New Book Releases

From a one-horse farming town to the thriving winter residence of the Ringling Brothers Circus and flocks of snowbirds.

Sarasota has more than its fair share of unusual stories and intriguing individuals. Learn about the illustrious John Ringling, from the details of his daily breakfast to the fifty-five year saga that determined his final resting place. Find out the real identity of A NO. 1, the King of Hobos, who spent a night in Sarasota's finest hotel. Witness the most memorable wedding in Sarasota- between two gorillas. Join longtime resident and historian Jeff LaHurd as he chronicles the fascinating, forgotten stories that made Sarasota the exceptional city it is today.

The history of North Carolina's Outer Banks is as ancient and mesmerizing as its beaches. Much has been documented, but many stories were lost--until now.

Join local author and historian Sarah Downing as she reveals a past of the Outer Banks eroded by time and tides. Revel in the nostalgic days of the Carolina Beach Pavilion, stand in the shadows of windmills that once lined the coast and learn how native islanders honor those aviation giants, the Wright brothers. Downing's vignettes adventure through windswept dunes, dive deep in search of the lost ironclad the "Monitor" and lament the decline of the diamondback terrapin. Break out the beach chair and let your mind soak in the salty bygone days of these famed coastal extremities.

Join author Dr. Rick Simmons as he recalls the hidden history and legends of The Grand Strand in South Carolina.

Though today South Carolina's Grand Strand is known primarily for tourism, Hidden History of the Grand Strand examines the area's often-overlooked stories spanning more than five hundred years, from the lost Spanish flagship Capitana in 1526 to the German U-boats that reportedly roamed the Intracoastal Waterway with the help of local collaborators during World War II. Along the way, learn about the hidden history of the now-vanished villages of La Grange and Lafayette, the great canal on North Island and the wrecks of the Freeda A. Wyley, the USS Harvest Moon and the City of Richmond, as well as the real stories behind the legends of Old Gunn Church, the illegal casino at the Ocean Forest Hotel, the U-boat pens on the Waccamaw River and Drunken Jack Island. This work presents a unique look at the area, its history and the legends that enthrall visitors to this day.

A collection of hidden tales that explore George Washington's home base of Northern Virginia.

Had General George Washington lived anywhere other than Mount Vernon, Virginia, Washington, D.C., might not exist. In this exciting collection of hidden tales from Northern Virginia, author Charles Mills highlights the important role that this region played in our nation's history from colonial to modern times. Read about the Rebel blockade of the Potomac River, the imprisonment of German POWs at super-secret Fort Hunt during World War II and the building of the Pentagon on the same site and in the same configuration as Civil War, era Fort Runyon. Meet Annandale's "bunny man," who inspired one of the country's wildest and scariest urban legends; learn about the slaves in Alexandria's notorious slave pens; and witness suffragists being dragged from the White House lawn and imprisoned in the Occoquan workhouse. Mills masterfully relates these and other colorful tales of the people and events that left their imprints on Northern Virginia and the nation.

Author Nelson Harris delves into the annals of history to uncover these marvelous and mostly unknown stories of the Star City of the South.

How did a Roanoke neighbor's secret upend North Carolina politics and why did a weeding scandal in Big Lick make front-page headlines in New York? These questions and many more are answered in this exciting volume of hidden stories and forgotten tales from the Star City. Discover why a Roanoker was found frozen in the North Atlantic and what Mother's Day crime and trial shocked the city in 1949. Meet the Black Cardinals, a semi-pro African American baseball team that played in the 1930s and '40s, and find out how a fistfight at Shenandoah Life helped save the company.

Although many bluesmen began leaving the Magnolia State in the early twentieth century to pursue fortune and fame up north, many others stayed home.

These musicians remained rooted to the traditions of their land, which came to define a distinctive playing style unique to Mississippi. They didn't simply play the blues, they lived it. Travel through the hallowed juke joints and cotton fields with author Roger Stolle as he recounts the history of Mississippi blues and the musicians who have kept it alive. Some of these bluesmen remain to carry on this proud legacy, while others have passed on, but Hidden History of Mississippi Blues ensures none will be forgotten.

From the Lowcountry's first recorded duel to old-fashioned summers at the 'hottest spot in town", these pages will captivate you with stories of people, events and places that have all but vanished from memory.

Find out the real history behind some of Charleston's beloved mansions and learn about the early plantations and their owners. Join the authors as they relate the riots and romance, the preservation and politics - and even a ghost story - from Charleston's hidden history.

The lesser-known tales of the personalities who shaped the capital's past are unearthed from the archives by Richmond Guide writer Walter S. Griggs Jr.

The course of Richmond's history as it emerged from the Civil War as a bustling economic powerhouse is well recorded. Yet there are some stories that have all but vanished from recollection. From the hushed whispers of an entire congregation as Robert E. Lee prayed with a slave at communion to the donation of over two hundred pigeons by fellow Richmonders to serve the war effort, these are lost vignettes of Richmond. Travel with Griggs to the bygone days of the twentieth century to test-drive the first successful automobile manufactured in Richmond, the Kline Kar, or witness the first airplane to fly over Richmond, the Gold Bug soaring over the Diamond. Hidden History of Richmond is a fascinating collection that reveals the city's forgotten but most remarkable histories.

Join author and historian Terry Ruscin as he reveals Henderson County's forgotten yet colorful history complete with its own cast of characters and historic landmarks.

Who composed a blockbuster opera a few miles from downtown Hendersonville? Who were the record-setting McCrary twins, and why were they famous? These questions and many more are answered in this exciting volume of obscured history. From James Brown's 1950s performance on Hendersonville's Main Street to the rumors of illegal distilling in Cathead, these are the tales of surreptitious cascades, log homes and unattended cemeteries. Delve into the communities of Black Bottom, Delmont and Peacock Town. Discover what lurks within the derelict buildings of the county's backcountry roads.

Join OnMilwaukee.com's Bobby Tanzilo for an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of Milwaukee's incredible past.

Sail out to the Breakwater Lighthouse, scramble up the wings of the Milwaukee Art Museum and dig up the city's roots on the corner of Water Street and Wisconsin Avenue. Seize the chance to do a little urban spelunking and explore basilicas, burial grounds and breweries. Ring the bell in the city hall tower, and take a turn around the secret indoor track at a Montessori school. No space is off limits in these untold stories of the Cream City's most familiar places and celebrated landmarks.

Author Susanne Saville explores the history of Salem, Massachusetts, shedding light on those stories which are shadowed most often by witches.

Salem, nestled along the rocky coast of Massachusetts, has long been synonymous with witches, despite efforts to emphasize other aspects of the city's rich history. In this fascinating collection of stories, author Susanne Saville sheds light on the forgotten moments of this noteworthy New England community. Discover Salem's profitable ""Age of Sail,"" the important role coffeehouses played during the American Revolution, the scandalous life of Richard Crowninshield Jr. and the unforgettable writer Nathaniel Hawthorne. These revealing stories will not leave the history of Salem in the shadows for long.

Discover the little known and unknown rich heritage of Memphis, TN.

Step inside the fascinating annals of the Bluff City's history and discover the Memphis that only few know. G. Wayne Dowdy, longtime archivist for the Memphis Public Library, examines the history and culture of the Mid-South during its most important decades. Well-known faces like Clarence Saunders, Elvis Presley and W.C. Handy are joined by some of the more obscure characters from the past, like the Memphis gangster who inspired one of William Faulkner's most famous novels, the local Boy Scout who captured German spies during World War I, the Memphis radio station that pioneered wireless broadcasting and so many more. Also included are the previously unpublished private papers and correspondence of former mayor E.H. Crump, giving us new insight and a front-row seat to the machine that shaped Tennessee politics in the twentieth century.

Hidden History of Hilton Head offers a lively array of historical tidbits and tales, focusing on people, lifeways, believe-it-or-not snippets and beloved local places.

Discover the ties that Harriet Tubman and Clara Barton had to the region and learn about the lives of oyster shuckers, root doctors, debauched ""Jack-ashores"" and many other characters in the island's rich history. From beautiful poems written by renowned locals to the songs that guided the slaves to freedom and time-tested regional recipes, author Alice Sink's collection truly encompasses the spirit of the Lowcountry.