Michigan

Things get made in Michigan. Consult a schematic of Detroit history to connect the Ford dynasty and the myriad auto companies that followed to the Willow Run assembly line churning out  B-24 bombers during WWII. But this ingenuity also lives in the crispness of Vernor’s Ginger Ale and the handcrafted perfection of Pewabic Pottery. From the postwar idyll of Detroit’s Grand River and Greenfield neighborhood to the ghostly trickster at the capitol in Lansing, flip the switch on Michigan history with our Michigan history books. [View all Michigan books]
9 products
Michigan POW Camps in World War II
Michigan POW Camps in World War II
$21.99
Yankee Air Museum
Yankee Air Museum
$24.99
Remembering Michigan's Civil War Soldiers
Remembering Michigan's Civil War Soldiers
$24.99
Detroit's Historic Fort Wayne
Detroit's Historic Fort Wayne
$24.99
Detroit in World War I
Detroit in World War I
$24.99
Detroit in World War II
Detroit in World War II
$21.99
Michigan and the Civil War
Michigan and the Civil War
$21.99
Lenawee County and the Civil War
Lenawee County and the Civil War
$21.99
Hamtramck
Hamtramck
$24.99

Michigan POW Camps in World War II

9781625858375

$21.99 Save Liquid error (snippets/product-template line 248): Computation results in '-Infinity'%

During World War II, Michigan became a temporary home to six thousand German and Italian POWs.


At a time of homefront labor shortages, they picked fruit in Berrien County, harvested sugar beets in the Thumb, cut pulpwood in the Upper Peninsula and maintained parks and other public spaces in Detroit. The work programs were not flawless and not all of the prisoners were cooperative, but many of the men established enduring friendships with their captors. Author Gregory Sumner tells the story of these detainees and the ordinary Americans who embodied our highest ideals, even amid a global war.

Michigan POW Camps in World War II

Yankee Air Museum

9781467129046

$24.99 Save Liquid error (snippets/product-template line 248): Computation results in '-Infinity'%
The Willow Run Bomber Plant opened in 1941 and produced over 8,600 B-24 Liberator bombers, a key element of the Allied arsenal in World War II. In 1981, a group of aviation enthusiasts established the Yankee Air Museum about a mile away from the original bomber plant. The museum built a substantial collection of flyable and static aircraft and aviation artifacts, many of which were destroyed in a 2004 fire. Despite this loss, the museum remained open in temporary facilities while considering options for a permanent home. The museum then bought the last 144,000 square feet of the original bomber plant with a goal of renovating this facility into a state-of-the-art museum in the early 2020s. Yankee Air Museum covers some of the people and events at the center of Southeast Michigan's aviation history.
Yankee Air Museum

Remembering Michigan's Civil War Soldiers

9781467113458

$24.99 Save Liquid error (snippets/product-template line 248): Computation results in '-Infinity'%
When the 1st Michigan Volunteer Infantry regiment arrived in Washington, DC, President Lincoln exclaimed: "Thank God for Michigan!" The state raised more than 90,000 men to serve during the Civil War, and 69 of them received the Medal of Honor. Notable Michiganders include Gens. Israel Richardson, Orlando Poe, Alpheus Williams, Orlando Willcox, and George Hartsuff, as well as "The Boy General," George Armstrong Custer, and Officer Norman Hall, who was stationed at Fort Sumter when the war began. Featuring images of the 4th Michigan Cavalry, which captured Confederate president Jefferson Davis at the war's end, and never-before-published photographs of Wolverine soldiers, Images of America: Remembering Michigan's Civil War Soldiers highlights hundreds of Michiganians who were committed to preserving the Union.
Remembering Michigan's Civil War Soldiers

Detroit's Historic Fort Wayne

9780738551128

$24.99 Save Liquid error (snippets/product-template line 248): Computation results in '-Infinity'%
Michigan's historic Fort Wayne, located on the narrowest point of the Detroit River, is named for Revolutionary War hero Gen. "Mad" Anthony Wayne. The fort was built in the 1840s to protect Detroit from British invasion following the strife of the 1838 Patriot War in Canada. Originally constructed of earth and wood, the fortifications were rebuilt in masonry during the Civil War, but the fort has never mounted cannons, as peace came to the international border and remains to this day. Fort Wayne has served the military as a training center, home to infantry regiments, supply depot, prisoner of war camp, and major induction center. It was a source of work for the unemployed during the Great Depression, a place of confinement during the Red Scare of 1920, and home for those displaced by civil unrest in Detroit during the 1960s. The fort continues to invite people to its riverfront view, not as soldiers but as guests, to enjoy community events on its broad parade fields and to learn about those who lived, drilled, and worked there.
Detroit's Historic Fort Wayne

Detroit in World War I

9781467114691

$24.99 Save Liquid error (snippets/product-template line 248): Computation results in '-Infinity'%
World War I was the catalyst that ushered in themes that would define the 20th century: industrialization, urbanization, and the struggle for equality between social classes, gender, and race. During this time, from 1914 to 1918, Detroit was a city rapidly on the rise, with spectacular economic, industrial, and population growth. These were years when some of the city's most beautiful structures were built, when its industry practices became the international standard, and when its population exploded with new, hopeful emigrants from across the globe. The war provided a unifying theme to a city struggling to define itself and caused its people to come together in new and unexpected ways to support the war effort at home and abroad, often stepping into unfamiliar roles outside of societal norms. Detroit in World War I offers a visual exploration of a city and a people caught in a time of dynamic change--from the men who served the cause to the communities they left behind--who rose to the challenge splendidly and helped create one of the 20th century's most remarkable and vibrant cities.
Detroit in World War I

Detroit in World War II

9781467119474

$21.99 Save Liquid error (snippets/product-template line 248): Computation results in '-Infinity'%
When President Roosevelt called for the country to be the great "Arsenal of Democracy," Detroit helped turn the tide against fascism with its industrial might. Locals were committed to the cause, putting careers and personal ambitions on hold. Factories were retooled from the ground up. Industrialist Henry Ford, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, aviator Charles Lindbergh, legendary boxer Joe Louis, future baseball Hall of Famer Hank Greenberg and the real-life Rosie the Riveters all helped drive the city that was "forging thunderbolts" for the front lines. With a panoramic narrative, author Gregory D. Sumner chronicles the wartime sacrifices, contributions and everyday life of the Motor City.
Detroit in World War II

Michigan and the Civil War

9781609491734

$21.99 Save Liquid error (snippets/product-template line 248): Computation results in '-Infinity'%

Michigan undertook a rapid and robust response to Lincoln's call to arms during the Civil War and in many of its great battles. Read the much overlooked history in this volume.

With lively narration, telling anecdotes, and vivid battlefield accounts, Michigan and the Civil War tells the story as never before of Michigan's heroic contributions to saving the Union. Beginning with Michigan's antebellum period and anti-slavery heritage, the book proceeds through Michigan's rapid response to President Lincoln's call to arms, its participation in each of the War's greatest battles, portrayal of its most interesting personalities, and the concluding triumph as Custer corners Lee at Appomattox and the 4th Michigan Cavalry apprehends the fleeing Jeff Davis. Based on thorough and up-to-date research, the result is surprising in its breadth, sometimes awe-inspiring, and always a revelation given how contributions by the Great Lake State in the Civil War are too often overlooked, even by its own citizens.

Michigan and the Civil War

Lenawee County and the Civil War

9781467135528

$21.99 Save Liquid error (snippets/product-template line 248): Computation results in '-Infinity'%
Lenawee County was a hotbed for antislavery activities in the 1830s that translated into strong Union support in April 1861. Adrian, Tecumseh and Hudson sent hundreds of soldiers to fight and die in the Civil War. The Emancipation Proclamation propelled nearly fifty of the county's African American residents to take up arms to preserve the nation and end slavery once and for all. Captain Samuel DeGolyer, creator of the Lenawee Guard, escaped Confederate prison in Richmond. On the homefront, residents like Laura and Charles Haviland sheltered fugitive slaves and even donated land to help families start anew. Join author Ray Lennard as he explores the events of the war that changed Lenawee County and the nation forever.
Lenawee County and the Civil War

Hamtramck

9780738551418

$24.99 Save Liquid error (snippets/product-template line 248): Computation results in '-Infinity'%
With a population made up overwhelmingly of Polish immigrants and descendents of Poles, Hamtramck was especially hardhit by the impact of World War II. Most of the city's residents had family contacts with the old country. When Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, Hamtramckans reacted with shock and anger--and with a determination to see fascism defeated and Poland freed. Thousands of Hamtramckans fought in the war, hundreds died. And those who remained at home dealt with the wartime life as best they could. Hamtramck: The World War II Years presents a portrait of the city at war. It tells and shows how Hamtramckans--of all ages, races, and backgrounds--coped with shortages, the threat of attack, and the everpresent dread that the next telegram may bring news of a soldier's death. It was a challenging time that demanded strength, dedication, and sacrifice. Hamtramckans stood up and delivered all that was required--and more.
Hamtramck