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Books > History > History of specific subjects > Local history
In this alarming book, reporter Jayna Davis tells of her amazing journey leading from the smoking rubble of the Murrah Federal Building to the sleazy haunts of John Doe #2, the mysterious Middle East suspect who the Justice Department was at first desperate to find―then insisted never existed. With a reporter's practiced skill, Jayna Davis unscrambles the convoluted and distorted facts of the Oklahoma City bombing to present a compelling case that proves Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols did not act alone and in fact worked in tandem with Middle East connections that lead directly to Saddam Hussein's personal army. Ten years after the tragic April 19 bombing, this revised edition of the controversial book that captured the attention of the 9/11 Commission offers new information and a new afterword that covers the Iraq War, the verdict in the Nichols state murder trial, and recent confirmation of Al-Qaeda General Al-Zawahiri's visit to OKC to approve the bombing.
In twenty-first-century American cities, policy makers increasingly celebrate university-sponsored innovation districts as engines of inclusive growth. But the story is not so simple. In University City, Laura Wolf-Powers chronicles five decades of planning in and around the communities of West Philadelphia's University City to illuminate how the dynamics of innovation district development in the present both depart from and connect to the politics of mid-twentieth-century urban renewal. Drawing on archival and ethnographic research, Wolf-Powers concludes that even as university and government leaders vow to develop without displacement, what existing residents value is imperiled when innovation-driven redevelopment remains accountable to the property market. The book first traces the municipal and institutional politics that empowered officials to demolish a predominantly Black neighborhood near the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University in the late 1960s to make way for the University City Science Center and University City High School. It also provides new insight into organizations whose members experimented during that same period with alternative conceptions of economic advancement. The book then shifts to the present, documenting contemporary efforts to position university-adjacent neighborhoods as locations for prosperity built on scientific knowledge. Wolf-Powers examines the work of mobilized civic groups to push cultural preservation concerns into the public arena and to win policies to help economically insecure families keep a foothold in changing neighborhoods. Placing Philadelphia's innovation districts in the context of similar development taking place around the United States, University City advocates a reorientation of redevelopment practice around the recognition that despite their negligible worth in real estate terms, the time, care, and energy people invest in their local environments-and in one another-are precious urban resources.
Passed down from generation to generation, many of Derbyshire's most popular folk tales are gathered together here for the first time. Ranging from stories specific to the region, such as 'The Derby Ram', to others which are local versions of well-known classics, like 'Beauty and the Beast', all of the tales in this collection are rooted in Derbyshire's past. Written to recreate the oral traditions that made these anecdotes popular, this book provides entertainment for all. Richly illustrated with original drawings, accounts of love, loss, heroes and villains are all brought to life through vivid descriptions that have survived for several centuries. These tales have been adapted to make them accessible, enjoyable and, at times, very relevant to contemporary readers. Pete Castle has lived in Derbyshire for over twenty years, and is a professional storyteller with over thirty years of experience. For the last ten years he has been editor of Facts & Fiction, the UK's only storytelling magazine.
This story is about a brave and kind Anglo-Saxon princess called Frideswide who lived in Oxford a long time ago and just happened to be brilliant at climbing very tall trees. Her talent came in useful one day when a wicked king tried to kidnap her. How did she and her friends escape, and what happened to the king and his soldiers? With stunning illustrations by award-winning artist Alan Marks, Saint Frideswide's legend is retold for young children as a tale of adventure, courage in the face of danger, friendship, and kindness, with a few surprises along the way. The church Frideswide founded in Oxford was on the site of what is now Christ Church, and her medieval shrine can still be seen inside the Cathedral. This beautiful picture book is sure to be treasured by any child who loves tales of adventure. It will appeal to children learning about the Anglo-Saxons, to readers who like feisty heroines and to visitors to Oxford, as a meaningful souvenir of their visit.
'Carefully compiled' in 1867 'from prison documents, ancient papers, and other authentic sources,' this extremely rare book contains the full details of the crimes, trials and executions of every murderer, highwayman, rogue and rebel ever to swing from the York Tyburn. From nobles such as Lord Hussey, Sir Robert Aske and the Earl of Northumberland (who mounted the scaffold 'with a firm step'), to notorious villains such as William Nevinson, Dick Turpin (whose right leg started to shake as he awaited the drop) and Knaresborough schoolteacher-turned-murderer Eugene Aram, it is an enthralling tour through the executions of the North. Including the last words and prison letters of many of the condemned, and laced with a grim humour (as seen in the case of the murderer who begged the hangman to check the rope carefully lest it break and leave him 'a cripple for life'), it will fascinate anyone with an interest in criminal history.
Using original material and letters from the First World War, this captivating and eye-opening account uncovers the unnerving realities of the First World War and the impact it had on the town of Tunbridge Wells. It looks at world events, which ultimately determined the outbreak of the war, and how these same events affected the small town in Kent and the people who made up the community. From an early stage the hostilities of the war became very real for the people of Tunbridge Wells. Because of its geographical location, close proximity to major ports and rail links, the town became the headquarters of the nations Territorial Army, which brought with it 5,000 troops from all over the country. Out of nearly 3,000 people from Tunbridge Wells who enlisted in the military between 1914-1918, a staggering 801 did not return, and out of those who did, many suffered terrible wounds and injuries, both physically and mentally. Many moving stories are illustrated throughout, such as that of Private William Starks Vidler of the Royal Marines Light Infantry who became the town's first casualty of the war when his ship, HMS Amphion struck a mine and sunk.Ironically, eighteen others who died in the disaster were German sailors who had been rescued by the Amphion when their ship was sunk by the British Royal Navy. The book looks at letters sent from husbands and sons, who had seen action in the war, and how they were received by families on the Home Front, who were anxiously waiting for new of their loved ones. It documents the triumphs and tragedies of Tunbridge Wells' people as they sought to find normality amongst a reality far removed from anything they had ever known before.
by local artist John Clark Mayden. Bronze Winner of the Foreword INDIES Award for Photography by FOREWORD Reviews Baltimore native John Clark Mayden's photographs are distinctive to the city and specific to black life there, lingering on the front stoops and in the postage-stamp backyards of Charm City row houses. But these pictures are far from nostalgic. Informed by the photographer's deep commitment to both social justice and storytelling, they strip Baltimore of pretense and illusion and show the city's veins. Baltimore Lives gathers 101 of Mayden's best photographs in print for the first time. Taken between 1970 and 2012, these photos illuminate the experiences of life throughout the predominantly African American city, capturing the relaxed intimacy of community, family, and the comfort of home in contrast to the harsh sting of social injustice, poverty, and crime. In Mayden's work, we meet people who are not expecting us. We bear witness to their lives-their emotions, gestures, and faces that often reveal more than they conceal. But regardless of the camera's presence, people go on waiting for the bus, catching a breeze on their front steps, slogging through the snow to work and school, and, every so often, returning the photographer's gaze with a sly grin, a backward glance, a curious frown. Including a brief biography of John Clark Mayden written by his sister, Ruth W. Mayden, and an essay by art historian Michael Harris on how Mayden's work fits into larger trends of black photography, Baltimore Lives is a stunning visual history of the spatial and human elements that together make Baltimore's inner city.
More than a century after muckraking journalist Lincoln Steffens derided the city of Philadelphia as being "corrupt and contented," Philadelphia struggles to rise above this unfortunate characterization. Philadelphia, Corrupt and Consentingis the story of a city's confrontation with a history that threatens its future. Author Brett Mandel, who has been a reform-oriented government official and political insider, provides a detailed account of the corruption investigation of John Dougherty, one of the city's most powerful political figures, in order to expose and explore networks of corruption. He examines the costs of corruption, both financial and nonpecuniary, and considers the opportunity cost that corruption imposes. Mandel explores the nature and development of Philadelphia's unique culture of corruption, emphasizing how machine politics and self-dealing are entwined with city history, creating a culture that allows corruption to thrive. In addition, he provides practical, achievable policies and actions that can produce positive change in Philadelphia and elsewhere. Mandel seeks to provide insight into how our collective actions or inattention give consent to the corruption, as well as its roots and effects, and the reasons for its persistence. Philadelphia, Corrupt and Consenting is a critique, but above all, it is a call to action.
Chicago, The Windy City. grew from a small frontier town into a thriving metropolitan center of finance, industry, transportation, and tourism. More than 300 vintage black and white and hand-tinted postcards, dating from the turn of the century through the 1950s, take readers on a tour through history, showcasing historic scenes and highlighting events and sights that made Chicago famous. Stare at the skyscrapers that line Michigan Avenue, stop at Marshall Fields department store, wander into Lincoln Park, take a tour through Chicago's massive stockyards, or sit down and savor cuisine in fine dining spots.
In the four provinces of Ireland there are thirty-two counties. Each county and its people have their own traditions, beliefs and folklore - and each one is also inhabited by the Sidhe: an ancient and magical race. Some believe they are descended from fallen angels, whilst others say they are the progeny of Celtic deities. They go by many names: the good folk, the wee folk, the gentle people and the fey, but are most commonly known as 'the fairies'. These are not the whimsical fairies of Victorian and Edwardian picture books. They are feared and revered in equal measure, and even in the twenty-first century are spoken of in hushed tones. The fairies are always listening. Storyteller Steve Lally and his wife singer-songwriter Paula Flynn Lally have compiled this magnificent collection of magical fairy stories from every county in Ireland. Filled with unique illustrations that bring these tales to life, Irish Gothic Fairy Stories will both enthral and terrify readers for generations to come.
It's no surprise that remote Martha's Vineyard is home to a significant population of ghosts. There are the strange entities that just may have played a part in the notorious accident at the Chappaquiddick Bridge. There is the ghost of aristocratic Desire Coffin, called back from the Other Side by the power of music and the memory of lost love. And at one haunted inn, Room 8, accessible only by way of a cramped hidden staircase, is the focus of strange events -- including the total disappearance of one guest.
At first sight, this intriguing map appears to offer a guide to the pubs of Victorian Oxford, designed in a similar way to tourist maps today. Beerhouses, breweries and other licensed premises are all shown, clustered around a specific part of the city centre. But an explanation on the reverse shows this wasn't the original intention. Published in 1883 by the Temperance Movement, the map was designed to show how the poorer areas of Oxford were heavily populated with drinking establishments and the text explains the detrimental effect of alcohol on local inhabitants: 'the result is idleness and ill-health, and very frequently poverty and crime.' The map also reveals how few 'drink-shops' (shown in red) appear in North Oxford, where the magistrates who granted the licences were most likely to live. This unique map was therefore intended to prevent alcohol consumption, while at the same time demonstrating how easy it was to find somewhere to drink. Today, it offers a fascinating insight into the drinking habits of the former citizens of this world-renowned city. 'The Drink Map' is reproduced with the original text and a commentary on the reverse.
St. Johns River begins in the swamps in southeast Florida, then passes 310 miles through many lakes, communities, forests, and swamps north towards the Atlantic Ocean near Jacksonville. As a resource, it has been enjoyed by millions, but few know its full and fascinating story. It was explored by both the Spanish and French, and hosted a thriving Steamboat trade. Today it has become a popular recreation and tourist site. Illustrated by 300 vintage postcards, this book takes a virtual tour from St. Johns River's source to its basin, with stories of its history, tributaries, cities, and attractions along the way.
The Little Book of Shropshire is an intriguing, fast-paced, fact-packed compendium of places, people and events in the county, from its earliest origins to the present day. Here you can read about the important contributions Shropshire has made to the history of the nation, and meet some of the great men and women, the eccentrics and the scoundrels with which its history is littered. Packaged in an easily readable 'dip-in' format, visitors and locals alike will find something to remind, surprise, amuse and entertain them in the remarkably engaging little book.
Take a tour of the Berkshire Hills and travel along the nation's first scenic route, the Mohawk Trail; delight in the sounds of the Tanglewood Music Center and the Shelbourne and Bish-Bash Falls; visit landmarks including Hancock Shaker Village, the town of Lenox, and Jacob's Ladder. More than 350 color images take you back in time to show how the Berkshires came to be the recreational and cultural mecca that it is today. See why this was the summer getaway place for the elite from the North for many years. This is a keepsake that residents and tourists alike will treasure, and with 250 vintage postcards, collectors worldwide will also find this a valuabe resource.
The work that launched the picturesque movement and changed our ways of looking at landscape forever. A witty, elegant, opinionated pilgrimage of taste. Complete with 17 aquatints drawn by Gilpin as examples of perfected landscape. Introduced by Richard Humphreys, who was Curator of Programme Research at Tate Britain and lead curator of their A Picture of Britain exhibition.
Secret Newark goes behind the facades of the familiar to discover the lesser-known aspects of the town's fascinating past. Situated on the important old Roman road, the Fosse Way, the ancestral market town grew around the, now ruined, Newark Castle and its large marketplace. Later, during the English Civil War, the town was a hotbed of royalist support and was besieged three times by parliamentarian forces. Today the town serves as a thriving and picturesque site, boasting many heritage attractions and activities. Newark has many secrets, and as you walk along the streets you are walking through history. There are clear reminders of the town's past everywhere, waiting for you to stop, look and listen to their intriguing stories. On a journey through this ancient town, Jillian Campbell and Mike Cox tell these forgotten or untold tales. You may think that you know Newark, but take another look around and you will find more than you could possibly imagine.
When gazing at the city's impressive skyline, we too often forget the notable individuals who built these grand and glittering buildings, as well as the nearby museums, parks and neighborhoods we also treasure. Reflected in the character, reputation and even design of our city, the legacy of the early settlers continues on today. Through their efforts, almost always imbued with a civic entrepreneurial spirit, they stamped their mark on our burgeoning regional reputation, while also allowing current leaders to bolster and broaden our national reputation. From its very beginnings, Cincinnati offered an enticing combination of personable welcome and worldly sophistication. At one point, Cincinnati had more native-born residents than any other American city, a testament to the values that attracted and retained its citizens. In Founders and Famous Families of Cincinnati, author Wendy Hart Beckman brings to life the founding families' histories, sharing these intertwined and fascinating tales with readers near and far. A charming history of lives lived large -- truly the Who's Who (as well as the When and Where) of Cincinnati -- that when considered together, made the Queen City the great place to live and work that it is today.
Enjoy a nostalgic tour around the Chesapeake Bay's charming Talbot County, Maryland, via more than 255 vintage postcards and 25 contemporary photographs. Your tour begins in Oxford, where you can sail on the beautiful Tred Avon River, stroll along tree-lined Morris Street, and see Broad Creek as it once was. Ride the ferry across the river to St. Michaels and visit the downtown and harbor areas as they looked in the early 1900s. Your tour continues on to Claiborne to relive the drama of steamboats arriving from Baltimore, and to Tilghman Island for an intriguing look at charter fishing and oyster work boats of days past. There is more than enough to see, so choose a comfortable seat, let this book be your guide, and enjoy a delightful ride back in time to the Talbot County bayside of long ago.
This is a trip down the garden path to the loos of yesteryear with photographs, a little history and many hilarious anecdotes. It is illustrated.
Beyond its housing estates and identikit high streets there is another Britain. This is the Britain of mist-drenched forests and unpredictable sea-frets: of wraith-like fog banks, druidic mistletoe and peculiar creatures that lurk, half-unseen, in the undergrowth, tantalising and teasing just at the periphery of human vision. How have the remarkably persistent folkloric traditions of the British Isles formed and been formed by the identities and psyches of those who inhabit them? In her sparkling new history, Carolyne Larrington explores the diverse ways in which a myriad of imaginary and fantastical beings has moulded the cultural history of the nation. Fairies, elves and goblins here tread purposefully, sometimes malignly, over an eerie, preternatural landscape that also conceals brownies, selkies, trows, knockers, boggarts, land-wights, Jack o'Lanterns, Barguests, the sinister Nuckleavee, or water-horse, and even Black Shuck: terrifying hell-hound of the Norfolk coast with eyes of burning coal. Focusing on liminal points where the boundaries between this world and that of the supernatural grow thin those marginal tide-banks, saltmarshes, floodplains, moors and rock-pools wherein mystery lies the author shows how mythologies of Mermen, Green men and Wild-men have helped and continue to help human beings deal with such ubiquitous concerns as love and lust, loss and death and continuity and change. Evoking the Wild Hunt, the ghostly bells of Lyonesse and the dread fenlands haunted by Grendel, and ranging the while from Shetland to Jersey and from Ireland to East Anglia, this is a book that will captivate all those who long for the wild places: the mountains and chasms where Gog, Magog and their fellow giants lie in wait."
"More than 40 photographs and illustrations capture the feel of the
Sound and render a visual history of its transformation;
ultimately, the book shows that despite the over-development of
much of the Sound, there are still places that remain pristine and
untouched." "For anyone who cares about where we live, this profusely
illustrated book would make a swell gift." "This popular presentation will make interesting reading for
those who treasure the endangered Long Island Sound." Spanning the shores of Connecticut and Long Island, New York, the Long Island Sound is one of the most picturesque places in North America. From the discovery of the Sound in 1614, to the adventures of Captain Kidd, to the sinking of the "Lexington" in the sound in 1840, the Long Island Sound also holds a unique place in American history. The Long Island Sound traces the growth of fishing and shipbuilding villages along the sound to the development of major industrial ports, resort towns, and suburban communities along the sound. Marilyn Weigold discusses the subsequent overcrowding and pollution that resulted from this prosperity and expansion. Originally published in 1974 as "The American Mediterranean" and long out of print, The Long Island Sound has been updated by the author with a new preface and final chapter describing the Sound in the twenty-first century. In this new edition, Weigold particularly focuses on environmental concerns, and describes more current milestones, like the Long Island Pine Barrens Society, who fought and won in 1995 to set aside 100,000 acres as NY State's first forest preserve; the continuousconstruction of the Long Island Expressway, with its forty-one miles of HOV lanes; the attempt made by several of Connecticut's coastal cities to reinvigorate urban redevelopment; and the Long Island Sound Study's investigation of toxic substances--both natural and man-made--which continue to contaminate the waterway. Through over 40 stunning photographs and many fascinating stories, The Long Island Sound tells the history of a vastly populated, but underdiscussed, part of America.
"A remarkable act of personal history: brave, revelatory and unflinchingly honest" WILLIAM BOYD "There is no-one writing in English like this: engaged humanity achieving a hard-won wisdom" DAVID MILLS, The Times Lord of All the Dead is a courageous journey into Javier Cercas' family history and that of a country collapsing from a fratricidal war. The author revisits Ibahernando, his parents' village in southern Spain, to research the life of Manuel Mena. This ancestor, dearly loved by Cercas' mother, died in combat at the age of nineteen during the battle of the Ebro, the bloodiest episode in Spain's history. Who was Manuel Mena? A fascist hero whose memory is an embarrassment to the author, or a young idealist who happened to fight on the wrong side? And how should we judge him, as grandchildren and great-grandchildren of that generation, interpreting history from our supposed omniscience and the misleading perspective of a present full of automatic answers, that fails to consider the particularities of each personal and family drama? Wartime epics, heroism and death are some of the underlying themes of this unclassifiable novel that combines road trips, personal confessions, war stories and historical scholarship, finally becoming an incomparable tribute to the author's mother and the incurable scars of an entire generation.
Take a nostalgic, scenic journey through the San Diego of days gone by. 226 vintage postcards show the city as it appeared decades, and even a century, ago. From crisp Marine formations at Fort Rosecrans to casual strolls through Balboa Park, you'll see San Diego's history unfold. Dozens of images celebrate San Diego's red-carpet welcome for the 1915 Panama-California International Exposition. Romantic views portray Casa de Estudillo, where novelist Helen Hunt Jackson's heroine Ramona captured the nation's heart. Dodge trolleys and horses on D Street, ogle the glorious U.S. Grant Hotel, explore famous beaches and resort areas, and take in the panorama from Mission Cliff when it was an idyllic garden. These wonderful images illustrate sites that lured so many people to San Diego in the early to mid twentieth century. |
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