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When it comes to the Boston Irish, names such as Bulger and Curley have long shaped the local turf. But most people are probably unaware of some of the most amazing and forgotten Irish men and women who helped mold this city. There was Patrick Gilmore, America's first famed bandleader. Louis Sullivan was the Father of the Skyscraper. Other colorful characters included Patsy Donovan, the man who discovered Babe Ruth, and Ann Goody Glover, whose horrifying ordeal launched the Salem Witch Trials. Although each played a noteworthy role in his or her era, all have been unjustly forgotten. Local author Peter Stevens uncovers the missing pieces of the Irish experience in Boston.

Founded in 1798, Hamtramck shrank in size even as it grew in population. Stuffing tens of thousands of people in 2.1 square miles is bound to breed conflict, and many of those conflicts boiled over into murder. Sunday, September 7, 1884, was supposed to be a day of joy for Fritz Krum, whose child was being christened. Instead, it ended in a fatal stabbing. The 1930 killing of police officer Barney Roth in a reputed mob hit drew national attention. The murder of Hamtramck teen Bernice Onisko remains an open case today, more than eighty years after it occurred. Gathering cases from the late nineteenth century to more recent times, prolific local historian Greg Kowalski takes readers on a journey through Hamtramck homicide.

For decades, evidence of the 1978 murder of Gwendolyn Elaine Fogle lay in the evidence room at the Walterboro Police Department. Investigators periodically revisited the case over the years, but it remained the department's top cold case for thirty-seven years. Special Agent Lieutenant Rita Shuler worked on the case shortly after she joined the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), and she couldn't let it go, not even after her retirement in 2001. In May 2015, Lieutenant Shuler teamed up with new investigator Corporal Gean Johnson, and together they uncovered key evidence that had been overlooked. With new advancements in DNA and fingerprint technology, they brought the case to its end in just four months. Join Shuler as she details the gruesome history of this finally solved case.

More than 3,000 Kalamazoo County men served in the Union forces during the Civil War. They fought in the most horrific battles from Blackburn's Ford to Appomattox, and 396 did not return home. The war tested the area not just on the battlefield but in its collective back yard and, at times, its front yard. A peace rally held by local Democrats was interrupted by Lincoln supporters who viewed the Democrats as traitors. Residents reacted jubilantly to the capture of Richmond, the Confederate capital, and mourned the assassination of Lincoln, who had visited the village of Kalamazoo before the war. As veterans, the former combatants left behind indelible reminders of their sacrifice. Local historian Gary L. Gibson uncovers long-lost stories, many never before told, of Kalamazoo County during and after America's bloodiest conflict.

Poletown was a once vibrant, ethnically diverse neighborhood in Detroit. In its prime, it had a store on every corner. Its theaters, restaurants and schools thrived, and its churches catered to a multiplicity of denominations. In 1981, General Motors announced plans for a new plant in Detroit and pointed to the 465 acres of Poletown. Using the law of eminent domain with a quick-take clause, the city planned to relocate 4,200 residents within ten months and raze the neighborhood. With unprecedented defiance, the residents fought back in vain. In 2004, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled that the eminent domain law applied to Poletown was unconstitutional--a ruling that came two decades too late.

Pittsburgh's contributions to the uniquely American art form of jazz are essential to its national narrative. Fleeing the Jim Crow South in the twentieth century, African American migration to the industrial North brought musical roots that would lay the foundation for jazz culture in the Steel City. As migrant workers entered the factories of Pittsburgh, juke joints and nightclubs opened in the segregated neighborhoods of the Hill District, Northside and East Liberty. The scene fostered numerous legends, including Art Blakey, Billy Strayhorn, George Benson, Erroll Garner and Earl Fatha Hines. The music is sustained today in the practice rooms of the city's universities and by groups such as the Manchester Craftsmen's Guild and the African American Music Institute. Authors Richard Gazarik and Karen Anthony Cole chart the swinging history of jazz in Pittsburgh.

Located in the shadow of Mount Rainier, South Hill was once a rural area known for timber and farming. From its beginnings as a Puyallup Tribe hunting ground to the post-World War II building boom, South Hill has undergone a striking transformation. Follow the trials of the pioneers who passed through on the Naches Trail and the settlers who grew hops for local brewers. Uncover the origins of Thun Field and its lesser-known predecessor, the S&S Airport. Relive the glory days of the Puyallup Raceways and celebrate the triumph of local Olympic gold medalist Megan Quann. Join author Carl Vest and the South Hill Historical Society as they explore the roots of South Hill.

During World War II, a group of potato farmers opened the first migrant labor camp in Suffolk County to house farmworkers from Jamaica. Over the next twenty years, more than one hundred camps of various sizes would be built throughout the region. Thousands of migrant workers lured by promises of good wages and decent housing flocked to Eastern Long Island, where they were often cheated out of pay and housed in deadly slum-like conditions. Preyed on by corrupt camp operators and entrapped in a feudal system that left them mired in debt, laborers struggled and, in some cases, perished in the shadow of New York's affluence. Author Mark A. Torres reveals the dreadful history of Long Island's migrant labor camps from their inception to their peak in 1960 and their steady decline in the following decades.

One of America's oldest existing structures, Long Wharf encapsulates the most important events in Boston's history. Created in 1711 and spanning almost a half mile in length, it initially served as a defense for the town of Boston and a place for local merchants to sell and ship their cargo. Multitudes of different merchants had stores there over the decades, and these products changed as the city evolved. From rum, spices, flour, molasses and tea to fishing, immigration and tourism, the Wharf has always reflected the city it served. Long Wharf also had a darker side, with theft, drownings and slavery. Author and historian Kelly Kilcrease reveals how the Wharf was built, how it played a prominent role during the American Revolution and how it evolved into the landmark we know today.

The Progressive Era ushered in one of the most transformational periods in New York's history. The excesses of the Gilded Age led to the rise of numerous social and political reform movements. These justice-seeking endeavors reached all corners of the state, including women's suffrage meetings in Seneca Falls, civil rights efforts in Niagara Falls, early environmental conservationism in the Adirondacks and the rooting out of corruption in Albany. In New York City, photographer Jacob Riis documented tenement life in the Lower East Side, bringing awareness of how the other half lives. Lillian Wald founded the Henry Street Settlement house, providing healthcare and pioneering quality-of-life initiatives for the state's impoverished citizens. Reformers sometimes fell short, as prohibition backfired among the public and too often civil rights for African Americans took a back seat within progressive goals. Author Paul M. Kaplan charts the turbulent times of the Progressive Era throughout New York State.

The New River winds its way through a mysterious and tumultuous history, from the whirlpools of a legendary birth to banks stained with the blood of a massacre. Long-lost tribes flourished on the bounty of fish from its crystal-clear water and game from its wooded shores, only to succumb to European weapons and disease. They were replaced by Seminoles and runaway slaves, with a few white pioneers seeking opportunity in the new southern frontier. After the Civil War, a trickle of immigrants became a flood of Confederate refugees and northern opportunists. South Florida's destiny was changed forever when inshore transportation evolved from foot and hoof to inland waterway and steel rails. Schemes to drain the Everglades turned swamp to subdivisions with the New River at its core. Trace the storied arc of Fort Lauderdale's ancient waterway with author Donn R. Colee Jr.

Southwestern Illinois experienced a plethora of violence during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Settlers and Native Americans clashed at the Wood River Settlement, while Abraham Lincoln dueled on a Mississippi River island. Racial strife led to the lynching of a Black schoolteacher in Belleville in 1903 and a deadly riot in East St. Louis fourteen years later. Benbow City was a latter-day Wild West town of saloons, gambling dens and brothels, and Pere Marquette State Park screened a cache of Nike missiles. From the birthplace of Martin Luther King Jr.'s killer to the mystery surrounding Jean Lafitte's grave, John Dunphy examines the bloody ledger of southwestern Illinois.

Long before the Speedway was even a glimmer in Bill France Sr.'s eye, racers in Daytona Beach were careening along at the fastest possible clip. Cars were still a novelty in 1903 when Daytona Beach drivers were pushing for land speed records on a track near today's Granada Avenue beach entrance. A reputation was born here early, drawing racing pioneers like Sara Christian, who famously raced her husband on the combination dirt and paved track in 1949. From the brave forerunners who tore up the hard-packed sand to the modern vehicles blasting away at nearly two hundred miles per hour on Daytona Beach International Speedway, Robert Redd explores the driving tradition that has made Daytona Beach a racing mecca.

Tucked around a corner or soaking up the spotlight, Miami's restaurants defend an international reputation for superb cuisine and service. The constant buzz of new arrivals to the city's glamorous food scene often obscures the memory of the celebrated culinary institutions that have closed their doors. Here author Seth Bramson recounts the life--and the often untimely passing--of coffee shops, steakhouses and every level, kind and type of restaurant in between. This joyous look at bygone eateries serves up course after course of beloved fare, from the likes of Jahn's in Coral Gables to Red Diamond in Miami, Pumpernik's on Miami Beach and Rascal House in Sunny Isles.

For nearly a century Columbus, Ohio pizza parlors have served up delicious meals by the tray and by the slice. This history goes back to the 1930s, when TAT Ristorante began serving pizza. Today, it is the oldest family-owned restaurant in the city. Over the years, a specific style evolved guided by the experiences and culinary interpretations of local pizza pioneers like Jimmy Massey, Romeo Sirij, Tommy Iacono, Joe Gatto, Cosmo Leonardo, Pat Orecchio, Reuben Cohen, Guido Casa and Richie DiPaolo. The years of experimentation and refinement culminated in Columbus being crowned the pizza capital of the USA in the 1990s. Author and founder of the city's first pizza tour Jim Ellison chronicles one of the city's favorite foods.

Texas Guinan was the queen of New York's speakeasies in the Roaring Twenties. Her clubs were backed by leading gangsters and welcomed some of the city's biggest sharks and swankest swells. Movie stars, flappers, madams, musicians and more flocked to midtown's Wet Zone, Greenwich Village and Harlem for inebriated entertainment. Patrons threw cultural norms aside as free-flowing hooch lubricated the jazz joints, sex circuses and drag balls that fueled the era's insurgent spirit. At the center of the party was Texas with her trademark catchphrases and guarantee to have a good time. Author David Rosen recounts Texas's adventurous life alongside tales of Gotham's nightlife when abstinence was the law of the land and breaking the law an all-American indulgence.

"Generations of Clevelanders share cherished memories of the city at Christmastime. Many recall the incredible Sterling-Lindner Christmas trees, shopping for mom and dad at the Twigbee Shop and the mesmerizing Nela Park light displays. And no one can forget exciting downtown parades and enchanting visits with the beloved Mr. Jingeling. Yet few may know that E.L. Baldwin's 1881 sale paved the way for today's Black Friday frenzy or that, through the decades, a host of celebrities ranging from Bob Hope to boxer Joe Louis have helped make the holidays brighter for the city's neediest families. Touching on all of this and more, author Alan Dutka evokes fond recollections of bygone holiday seasons."--

Come walk the timeless halls of the Hotel Galvez. No expense was spared in the creation of this beautiful statement of Galveston's resilience, which stands as the only historic beachfront hotel in the state of Texas. Perched on the city's famed seawall, the building has weathered a century of hurricanes and even served in the U.S. Coast Guard during World War II. Presidents, beauty pageant contestants, gamblers, movie stars, military heroes, newsmen and countless other guests have gazed out at the Gulf through its gracefully arched windows. Kathleen Maca recounts the legends and shares the secrets of this extraordinary hotel.

Detroit's role as the Arsenal of Democracy during World War II is well known, but the war effort in Michigan extended to all corners of the state. Schoolchildren showed their patriotism by raising money for war bonds to buy planes, tanks and jeeps. The locks in Sault Ste. Marie were considered a potential target of a German attack and were guarded accordingly. A spy ring in Detroit mobilized an unsuccessful attempt to help an escaped German POW flee the continent. A top-secret navy project, undisclosed until the 1990s, set aircraft carriers afloat on the Great Lakes. Compiling more than 180 images, including many never before seen, author Dan Mason unfolds the stories of Michigander grit and courage overseas and at home.

The Conestoga River meanders for sixty miles through the fertile farmlands of Lancaster County. From early Native American inhabitants to the European settlers who made the Conestoga Valley their home, the river has provided sustenance and transportation for generations. Victorian-era resorts and hotels were built along the river, providing new recreational activities as steam power drove innovative forms of transportation. As the region developed and the population grew, the river paid a heavy price in increased pollution from sewage runoff and industry. Conservation efforts toward the end of the twentieth century through the present day have restored the river's beauty and recreational reputation. Join author and photographer Donald Kautz as he takes a journey on the historic waters of the Conestoga River.

La Mirada began with a vision. Andrew McNally, of the mapmakers Rand McNally and Company, saw the beautiful rolling hills as the perfect place to grow olives and lemons and purchased 2,600 acres of land that would become the modern city it is today. Originally planned as a collection of country estates, the area attracted dairy farmers and citrus growers who operated alongside the McNally Ranch, well known for its olive oil. During the building boom after World War II, families flocked to the area, drawn by idyllic spaces like Neff Park, and voted to incorporate in 1960. Join authors Glen Cantrell and Raymond Fernandez as they share the story of a thriving La Mirada.

A century on, the twisted wreckage from the Ricohoc disaster smolders, passenger trains turned into husks amid predawn fog. Would-be assassins draw straws to determine who will take out Huey Long. And pickers stroll the banks of the Vermilion River during the heyday of the Spanish moss industry, plucking their livelihood from majestic oaks, many of which still stand. This strange country bewilders Vermilion Parish pioneers, and the Olive once again plies the waters of the Mermentau River. Author William Thibodeaux plumbs the record of Southwest Louisiana, breathing fresh life into the fascinating history of Acadiana.

Since Audubon visited Galveston in 1837, artists have flocked to the island, some just passing through and others staying their entire lives. But because Galveston remained remote from the nation's cultural centers, its artistic contributions were initially largely ignored. However, the recovery effort from the Great Storm of 1900 spurred a new sense of local pride and civic determination. The Cotton Carnivals attracted people throughout the state, the city's artists united to promote local art through the creation of the Galveston Art League and photographers modernized their practices. In the early 1920s, a new generation, freed from nineteenth-century traditions, started to gain attention both on and off the island. Explore Galveston's artistic heritage with local historian Pat Jakobi, from the portraits of Thomas Flintoff to the Balinese Room murals of Marie Marchi Ragone.