New Book Releases

Organized in 1819, Meigs County rests in the Appalachian foothills of southeastern Ohio along the beautiful Ohio River.

The land's deep reservoirs of coal and salt provided early residents work in mines and in shipping the goods via steamboat and railroad. Local communities also nurtured talented scholars like James McHenry Jones and poets and writers such as James Edwin Campbell and Ambrose Bierce, as well as Dr. Brewster Higley VI, whose poetry inspired the American classic "Home on the Range." The county is home to Ohio's oldest standing courthouse in Chester and to Pomeroy, the only town in America with no cross streets. Join historians Jordan and Calee Pickens as they recount times of prosperity and hardship that have been engrained on the timeline of Meigs County.

Explore the history of the City of Murals through the eyes of those who lived it. Perfect for fans of Ohio and American frontier history.

Beginning as a military fort on the banks of the Ohio River, Steubenville powered into the twentieth century with steam and steel. Fierce battles, raging fires and tragedy on the river could not deter this indefatigable community, and it emerged as an industrial and cultural beacon for the Ohio Valley.

With warmth and humor, Dr. John R. Holmes chronicles the fascinating history and the colorful characters of Steubenville. Brimming with tales of lavish theatres, local brews, famous crooners, and personalities such as spunky Mother Beatty and legendary steamboat captain George O'Neil, this collection of vignettes offers a glimpse into a vibrant city and its proud people.

Walk the brick-paved streets of German Village, one of the capital city's most vital and historically prominent neighborhoods. Beginning as a haven for German settlers in the mid-1800s, the neighborhood, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is renowned for its preserved architecture and its hearty citizenry, such as Max Visocnik, who gave us Max & Erma's in 1958, and the Schmidt family, proprietors of the famed Schmidt's Restaurant and Sausage Haus--a German Village institution for more than one hundred years. Join the German Village Society's Jody Graichen as she recounts the struggles of the German immigrants, the rise of the neighborhood and the efforts to preserve a Columbus jewel in this collection of columns previously published in ThisWeek Community Newspapers, with a foreword by Dr. Wayne P. Lawson, The Ohio State University professor and director emeritus of the Ohio Arts Council.