The excitement and vibrancy of big-city thrills take a deadly turn when they hit Staten Island. Edward Reinhardt murdered his wife and rolled her body in a barrel down a busy thoroughfare. A known bootlegger--and suspected police informant--was found shot three times in a Packard on South Beach, sparking one of the island's greatest mysteries. In 1843, the bodies of a mother and daughter were discovered in a Christmas Day fire; a family member would stand trial three times for their deaths. During the Jazz Age, a kiss would cost a popular Port Richmond teenager her life. Local historian Patricia M. Salmon has meticulously researched Staten Island's most horrific murders, some well known and others long forgotten.

Despite its illustrious beginnings as the "Athens of the west," Lexington has always had a darker side lurking just beneath its glossy sheen. It didn't take long for the first intellectual hub west of the Alleghenies to quickly morph into a city with the same scandalous inclinations as neighboring Louisville and Cincinnati. Filled with tales of infamous duels, cheating congressmen, and much more, Wicked Lexington offers the first collection the city's rowdy and ruckus history. From Belle Brezing's infamous brothel of the late 1800s, frequented by some of the city's most prominent businessmen, and once pardoned by the governor, to historic sports scandals of the 1900s, local author Fiona Young-Brown tracks Lexington's penchant for misdeeds from founding to modern times.

Since the day it opened in 1892, Denver's Brown Palace Hotel has been the Mile High City's foremost destination for high-powered business travelers, celebrities, royalty and politicians. In Ladies of the Brown, hotel historian and archivist Debra B. Faulkner introduces readers to some of the hotel's most fascinating and famous female visitors, residents and employees. From Denver's "Unsinkable" Molly Brown and Romania's Queen Marie to Zsa Zsa Gabor, Mamie Eisenhower and many, many more, these intriguing characters play leading roles in true tales of romance, scandal, humor and heartbreak. This collection of stories is integral to the history of the Brown Palace and Denver, offering a glimpse into the lives of generations of women from all walks of life.

The great Potomac River begins in the Alleghenies and flows 383 miles through some of America's most historic lands before emptying into the Chesapeake Bay. The course of the river drove the development of the region and the path of a young republic Maryland's first Catholic settlers came to its banks in 1634 and George Washington helped settle the new capitol on its shores. During the Civil War the river divided North and South, and it witnessed John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry and the bloody Battle of Antietam. Author Garrett Peck leads readers on a journey down the Potomac, from its first fount at Fairfax Stone in West Virginia to its mouth at Point Lookout in Maryland. Combining history with recreation, Peck has written an indispensible guide to the nation's river.

Explore the haunted history of Helena, Montana.

Go beyond the bottle and step inside the minds- and vines- of Virginia's burgeoning wine industry in this groundbreaking volume. Join grape grower and industry insider Walker Elliott Rowe as he guides you through some of the top vineyards and wineries in the Old Dominion. Rowe explores the minds of pioneering winemakers and vineyard owners, stitches together an account of the wine industry's foundation in Virginia, from Jamestown to Jefferson to Barboursville, and uncovers the fascinating missing chapter in Virginia wine history. As the Philip Carter Winery's motto explains, 'Before there was Jefferson, there was Carter.'

Rowe goes behind the scenes to interview migrant workers who toil daily in the vineyards, makes the rounds in Richmond with an industry lobbyist and talks shop with winemakers on the science and techniques that have helped put the Virginia wine industry on the map. Also included are twenty-four stunning color photographs from professional photographer Jonathan Timmes and a foreword by noted wine journalist Richard Leahy.

Rhode Island's ghostly heritage is as deep and profound as the history of the state itself. From the ghastly moaning bones of Mount Tom to the stately haunt of Judge Potter in a local library, Rhode Island's apparitions have been causing fear for centuries. Follow M.E. Reilly-McGreen as she reveals the ghoulish stories of the state's most haunted places. The author delves deep to unearth tales of fright little known to most as well as those that have helped define the state's supernatural history. From ghosts to monsters, this book is your guide to all things spooky in Rhode Island. So prepare to journey though the Rhode Island you didn't know existed, or does it?

Massachusetts's historic graveyards are the final resting places for tales of the strange and supernatural. From Newburyport to Truro, these graveyards often frighten the living, but the dead who rest within them have stories to share with the world they left behind. While Giles Corey is said to haunt the Howard Street Cemetery in Salem, cursing those involved in the infamous witch trials, visitors to the Forest Hills Cemetery in Jamaica Plain enjoy an arboretum and a burial ground with Victorian-era memorials. One of the oldest cemeteries in Massachusetts, Old Burial Hill in Marblehead, has been the final resting place for residents for nearly 375 years. Author Roxie Zwicker tours the Bay State's oldest burial grounds, exploring the stones, stories and supernatural lore of these hallowed places.

Brookside's burgundy- and blue-striped awnings represent both a quaint corner of Kansas City where you can tread the creaky wooden floors of the Dime Store and a pragmatic philosophy that changed the way America planned its cities. Renowned developer J.C. Nichols's "plan for permanence" was built on his conviction that if a community could offer its residents everything they would want and need, build to high standards and plan for future growth, the community would last. The Brookside shopping district has been giving the community everything it could want and need since 1919, helping it weather economic turbulence, natural disasters and dramatic changes.

The barrier between Joplin's boisterous past and its present is as flimsy as a swinging saloon door. Lisa Livingston-Martin kicks it wide open in this ghostly history. In her expert company, tour a hotel with a reputation made from equal parts opulence and tragedy. Visit that house of horrors, the Stefflebeck Bordello, where guests regularly got the axe and were disposed of in mine shafts. Navigate through angry lynch mobs and vengeful patrols of Civil War spirits. Catch a glimpse of Bonnie and Clyde. Keep your wits about you--it's haunted Joplin.

Get an inside look at Colorado s rich history, from the time of early American Indians to the Colorado Gold Rush to today. This engaging social studies book is four chapters, covering major events, people, and time periods in Colorado history. It includes a glossary, extension activity, guided reading questions, and other exciting features. Colorado s History covers the early history of American Indians in Colorado through the exploration of the territory, its path to statehood, westward expansion, developments in technology, and other important events throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. This reader combines vibrant pictures and illustrations with rich text to craft a detailed account of Colorado, from 14,000 years ago to modern times.

Memphis is equal parts music and food--the products of a community marked with grit and resiliency. The city's blues and soul music have lifted spirits, while barbecue has been a serious business ever since pork first entered the culinary landscape of Memphis with Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto, who brought the New World its first herd of pigs. Succulent pulled pork and ribs have become part of the fabric of life in the River City, and today they are cooked up in kitchens ranging from the internationally acclaimed, like Corky's, to the humblest of roadside dives. Told through the history of its barbecue is the story of the city of Memphis, from legendary joints like Leonard's Barbecue, where Elvis Presley hosted private parties, to lesser-known places like William's Bar-B-Q in the West Memphis, Arkansas neighborhood where wild, late-night blues juke joints served as a red-light district across the river from Beale Street in the 1950s and '60s. Sink your teeth into this rich history chock-full of interviews and insights from the city's finest pitmasters and 'cue gurus who continue the long tradition of creating art with meat and flame.

Tucked away in the northwestern frontier, Portland offered all the best vices: opium dreams, gambling, cheap prostitutes, and drunken brawling. In its early days, Portland was a "combination rough-and-ready logging camp and gritty, hard-punching deep-water port town," and as a young city (established in the late 1840s) it developed an international reputation for lawlessness and violence. In the early 1900s, the British and French governments filed formal complaints about Portland to the US state department, and Congressional testimony from the time cites Portland as the worst place in the world for crimping. Today, tours of the alleged Shanghai Tunnels offer Portland visitors a taste of that seedy past.

Discover what the American flag means with this fun nonfiction book! Ideal for young readers, this book includes a short fiction piece related to the topic, discussion questions, a connected activity, and other helpful features. This 20-page full-color book explains what the flag represents and why it makes Americans proud. It also challenges students to explore the meaning of the flag with thought-provoking questions, and includes an extension activity for kindergarten. Perfect for the classroom, at-home learning, or homeschool to learn about U.S. History, symbols of freedom, and national pride.

Told here for the first time is the compelling story of the Bluff City during the Civil War. Historian and preservationist Mike Bunn takes you from the pivotal role Eufaula played in Alabama's secession and early enthusiasm for the Confederate cause to its aborted attempt to become the state's capital and its ultimate capture by Union forces, chronicling the effects of the conflict on Eufaulans along the way. "Civil War Eufaula "draws on a wide range of firsthand individual perspectives, including those of husbands and wives, political leaders, businessmen, journalists, soldiers, students and slaves, to produce a mosaic of observations on shared experiences. Together, they communicate what it was like to live in this riverside trading town during a prolonged and cataclysmic war. It is the story of ordinary people in extraordinary times.

Turn back the yellowing pages of Minnesota's past and explore the best of the state's worst moments, as chronicled in the Minneapolis Tribune and its successor newspapers. These stories and photos, culled from the Star Tribune's microfilm archive by author Ben Welter, range from the catastrophic to the merely curious. From a fire that destroyed the State Capitol in 1881, to a wordless fistfight that broke out on a Minneapolis street in 1898, a flu outbreak that killed more than 10,000 Minnesotans in 1918 and the arrest of Frank Lloyd Wright at a Lake Minnetonka cottage in 1926.

The North Fork's natural riches have been seducing people for more than four hundred years. The Algonquin Indians -and, later, Dutch and English colonists- first recognized the area for its waters rich with clams and fish, its fertile soil for growing crops and its abundant forests to support shipbuilding. Hearing the ocean's call, many have long admired the inlets, creeks and bays and contrast the ruggedness of the Long Island Sound with the tranquility of Peconic Bay. In this pictorial history, local author Rosemary McKinley showcases the nautical history, idyllic seaside settings and lush landscapes of this picturesque country.

This all-encompassing guide: * Includes over 600 pages of current political, economic and social affairs of the region * Provides an impartial perspective on all the countries and territories of Eastern Europe, Russia and Central Asia * Combines detailed analysis by acknowledged experts, the latest statistics and invaluable directory material.

Historian Mike Cox has been writing about Texas history for four decades, sharing tales that have been overlooked or forgotten through the years. Travel to El Paso during the "Big Blow" of 1895, brave the frontier with Elizabeth Russell Baker, and stare down the infamous killer known as Old Three Toe. From frontier stories and ghost towns to famous folks and accounts of everyday life, this collection of West Texas Tales has it all.

Located on the banks of the Chattahoochee, Columbus boasts a historic past that runs as deep as the river itself. But peer closely into the murkier parts of Columbus's history, and frightening stories begin to emerge. Join author and ghost hunter Faith Serafin for a chilling look into Columbus's haunted past. There's the regal Springer Opera House, where ghosts creep in the shadows of elaborate balconies. Visit the historic home of Columbus native and blues legend Ma Rainey, where some say the songstress can still be seen playing her original piano. Then there's the Phantom of Eubanks Field, whose ghastly apparition tries to frighten soldiers at Fort Benning. These terrifying tales, and more, await in this collection of haunting stories.

From the rocky slopes of Kings Mountain to the plains of Hannah's Cowpens, the Carolina backcountry hosted two of the Revolutionary War's most critical battles. On October 7, 1780, the Battle of Kings Mountain utilized guerilla techniques- American Over Mountain Men wearing buckskin and hunting shirts and armed with hunting rifles attacked Loyalist troops from behind trees, resulting in an overwhelming Patriot victory. In January of the next year, the Battle of Cowpens saw a different strategy but a similar outcome: with brilliant military precision, Continental Regulars, dragoons and Patriot militia executed the war's only successful double envelopment maneuver to defeat the British. Using firsthand accounts and careful analysis of the best classic and modern scholarship on the subject, historian Robert Brown demonstrates how the combination of both battles facilitated the downfall of General Charles Cornwallis and led to the Patriot victory in America.

It was a dark and stormy night in 1991 when a magician took over the bridge of the Oceanos, an ageing passenger liner travelling up the Wild Coast.

The captain was nowhere to be found. The ship started taking in water in the auxiliary engine room just a few hours after it had set sail from East London. Panicking, the crew scrambled into the lifeboats, leaving passengers largely to fend for themselves. The ship’s entertainment staff bravely started to calm passengers and coordinated the abandon-ship operation and rescue effort.

The story of this dramatic rescue, which made headlines across the world, is told from the perspective of all the key role players and describes their extraordinary heroism.

When the primary value of bay-front property was the privilege of harvesting seaweed, state legislator and Southold newspaperman Joseph Nelson Hallock was stealing watermelon from Peter Gils Well's patch and fighting for the privilege to pass the water at Southold Academy. In the spirit of Mary Ellen Chase's turn-of-the-century account of life in rural New England, Hallock offers his firsthand impressions of the difficulties and pleasures of North Fork life one hundred years ago. With a recipe for samp porridge and tales of power brokering in Albany, "Southold Reminiscences" is sure to inspire.