Name: Rockville
Brand: Peerless Rockville Historic Preservation
SKU: 9781467104739
Price: 24.99 USD
Availability: InStock

Rockville

9781467104739

$24.99

As a suburb of the nation's capital in the late 1800s, Rockville was proclaimed a "peerless" place to live; its subsequent transformation into a city all its own is equally remarkable. Starting out as a tiny colonial crossroads village, it gained stature as the county seat and evolved into a town. Construction of a train line to Washington spurred suburbanization--even resort hotels. Then the automobile and post-World War II boom rapidly turned it into a full-fledged city, with much of its identity tied to the bustling Rockville Pike, a region-wide commercial mecca. As its downtown faltered, Rockville undertook a massive urban renewal makeover--but with mixed results. Along the way, luminaries such as F. Scott Fitzgerald and Thurgood Marshall figured in Rockville's story, as did an escaped slave whose autobiography inspired the influential novel Uncle Tom's Cabin. Rockville even once had an airport and a renowned mental hospital memorialized in I Never Promised You a Rose Garden. A four-time All-America City awardee, Rockville is evolving still as one of the nation's most ethnically diverse cities.

Cover image for Rockville, isbn: 9781467104739

Allentown State Hospital

9781467105125

$24.99

Allentown State Hospital, formerly known as the Homoeopathic State Hospital for the Insane at Allentown, was the first homeopathic state hospital for the treatment of the mentally ill in Pennsylvania. On October 3, 1912, under the direction of its superintendent, Dr. Henry I. Klopp, the hospital opened its doors to receiving patients. In 1930, Dr. Klopp opened a children's ward on the hospital's grounds, one of the first of its kind in the world. Built to alleviate overcrowding in the state mental health system, the hospital quickly exceeded its own occupancy. By 1954, the population of the hospital hit its peak of 2,107 patients. However, Allentown State Hospital would consistently pioneer change in the mental health system until its closure in 2010. In 1993, a dedicated group of employees created the Psychiatric Emergency Response Team (PERT) process to provide a safer response to supporting patients in crisis. By 1998, this approach helped put the spotlight on Allentown State Hospital when it became the first hospital in the United States to go seclusion free.

Hidden History of Mystic & Stonington

9781467140546

$21.99

Mystic and Stonington are quintessential seacoast villages with colorful and diverse histories that extend well beyond the wharves and former sea captains' homes. Native Americans, African Americans, immigrants and women also wove the unique story of this New England coastline. Now known for bucolic landscapes and tourist attractions, Mystic was once a workaday village that hosted thousands during annual Peace Meetings and provided groundbreaking education to deaf children. Stonington village teemed with railroad and steamship workers and passengers and was home to a women's college. Gail Braccidiferro MacDonald peels back the layers of these southeastern Connecticut coastal communities, revealing a rich history that is sometimes surprising and always intriguing.

Long Island Freemasons

9781467104791

$24.99

The first Masonic lodge in what is today Nassau and Suffolk Counties was constituted in 1793. For over 200 years, more than 70 lodges were founded and flourished in various locations from Amagansett to Great Neck. For the first time, some of the secrets of the Masonic fraternity are revealed in this book. Recovered from dusty lodge attics and closets, this selection of long-forgotten photographs and artifacts gives the readers a brief glimpse of what was taking place behind the closed doors of their local lodge. Long Island was the Masonic home of Theodore Roosevelt of Oyster Bay and, 30 years later, was honored by a visit to the Huntington Masonic lodge by his fifth cousin and fellow Mason Franklin D. Roosevelt. Masons continue to support the community through charitable endeavors, including the Masonic Medical Research Institute, Masonic Safety Identification Programs, Shriners Hospitals, and many more.

Cover image for Long Island Freemasons, isbn: 9781467104791

Hidden History of Midcoast Maine

9781626193659

$21.99

From the Age of Discovery and the earliest settlement of America, Midcoast Maine has played surprising roles in America's history.

Europeans might not have survived in the New World without the Kennebec beaver trade, the lessons of the Popham Colony and the friendships Maine's first settlers built. Experience the storied survival of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's military grandfather in precarious Revolutionary Maine and meet resilient, creative, noteworthy and notorious Midcoasters. Pat Higgins recounts Puritan power plays, the sea fight between the "Boxer" and the "Enterprise," duels, U-boats and much more. Discover the fascinating and quirky bits of history that have remained hidden along the rocky coast from Portland to Acadia--until now..

The Jewish Community of Atlanta

9781467105859

$24.99

As Atlanta evolved from a sleepy, backwater, 19th-century frontier railroad town into a 21st-century international metropolis, Jewish men and women significantly contributed to the rich tapestry of the "Gate City of the South." The commercial infrastructure of the expanding city was greatly enhanced through numerous small businesses established by Jewish merchants, some of which became major players in various industries. Many of Atlanta's most recognizable icons--The Coca-Cola Company, Georgia Institute of Technology, and the Atlanta Braves--originated, in part, thanks to support from visionary leaders in the Jewish community. While there are many success stories throughout Atlanta's Jewish history, there are also dark episodes of blatant antisemitism that traumatized the community and had national implications. The lynching of Leo M. Frank; the bombing of the city's historic synagogue, the Hebrew Benevolent Congregation; and the deliberate expulsion of Jewish students from Emory University Dental School marred Atlanta's self-proclaimed reputation as "The City Too Busy to Hate."

St. George

9781467105989

$24.99

St. George was founded in 1861 when over 300 Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints pioneer families were called on a mission to settle in a barren desert hundreds of miles from the nearest city. Pioneers grew cotton, and the warm climate reminded people of the Southern states, so it gained the nickname "Utah's Dixie." The first families strived to cultivate a life and farm on the banks of the Virgin River. Isolated from the rest of the country, St. George continued to struggle until the advent of the automobile gave it a spot on a major travel route. As more people started vacationing, St. George became a tourist destination for its proximity to national parks and, later, for its sunny days and golf courses.

The Battle of Mine Creek

9781609493325

$21.99

In 1864, Union troops controlled much of the South, Sherman's men marched with impunity through Georgia and defeat at Gettysburg was a painful and distant memory. The Confederacy needed to stem the tide. Confederate major general Sterling Price led an army of twelve thousand troops on a desperate charge through Missouri to deliver the state to the Confederacy and dash President Lincoln's hopes for reelection. This daring campaign culminated with the Battle of Mine Creek. A severely outnumbered Union army crushed the Confederate forces in one of the war's largest and most audacious cavalry charges. Historian Jeff Stalnaker puts the reader in the saddle with the Union troopers as they destroy all hope for Rebel victory in the Trans-Mississippi.

The Battle of Waynesboro

9781626190702

$21.99

Join author and Waynesboro native Richard G. Williams Jr. as he expertly traces the harrowing narrative of a prelude to the surrender at Appomattox.

In 1865, Waynesboro played host to the last gasp of the Confederate army in the Shenandoah Valley. Although the Battle of Waynesboro isn't among the most recognizable clashes, such as Gettysburg or Antietam, it still holds a special place in American history. The Union forces, led by General Philip Sheridan, included a young brigadier general named George Armstrong Custer. The battle was also the last major conflict for famed Confederate general Jubal Early, whose defeat during the fight spelled the end of his Civil War service.

12 Days of Mardi Gras

9781455626403

$19.99

Repetition, alliteration, and visual humor abound in this Mardi Gras themed riff on the iconic holiday song, perfect for emerging readers and early counters. As each day of the Mardi Gras season passes, a gift is given. Each of the many, many, many gifts is familiar to those who embrace the season's traditions. Coming in twos, twelves, fives and fours, the gifts include majestic masks, floats a rolling, golden shoes, and cherished cups. Colorful illustrations provide lots of additional hijinks and engagement in this soon-to-be-classic holiday tale!

Beyond the Gates of Hell

9781455614875

$16.95

Possibly the longest Jewish survival account of the Holocaust. An inspirational story lingers behind tales of horror witnessed by thirteen-year-old Mayer Hersh in the labor camps of Nazi Germany. In what is possibly the longest recorded survival of its kind, Hersh would spend a total of 5 years and 2 months in 9 separate labor camps before his liberation in 1945. During this time, Hersh would lose 100 members of his immediate and extended family, witness countless inhumane acts, and live constantly on the brink of starvation. Yet, as author Colin Rushton marvels, he tells his story without bitterness, without rancor, and without hatred because, in a wonderful way, and quite literally, his humanity has triumphed over all the evil he has witnessed and suffered. This tale of a boy's release from Hell ends with a confrontation of the past during his return to Auschwitz in 2002.

Forgotten Tales of Kentucky

9781596295346

$14.99

Author Keven McQueen (Kentucky Book of the Dead, Offbeat Kentuckians) once again bucks tradition and offers an entertaining, if not peculiar, hodgepodge of unfamiliar Bluegrass history. Read about the day it rained amphibians in Louisville, hunts for buried treasure, unidentified flying people, remnants of a vanished race of giants, Owensboro's own Loch Ness Monster and can there really be catacombs beneath the streets of Lexington? Feed your curiosity and discover the Forgotten Tales of Kentucky,

Voices from the North Carolina Mountains:

9781596292307

$21.99

Folkways are alive and well in Appalachia. Throughout Western North Carolina, the people have maintained their traditions and stayed true to a unique way of life for more than two hundred years.

Remarkable, hardy people settled here in the early 1800s and some of their descendants continue to rely on the ancient knowledge and skills that allowed their ancestors to thrive in the isolated mountain country. They practice the mountain arts of music and dance, as well as grow their own food, cook on wood cookstoves, plow with horses, grind cane to make molasses and keep bees. Award-winning author Lynn Salsi captures the personal stories of six of these extraordinary people who keep the old ways alive. With warmth and humor, their anecdotal reflections honor the culture and tradition of the southern Appalachian Mountains.

Voices from the North Carolina Mountains:

Ghosts of Bobby Mackey's Music World

9781626192225

$21.99

Over the years, Bobby Mackey's Music World has played host to countless real-life horror stories and a string of criminal activity. Illegal gambling and liquor abounded when it later served as the Bluegrass Inn.

The site has been the location of death and destruction since the nineteenth century, including illegal lynchings and a bridge collapse killing forty-one men. In more recent years, mafia bosses turned it into a mafia-controlled nightclub known as the Latin Quarter. Beginning with the caretaker who fell under a demonic possession to more recent encounters between patrons and the paranormal, author Dan Smith revives the chilling stories that make it the most haunted nightclub in America.

Military History of New Jersey

9781626196278

$21.99

War came to Garden State soil early. The Dutch fought the Indians in Kieft's War, while the English fought the Spanish in the War of Jenkins' Ear and the French, Swedes and native nations in dozens of other conflicts. New Jersey played an integral role as the Crossroads of the American Revolution." The Battle of Trenton, the crossing of the Delaware and battles at Monmouth and Springfield helped the colonies break free from Britain. During both world wars, German submarines lurked along the coastline. Historian David Petriello presents a comprehensive military history of New Jersey, highlighting the state's major and lesser-known engagements and contributions to the defense of the nation."

Hidden History of Clinton, Iowa

9781467144841

$24.99

Two things people frequently say about Clinton are that it was the lumber capital of the world and home to the most millionaires per capita. While those interesting nuggets are not exactly true, there are plenty of fascinating facts about the city. Learn why Clinton could easily be known as a holiday town if not overshadowed by the meetings and parties of America's lumber kings. See what life was like guiding an acre-long log raft down the Mississippi. Enter the century-long debate on the location of the Big Tree. And find out how Clinton fed the world. Matt Parbs, director of the Sawmill Museum, unearths Clinton's past from the weight of myth and details its hidden history.

Miracle Mile in Los Angeles:

9781609495930

$21.99

The world-famous Miracle Mile in Los Angeles was shaped into a great commercial and cultural district by the city's tremendous urban expansion in the early twentieth century. Its origins along Wilshire Boulevard are directly related to the twin LA booms in auto travel and real estate ventures. Once the home of such famous stores as the May Company, Silverwood's, Coulter's and Desmond's, as well as Streamline Moderne and Art Deco architecture, Miracle Mile has boasted the La Brea Tar Pits and Farmer's Market, Gilmore Field and CBS Television City, as well as Pan Pacific Park and Museum Row. Join author Ruth Wallach, head of the University of Southern California's Architecture and Fine Arts Library, for this tour through the most emblematic neighborhood of twentieth-century Los Angeles development.

The Visual Language of Wabanaki Art

9781626192331

$21.99

Immerse yourself in the visual language of the Wabanaki tribe and learn about how the art was---and continues to be--preserved and celebrated.

For centuries, the people of the Wabanaki Nations of the northeastern United States and eastern Canada used signs, symbols and designs to communicate with one another. As Native Peoples became victims of European expansion, the Wabanaki were separated by war, the search for work and intermarriage, as well as by hiding their identities to avoid persecution. In this diaspora, their visual language helped them keep their teachings and culture alive. Their designs have evolved over time and taken on different meanings, and they are now used on objects that are considered art. While their beauty is undeniable, these pieces cannot be fully appreciated without understanding their context. Tribal member Jeanne Morningstar Kent sheds light on this language, from the work of ancient Wabanaki to today's artists--like David Moses Bridges, Donna Sanipass and Jennifer Neptune--once again using their medium to connect with their fellow Wabanaki.

Lost Myrtle Beach

9781626193925

$19.99

Myrtle Beach has long been a favorite vacation spot for families across America, giving parents and children alike a lifetime of memories. The Myrtle Beach Pavilion, considered by many to be the heart of the city since 1908, was demolished in 2007. The Ocean Forest Hotel was as beautiful as a castle, and resembled one, during its forty-four-year span. Members of World War II's Doolittle Raid trained at the Myrtle Beach General Bombing and Gunnery Range, which eventually became Myrtle Beach Air Force Base until its closure in 1993. Join author Becky Billingsley for a trip back in time as she examines some of the city's most memorable attractions.

100 Oklahoma Outlaws, Gangsters & Lawmen

9781589803848

$16.95

This book includes difficult-to-find information about significant Oklahoma outlaws who lived and worked during the 100-year period 'from horseback to Cadillac.' While criminal history within Oklahoma is the focus, famous crimes committed elsewhere by Oklahomans, such as the Barker Gang, Wilbur Underhill, and Machine Gun Kelly, as well as Oklahoma connections to legendary outlaws like Wyatt Earp, Billy the Kid, John Dillinger, and Baby Face Nelson are also mentioned.

100 Oklahoma Outlaws, Gangsters & Lawmen

Carolina Gold Rice:

9781609496203

$9.99

Carolina Gold, the celebrated variety of rice established in the South Carolina Lowcountry, perhaps saved the fledgling colony at the beginning of the eighteenth century and remained integral to the local economy for nearly two hundred years. However, the labor required to produce it encouraged the establishment of slavery, ultimately contributing to the region's economic collapse following the Civil War.

Richard Schulze, who reintroduced this crop in South Carolina after nearly a century's absence, provides this fascinating inside story of an industry that helped build some of the largest fortunes in America. Drawing on both historical research and personal experience, Schulze reveals the legacy of this once-forgotten Lowcountry icon..

Les Trois Cochons

9781565543256

$16.99

Piglet brothers 'Ti Joe, 'Ti Claude, and 'Ti Fr're have reached the age when Mam're Cochon must send them out into the world to seek their fortunes. As they venture out on their own, they must each find, or build, their own homes. At the same time, they must be ever on the lookout for the hungry loup-garou.

Murder and Mayhem on Chicago's North Side

9781596296442

$21.99

In 1929, Chicago gangster Al Capone arranged a special St. Valentine's Day delivery for his favorite arch enemies: a massacre. Seven North Side mobsters were left dead. Yet random killings and bizarre murders were not unfamiliar in Chicago. Tales of the city's most violent and puzzling murders make this gripping work truly hair-raising: a deranged stalker kills his love object and then himself; a sausage maker uses the tools of his trade to rid himself of his wife; and a meticulous serial killer cleans his dead victim's wounds before taping them closed. Through accounts dripping with mystery, gory details and suspense, Troy Taylor brilliantly tells the twisted history of Chicago's North Side's worst.

Murder and Mayhem on Chicago's North Side

Civil War in Texas and New Mexico Territory

9781565542532

$14.95

Many heroic actions were taken by Hispanic soldiers who have not gotten much recognition for their efforts.

Civil War in Texas and New Mexico Territory

The Civil War Battles of Macon

9781467146944

$21.99

Macon was a cornerstone of the Confederacy's military-industrial complex. As a transportation hub, the city supplied weapons to the Confederacy, making it a target once the Union pushed into Georgia in 1864. In the course of the war's last year, Macon faced three separate cavalry assaults. The battles were small in the grand scheme but salient for the combatants and townspeople. Once the war concluded, it was from Macon that cavalry struck out to capture the fugitive Jefferson Davis, allowing the city to witness one of the last chapters of the conflict. Author Niels Eichhorn brings together the first comprehensive analysis of the military engagements and battles in Middle Georgia.

Tales from the National Press Club

9781467143172

$24.99

Since the beginning of the twentieth century, the National Press Club has been the hub of Washington journalism. Started by reporters as a watering hole for late-night card games, the Club soon attracted newsmakers who shaped American and world history, from Theodore Roosevelt to Donald Trump. Adapting to changes in the news media, it has stood for the values of journalism and press freedom. Author, journalist and longtime member Gil Klein tells just a few of the tales that stand out in the history of the Club, which CBS commentator Eric Sevareid once called "the only hallowed place I know of that's absolutely bursting with irreverence."

Eccentric Kansas

9781467144230

$23.99

Kansas has tales as extraordinary as its plains, although the stories behind the legends are sometimes lost to time. Discover the history of the state's world-class violinist, homemade airplane and alleged volcano. Iola's Mad Bomber blew up the town's saloons after a hangover. The bulletproof and most "extinctest" creature lurked in sinkholes outside Inman. Hunters in Stafford County learned to leave out enormous quantities of food for local hermit Pelican Pete. Join author Roger Ringer as he delves into these and other facts behind the myths of the Sunflower State.

Around Gaithersburg

9781467104623

$24.99

Located in the heart of Montgomery County, Gaithersburg is one of the largest cities in Maryland and home to a highly educated and diverse population. The arrival of the railroad in 1873 spurred a residential and industrial boom, making Gaithersburg the market center for Darnestown, Quince Orchard, and Hunting Hill-and the agricultural powerhouse of Montgomery County. Rare photographs of these forgotten crossroads villages, as well as surrounding farms, houses, and mills of the Gaithersburg and Germantown areas, reveal places from the past, many of which have long since disappeared from the modern landscape. Despite the loss of a number of these landmarks, many still stand due to the efforts of the citizens.

Cover image for Around Gaithersburg, isbn: 9781467104623

The Streetcar Guide to New Orleans

9781455614967

$12.95

Explore the city on the historic New Orleans streetcars!

The streetcar evokes a sense of nostalgia while representing the legacy of America's transportation history. Only in New Orleans can you ride the oldest operating streetcar line in America to reach some of the most interesting places in the city. With detailed maps of all current and anticipated street car lines across the city and stops along the way, this is a practical guide for both tourists and locals alike.

Downtown Pittsburgh

9780738525105

$7.99

From westward migration to the Industrial Revolution, downtown Pittsburgh has been at the center of change and progress for centuries. These images illustrate the people, the events, and the everyday scenes that make up downtown Pittsburgh's story.

The House at Lobster Cove

9781944038021

$29.95

He was Boston's largest taxpayer with little interest in civic affairs. He was listed in the Blue Book but joined no clubs. His magnificent dining room at Kragsyde, his house at Lobster Cove, rarely entertained visitors. If George Nixon Black was mentioned at all, it was almost as rumor. His greenhouses boasted rare plants, his collection of antiques and paintings were extraordinary and his patronage of the arts favored unknown female artists. Each winter he quietly boarded a luxury European-bound steamship with a man eighteen years his junior. Despite a privileged youth marred by violence and uncertainty, contrasted with the danger his lifestyle and secrets placed him in, his ability to obtain happiness and be himself was remarkable.

While Black was probably content to slip away unnoticed, Kragsyde was to have no such fate. Garnering much attention when it was first built, and adored by architects and scholars ever since, the famous shingle-style house has made it impossible for Black to fully disappear. In The House at Lobster Cove, you will see behind the doors of Kragsyde, the house that sheltered and shaped him, and continued to tell his story long after both were gone.

Using characters, letters and events from history, Jane Goodrich's first novel is part family saga and part love story, as well as an engaging personal journey for the author. Although Kragsyde was demolished in 1929, it was later rebuilt, in every detail, by Goodrich and her husband, doing all the work themselves on an island in Maine. A special feature of this edition is the letterpress printed cover and title page, hand printed on 100% cotton paper at the author's studios at Saturn Press in Maine.

Cover image for The House at Lobster Cove, isbn: 9781944038021

Fort Worth Stockyards

9780738558745

$7.99

The Fort Worth Stockyards boast a rich history.

Downtown Culpeper

9780738567655

$7.99

Culpeper boasts a rich history.

Cover image for Downtown Culpeper, isbn: 9780738567655

Haunted Florida Lighthouses

9781467153836

$21.99

Author Heather Leigh Carroll-Landon guides readers on a spine-tingling tour through Florida’s haunted lighthouses. Lighthouses dot the Florida coast, there to help seafarers navigate their way to shore. But when tragedy comes for Florida, it often blows in from the sea, giving the lighthouses and the cursed men and women inside a first look at horror. The lively spirits of teenage sisters inhabit the St. Augustine Lighthouse, where an accident claimed their lives, suspending them in their playful youth. A storm wiped out the Sand Key Lighthouse in 1846, claiming the lives of 16 whose spirits now chatter away—generally in contented tones but sometimes straying into anger. A Civil War casualty roams near the Amelia Island Lighthouses, holding to a promise to see his love one last time before departure.

Sacramento Southern Railroad

9780738569864

$24.99

The Sacramento Southern Railroad was born into a famous railroad family and a busy railroad town in July 1903. The mighty Southern Pacific, which controlled the new line from the outset, built south from Sacramento along the eastern bank of the Sacramento River into the delta's rich farmland area. At its zenith, the line was about 31 miles long, serving the communities of Freeport, Hood, Locke, Walnut Grove, and Isleton. Trains on what became known as the Walnut Grove Branch hauled pears, sugar beets, asparagus and other products from the agricultural region's packing sheds and canneries. Competition from trucking and damage from flooding took a severe toll on the railroad, and the Southern Pacific largely abandoned it by 1978, but a portion lives on as a labor of love.