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Despite Marco Island's common distinction as the largest of Florida's Ten Thousand Islands, there are only 12 square miles of land upon which to wander - making the enormity of its history all the more remarkable.

Marco Island projects prominently from Florida's mainland at the peninsula's southwestern fringe, where the waters of the Everglades and the Gulf of Mexico commingle. Its tropical climate, verdant landscape, unique topography, and abundant wildlife sustained prehistoric Native American cultures for centuries. The first pioneer settlers arrived in 1870, carving out a niche on the harsh Florida frontier. Bustling villages soon sprang up on the island, bolstered by strong leaders and economies centered around farming and fishing. The crash of Florida's land boom, along with the Great Depression, devastating hurricanes, and a series of failed developments, ultimately stunted the island's growth. Most of Marco Island was sold to the Deltona Corporation in 1964, which transformed the island into a place its early residents might find unrecognizable.

While it may be hundreds of years younger than its Italian namesake, Naples, Florida, has an exciting history all its own!

Naples was not much more than a bend in the road in the 1940s, but by 1950, its beautiful beaches and balmy weather had been rediscovered, and development and tourism became the city's lifeblood. Although Hurricane Donna struck Naples in 1960, the building boom continued, and by the late 1970s, few undeveloped areas remained, culminating in 1972 for the development of a new gulf-front luxury community called Pelican Bay. More than 200 images offer insight into this rarely chronicled period of Naples' history, including seldom-seen historic photographs from the archives of the Naples Daily News (formerly the Collier County News) and vintage postcards from the collection of Nina Heald Webber.

When fearless and resourceful frontier women settled in Tampa Bay, they paved the way for dauntless suffragettes and the evolution of the modern woman.

Bay area suffragettes Eleanor Collier McWilliams Chamberlain, Elizabeth Robins, Julia Harrison Norris, and Elizabeth Askew fought tirelessly for the 19th Amendment and contributed to the evolving institutions of the 20th century that began to give women a voice--the woman's club, garden club, and welfare league. Covering the gamut from the Rosie Riveter types in the embodiment of prize-winning welder Margaret Clark Miller to the courageous female athletes such as Olympians Babe Didrikson Zaharias and Brooke Bennett and the first women council members and mayors of Tampa Bay area towns, perspectives were evolving. From the plight of women farm workers, Depression-era factory labor, and the changing world of women's work, Trailblazing Women of Tampa Bay offers a glimpse into the lives of female war heroes, entrepreneurs, and risk takers.

Madonna Jervis Wise is a lifelong educator, having served as an administrator in three large Florida school districts. Wise's first college degree was in history, and her most endeared area of research continues to be local history and genealogy. Wise volunteers with Tampa Bay area libraries and museums and does several presentations annually. Publications have included curriculum, 11 previous books, and regular columns for local newspapers.

Florida's swamps and sands hide a rich history and strange stories abound. Whether you live in the state or just have a fascination with its unique background these are stories to surprise and fascinate.

Florida has a history as diverse as its residents. And much of that is still hidden. Since the arrival of the Spanish in 1513, the state has played host to strange stories. A heartbroken senator entered a mental institution over unrequited love for an heiress. Thousands of British pilots trained in flight schools across the state. And the true, and darker, story of Pocahontas is linked with the "first barbecue." Author and historian James C. Clark unearths a history hidden beneath swamps and sand for years.

The Florida Keys have witnessed all kinds of historical events, from the dramatic and the outrageous to the tragic and the comic.

In the nineteenth century, uncompromising individuals fought duels and plotted political upsets. During the Civil War, a company of "Key West Avengers" escaped their Union-occupied city to join the Confederacy by sailing through the Bahamas. In the early twentieth century, black Bahamians founded a town of their own, while railway engineers went up against the U.S. Navy in a bid to complete the Overseas Railroad. When Prohibition came to the Keys, one defiant woman established a rum running empire that dominated South Florida. Join Laura Albritton and Jerry Wilkinson as they delve into tales of treasure hunters, developers, exotic dancers, determined preservationists and more from the colorful history of the Florida Keys.

African Americans have made rich contributions to Florida throughout its history in all avenues of public and private life, from education, to business, to politics, a keystone of which was the ability to own and sell property. Author Jada Wright-Greene showcases this legacy through historic photographs of black American's homes, detailing the lives of the people who lived in them through engaging narrative.

The first orange groves, planted in St. Augustine in the 1500s by Ponce de León, were the precursor to what would become an integral part of Florida's identity.

Orange groves slowly spread across the state, inspiring horticultural and manufacturing ingenuity. Discover the story behind Deland's eccentric "citrus wizard'? Lue Gim Gong, the rise and fall of smuggler Jesse Fish and the silver-tongued politician William J. Howey, who made his fortune selling plots of groveland through the 1920s. Celebrate the heyday of orange tourism and the farmers who weathered freezes, floods and citrus greening. Join author Erin Thursby as she explores the history of the Sunshine State's most famous crop.

The Great Depression came early to St. Augustine with the end of the Florida land boom in 1926, followed by the stock market collapse in 1929.

Hotels closed, a major bank failed, subdivisions folded, and tourism was reduced to a trickle. The city's main employer, the Florida East Coast Railway, went into receivership in 1931, and public works projects sought to bring relief to the unemployed. The economy slowly improved toward the end of the 1930s, but it was World War II that brought economic recovery to the town. Local hotels were taken over for military training, and servicemen on leave from nearby military bases flooded the town, bringing prosperity once again to the Ancient City.

Clearwater, situated on Florida's Gulf Coast, is a progressive city that is rife with history and known for its breathtaking landscape.

Early settlers, which included the Timucuan, Calusa, and Apalachee tribes, had plentiful fresh springs along its shore, and called the area "Pocotopaug,'? meaning Clear Water Harbor. After Florida had been seceded by the Spanish, early developers and speculators drew tourists and new residents touting Clearwater as a resort community with a comfortable climate. Opportunity and adventure brought many pioneering families, citrus farmers, railroad barons, and land developers to the area, and today, Clearwater is a locality that continues to move forward while preserving its distinct past.Images of America: Clearwateris a unique collection of photographs and facts that brings the history of this thriving city to life. Photographs culled from a variety of sources, including the Clearwater Historical Society and Hillsborough County Public Library's archives, showcase the people, places, and events that have contributed to the foundation of this special Florida community. Readers can take a visual journey to the unincorporated town of yesteryear to see how the "father of Clearwater'? James Stevens, Rev. C.S. Reynolds, and Henry Plant's grand hotel, the Belleview Biltmore, turned Clearwater into a prosperous city.

Does the restless ghost of a murder victim haunt a Gulfport home? Does a doomed pirate search for his lost treasure at John's Pass? Are sea captains and Civil War soldiers still combing the area, years after their deaths?

With wit and style, the Queen of Haunts, Deborah Frethem, calls upon years of experience as the general manager and guide of Tampa Bay Ghost Tours to present legends of sinister deeds and whispers of the past from Florida's haunted peninsula.

Put on your life vest and head out for this exciting, entertaining history of Florida's most-fascinating smugglers!

Think you're a smuggler? With that box of Cuban cigars or those unclaimed duty-free souvenirs from last summer's trip to Paris? Untaxed and untraced commerce-call it contraband-is a trillion-dollar-per-year global business. New technologies to discover and curb smuggling are met by equally well-equipped perpetrators, determined to stay below the radar.

With its long coastline, hundreds of remote landing strips and airports clogged with sun-seeking tourists, Florida is a superhighway of smuggling. It is easy to move illegal goods like weapons, drugs, slaves, exotic birds and flowers; all while avoiding the best efforts of U.S. and international customs authorities.

Who does this smuggling? Well one Florida governor and the wife of another, for starters. Hardscrabble commercial fishermen, Spanish explorers, Mafia mobsters, crew chiefs for fruit pickers, respected attorneys, just about everybody in Florida is a smuggler.

Smuggling touches every major episode in Florida's history; it's discovery and settlement, the Seminole Wars , and the Civil War were shaped by smugglers. The state's repeated land booms-including today's-are heavily influenced by smuggler profits. Today's business economy is warped by the manipulation of smugglers laundering their profits.

Stan Zimmerman means neither to vilify nor glorify these entrepreneurs. Nor does he intend to leave any stoned unturned or suitcase unopened. With stories of drug runners and prostitute pushers alongside the exploits and follies of Florida's elite, we are able to see why throughout its long history, Florida has always been a true smuggler's paradise.

The Miami River has proudly served its inhabitants since hunter gatherer days and continues today.

Although the Miami River was originally just 4.5 miles in length, it has been a robust working river since the incorporation of Miami in 1896. With a volume of trade exceeding $4 billion annually, the Miami River has been central to the story of Miami for thousands of years. Native Miamians lived along the river for millennia and used it as their ""expressway,"" as well as their source for food and water. The riverbanks have been home to exotic animals, Jesuit missions, slave plantations, Army forts, Julia Tuttle (the ""Mother of Miami""), and a grand Gilded Age hotel. Even with the post-World War II rise of suburbia and the flight of residents away from the center of the city, the river has remained busy. Today, with a renaissance in central Miami, there has been a significant increase in appreciation for the role of the river in this revival and in the rich history of the city.

Ghost stories from America's oldest city have never been so creepy, fun, and full of mystery!

The haunted history of St. Augustine comes to life--even when the main players are dead. Visit the Castillo de San Marcos to help a headless soldier look for a lost wedding ring. Or spot the ghostly boy dashing among the headstones at Tolomato Cemetery. And if you visit the St. Augustine Lighthouse, beware of the mischievous spirits who have been known to tie visitors' shoelaces together! Dive into this spooky chapter book for suspenseful tales of bumps in the night, paranormal investigations, and the unexplained; just be sure to keep the light on.

The Ocala National Forest, founded on November 24, 1908, by Pres. Theodore Roosevelt, is the oldest national forest in the eastern continental United States.

The forest is one of Central Florida's last remaining expanses of forested lands with magnificent palms, towering live oaks, and the largest sand pine scrub population in the world, as well as containing a number of major natural springs, including Salt Springs, Silver Glen, Alexander, and Juniper Run. In addition to wilderness areas for visitors seeking simplicity and solitude, the forest has visitor centers, nature trails, and a section of the Florida Trail.Images of America: Ocala National Forestis filled with fascinating stories and exciting facts on the history of the steamboats, logging, trails, movie sets, Cracker cowboys, modern conservation efforts, and more.

Indian River County is an idyllic vacation spot on Florida's east coast, not far south of Cape Canaveral. Known as part of the state's famed "Treasure Coast," many are unaware of the deep and fascinating history this area played in the development of the Sunshine State. Also lost among its visitors and residents are the chilling stories of the hauntings that accompany this rich history. It is here that a man named Waldo still looks after his family and properties, six decades after his death. Or a retired preacher is seen digging up his hidden treasure, days after he died .

A fascinating journey through the history of Jacksonville, Florida with postcard images and anecdotes from the locals who experienced it.

Jacksonville's Consolidation of 1967marked the end of individual towns in Duval County, but it established Jacksonville, all 840 square miles of it, as the largest city in the continental United States.

Collectors and authors Andrew Bachmann and Maria E. Mediavilla, with the help of the historical society's Emily Lisska and local historian Dr. Wayne Wood, share their personal postcard collections and take readers on a captivating journey through Jacksonville's history. Featured are postcards that show the 1920s real estate boom and transportation across the St. Johns River. View postcards that document the ever-changing Hemming Plaza, a metamorphosis that continues even today. This second volume of vintage postcard images will give readers a deeper insight into Jacksonville's past and the great importance of historic preservation.

Jacksonville Revisitedis a visual and written documentation of how the city has grown and developed since the introduction of postcard communication. The changes in commerce and landscape are illustrated and preserved through postcards.