli, Mayor, 2000-

Flowing 75 miles from Florida's Lake Okeechobee to the Gulf of Mexico, historic Caloosahatchee River has always been critically important to the region it traverses.

As it makes its way past farm fields, quiet hamlets, and urban downtowns, manatees graze in its warm shallows, bass lurk in its shaded oxbows, and alligators sun on its banks. Over the years, the river has attracted luminaries as well as colorful characters. Thomas Edison had a Caloosahatchee riverfront home, as did Henry Ford and telegrapher George Shulz, who created Florida's tarpon-fishing industry. Without the Caloosahatchee, the Southwest Florida that people know today would not exist. Without people, however, the river known as the Caloosahatchee would not exist either, since it was human effort and engineering that connected the river to the lake and made it navigable--changes that sometimes spelled disaster.

New Britain is a treasure trove of information and memories that will be a source of reminiscence and recollection for older people and a voyage of discovery for the young.

New Britain was once known as the ""Hardware Capital of the World,"" and it is this that has made the city famous. But as well as its rich industrial history, New Britain has a diverse and dynamic cultural heritage. As its name suggests, the town was originally settled by people of British descent, but in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century it became a haven for immigrants fleeing oppression or economic hardship in Ireland, Germany, Sweden, Italy, Russia, Lithuania, Armenia, the Ukraine, Poland, and Greece. The photographs that make up this fascinating visual history bring life to the changes that took place in New Britain between 1920 and 1970. They show how much the city has developed and evolved as well as providing an intimate glimpse of the daily life of New Britain's many ethnic communities. Of particular interest are the images of women which together paint a vivid picture of their unique contribution to the city and its heritage.

From Zane's Trace to John Glenn, the 200 year history of this quintessential Midwestern town is presented in photographs.

""I've always believed that New Concord and Muskingum College are the center of the universe, because if you get your start here, you can go anywhere."" This quote from John Herschel Glenn Jr. is the perfect summation of a wonderfully Midwestern town that produced one of the great American citizens of all time. The Village of New Concord, founded in 1828, had humble enough beginnings. Over the course of the next century and a half, however, the growth of the entire country was played out on New Concord's stage as residents faced a series of revolutionary frontiers: Zane's Trace, the National Road, U.S. Route 40, Interstate 70, and finally, space. New Concord, like the rest of the country, struggled through two world wars, the Great Depression, and social turmoil. Unlike the rest of the country, it also produced a hero.

From the Portage Path and prohibition to water recreation and Portage State Park , journey through over 300 years of Portage Lakes's history in this photographic tale.

Portage Lakes is a unique area that lies within the boundaries of Coventry Township and the cities of Green and New Franklin. Within the last century, the communities have gradually moved from agrarian in nature to those of classical developing suburbs. Portage Lakes is rich in history that connects it to the Ohio Erie and Pennsylvania/Ohio Canals, Delaware Indians, Portage Path, the Ohio Department of Parks and Recreation, Portage Lakes State Park, Connecticut land grants, the Western Reserve, Prohibition, coal mining, and water-sport recreation.

In rare and historic images, the sotry of Oak Bluff comes to life.

Oak Bluffs, originally incorporated in 1880 as Cottage City, is located on the northeast shore of Martha's Vineyard. Oak Bluffs: The Cottage City Years on Martha's Vineyard traces this historically significant town from its early years as the site of a renowned religious camp meeting to its incorporation as Cottage City and later as Oak Bluffs. Using historic images, it captures the religious and social spirit of the community and the fun times of promenading on the bluffs, bathing at the beach, playing croquet, and celebrating with parades and illuminations. This book evokes memories of a bygone era: the canvas Tabernacle and tents in Wesleyan Grove, the Sea View House and Martha's Vineyard Railroad in Oak Bluffs, the horse-drawn trolley, and the Martha's Vineyard Summer Institute in the Vineyard Highlands. Also captured is the remarkable preservation of Oak Bluffs, as seen in early photographs of its parks, cottages, and buildings, such as the Tabernacle, Union Chapel, and Arcade.