American Biographies - History Books

Name: The Ghostly Tales of New Orleans
Brand: Laura Dragon
SKU: 9781467198189
Price: 9.74 USD
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The Ghostly Tales of New Orleans

$12.99 $9.74 Save 25%

New Orleans Jazz

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Andrew Higgins and the Boats That Landed Victory in World War II

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Italian Louisiana

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

Maison Blanche Department Stores

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Louisiana's Zydeco

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Simon of New Orleans

$45.00 $33.75 Save 25%

Louisiana Tech's Dave Nitz

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Drago's

$30.00 $22.50 Save 25%

K&B Drug Stores

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

The Voodoo Queen

$21.95 $16.46 Save 25%

Kate Chopin in New Orleans

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Italians in New Orleans

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Pierre Part

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Wicked New Orleans

$19.99 $14.99 Save 25%

Tennessee Williams 101

$16.95 $12.71 Save 25%

Legendary Locals of Shreveport

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Legendary Locals of Eunice

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Black Women Writers of Louisiana

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

Krauss

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Johnny White's Sports Bar

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Beatles Day in New Orleans

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Pat Browne Jr. Story, The

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The Ghostly Tales of New Orleans

9781467198189

$12.99 $9.74 Save 25%

Welcome to the spooky streets of New Orleans!

Stay alert! Ghosts lurk around every corner. Even the most unexpected places might be haunted by wandering phantoms. Did you know that New Orleans cemeteries are built above ground? Or that thousands of visitors each year come to see what ghosts and spirits may appear in these beautiful Cities of the Dead? Can you believe that the ghost of Marie Laveau—the Voodoo Queen of New Orleans—was once seen dancing on a tomb, with a snake wrapped around her? Pulled right from history, these ghostly tales will change the way you see the Big Easy, and have you sleeping with the light on!

New Orleans Jazz

9781467111713

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Discover how Jazz shaped the history and enhanced the life of the citizens of New Orleans.

From the days when Buddy Bolden would blow his cornet to attract an audience from one New Orleans park to another, to the brass bands in clubs and on the streets today, jazz in New Orleans has been about simple things: getting people to snap their fingers, tap their toes, get up and clap their hands, and most importantly dance! From the 1890s to World War I, from uptown to Faubourg Treme and out to the lakefront, New Orleans embraced this uniquely American form of music. Local musicians nurtured jazz, matured it, and passed it on to others. Some left the city to make their names elsewhere, while others stayed, playing the clubs, marching in the parades, and sending loved ones home with ""jazz funerals."" Older musicians mentored younger ones, preserving the traditions that give New Orleans such an exciting jazz scene today.

Andrew Higgins and the Boats That Landed Victory in World War II

9781455625277

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Andrew Higgins built boats that could “crunch through driftwood, bounce over logs, climb a beach,” and “wham up on a sloping concrete sea wall.” In World War II, that was exactly what was needed to get soldiers and Jeeps from the ocean to land. This biography for young readers traces the invention of the legendary Higgins boat—and the adventurous childhood of the remarkable man behind it.

Italian Louisiana

9781626193857

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

At the close of the nineteenth century, Louisiana's ports hosted an influx of Italian immigrants. Like so many immigrant communities before, acclimating to their new home was not easy.

Though the Italian contribution to Louisiana's culture is palpable and celebrated, at one time ethnic Italians were constantly embroiled in scandal, sometimes deserved and sometimes as scapegoats. The new immigrants hoped that they would be welcomed and see for themselves the streets paved with gold. Their new lives, however, were difficult. Italians in Louisiana faced prejudice, violence and political exile for their refusal to accept the southern racial mores. Author and historian Alan Gauthreaux documents the experience of those Italians who arrived in Louisiana over one hundred years ago..

Maison Blanche Department Stores

9780738588179

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On October 30, 1897, S.J. Shwartz, Gus Schullhoefer, and Hartwig D. Newman--with financial backing from banker Isidore Newman--opened the Maison Blanche at the corner of Canal Street and Rue Dauphine in New Orleans. Converting Shwartz's dry goods store into the city's first department store, the trio created a retail brand whose name lasted over a century. In 1908, Shwartz tore his store down and built what was the city's largest building--13 stories, with his Maison Blanche occupying the first five floors. The MB Building became, and still is, a New Orleans icon, and Maison Blanche was a retail leader in the city, attracting some of the best and brightest people in the business. One of those employees, display manager Emile Alline, created the store's second icon, the Christmas character "Mr. Bingle," in 1947. Mr. Bingle continues to spark the imagination of New Orleans children of all ages. Even though Maison Blanche has become part of New Orleans's past, the landmark Canal Street store lives on as the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.

Louisiana's Zydeco

9781467110051

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The bayou sings and the trees sway with the untold stories of many unsung heroes, including Louisiana's amazing Zydeco musicians. The music is an extraordinary blend of the accordion, the bass and electric guitars, the drums, the rub or scrub board, and other instruments. It tells stories about finding and losing love, life lessons, and other revelatory events that rise from the skillful hands of musicians playing the diatonic and piano accordions. The diverse population of Louisiana creates a rich culture with Zydeco festivals, Creole foods, and the unique music that fills the air with a foot-stomping beat like no other. Louisiana's Zydeco is a snapshot of some of the many musicians who live and play the homegrown music known as Zydeco.

Simon of New Orleans

9781941879078

$45.00 $33.75 Save 25%

Simon of New Orleans is a celebration of the exuberant, sumptuous, energetic work of the Artist synonymous with his adopted hometown. It's difficult to wander around New Orleans without stumbling across the explosions of color and whimsy that are the trademarks of a Simon piece. In fact, the scope of his work is unparalleled. Private collectors snap up pieces as soon as the paint is dry. Simon has endeared himself to locals and tourists alike, and they have responded to the unpretentious wit that is the hallmark of his art.

Louisiana Tech's Dave Nitz

9781467159203

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Author Christopher A. Kennedy shares the story of the Voice of the Bulldogs. Dave Nitz was the voice of Louisiana Tech University sports for half a century, his distinctive voice emanating from Tech fans’ radios. A West Virginia native, Nitz dreamed of broadcasting in the big leagues. Little did he know that his Hall of Fame broadcasting career would take him to Ruston, Louisiana. Along the way, Nitz worked with country music icon Tom T. Hall in West Virginia and covered William & Mary University football under Lou Holtz. At Tech, Nitz gave voice to the basketball greatness of Karl “The Mailman” Malone and the national champion Lady Techsters. He called gridiron action from Maxie Lambright through unforgettable upsets of Alabama and Michigan State. Author Christopher A. Kennedy shares the story of the Voice of the Bulldogs. As Nitz would say, “You gotta love it!”

K&B Drug Stores

9780738582276

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Sydney J. Besthoff III, past president and owner of K&B Drug Stores and grandson of Sydney J. Besthoff (founder with Gustave Katz of Katz & Besthoff Drug Store), is a meticulous keeper of records. The photographs found in this book are from his personal collection, covering the 92-year life span of Katz & Besthoff and K&B Drug Stores. This is a rare opportunity to see these photographs, which chronicle a piece of New Orleans history, during which time the store became a part of the community. K&B Drug Store grew from a local pharmacy with more than 50 locations in the New Orleans area to 186 stores in six states while remaining based in New Orleans. Fondly remembered as the "purple dragon," K&B is greatly missed by all those who passed through its purple doors and were rung up on its purple cash registers. Come sit inside a Katz & Besthoff location one last time and have a Nectar soda--and don't forget to pick up half a gallon of K&B ice cream on your way home.

The Voodoo Queen

9781455628278

$21.95 $16.46 Save 25%

Witch? Sorceress? Daughter of Satan? Murderer? Thief? Saint? Which label best fits Marie Laveau?

Queen of the voodoos, she is considered to have been the most important voodooienne ever to have reigned on this continent.

Robert Tallant, well known for his fine stories of the South, including Voodoo in New Orleans and Gumbo Ya-Ya, attempted to make use of all available facts and information in re-creating the life of this infamous woman. Marie Laveau, the last and most storied American sorceress, continues to weave her spell as those who read this fascinating portrait will discover.

Kate Chopin in New Orleans

9781467157063

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Authors Rory O'Neill Schmitt and Rosary O'Neill share the NOLA life of Kate Chopin, the first great American woman novelist. In this epic story, Chopin becomes a Phoenix rising amidst the disgrace, death, and abandonment in the romantic desperate setting of post-Civil War Louisiana. This book, a follow up to Edgar Degas in New Orleans, presents Chopin, who lived in the same neighborhood as the Degas family during that time. Chopin celebrated in New Orleans’ great homes and mansions up River Road with their wonderland of oaks, columns, balconies. She had lived in the Garden District, watched New Orleans trolleys with their big windows roll past the Gothic mansions and Greco-Roman houses on St. Charles Avenue, strolled languidly through Audubon Park with its oak tree wonderland full of swamps and lush Louisiana foliage.

Italians in New Orleans

9780738516929

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Explore the social, family, political and religious history of the Italians - one of New Orleans' most remarkable ethnic groups.

Between 1850 and 1870, New Orleans boasted the largest Italian-born population of any city in the United States. Its early Italian immigrants included musicians, business leaders, and diplomats. Sadly, in 1891, 11 members of the large Sicilian settlement in New Orleans were victims of the largest mass lynching in American history. However, by 1910, the city's French Quarter was a Little Palermo with Italian entrepreneurs, laborers, and restauranteurs dominating the scene.

Pierre Part

9781467113311

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Pierre Part and Belle River rest in an area once known as the Atchafalaya Basin. Between 1770 and 1773, a young Canadian named Pierre Part set foot on the banks of what he called La Bay de Lac Verret. He was with the Spanish colonial militia under the command of Commandant Nicholas Verret Sr., a French Canadian. Part considered this place a beautiful wilderness and asked his superior for permission to establish a settlement--his request was not granted. The military returned Part to the Spanish military post at Valenzuela, and although he never made this area his home, his name remains. Other French explorers came much earlier than Part, and some of the area's waterways bear French names: Le Belle Rivere, Le Lac de Natchez, Bayou de Magazille, Bayou de Lantania (Palmetto), Bayou de Postillion, Le Lac de Palourde, and Le Bayou Milhomme. In 1780, Acadian French-speaking people moved to Pierre Part from Burlie des Olivers and Burlie Saint Vincent. Small groups came and settled together at various places within sight of each other. In 1803, a small settlement of families, which is believed to have included the Solors and Berthelots and later the Heberts and the Pipsairs, settled on the banks of Lake Verret, where Bayou Pierre Part flows into the lake.

Wicked New Orleans

9781596299450

$19.99 $14.99 Save 25%

A look back at New Orleans's early wicked days and historic crimes

Since as early as the 1700s, New Orleans has been a city filled with sin and vice. Those first pioneering citizens of the Big Easy were thieves, vagabonds and criminals of all kinds. By the time Louisiana fell under American control, New Orleans had become a city of debauchery and corruption camouflaged by decadence. It was also considered one of the country's most dangerous cities, with a reputation of crime and loose morals. Rampant gambling and prostitution were the norm in nineteenth-century New Orleans, and over one-third of today's French Quarter was considered a hotbed of sin. Tales in this volume include that of the notorious Axeman who plagued the streets of the Crescent City in the early 1900s and Kate Townsend, a prostitute who was murdered by her own lover, a man who later was awarded her inheritance.

Legendary Locals of Shreveport

9781467101783

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Legendary Locals of Shreveport chronicles fascinating people who have made a difference in the Shreveport–Bossier City area. Some are good, some are bad, and more than a few are wicked. There are movie starlets, entertainers, decorated war veterans, gangsters, preachers, madams, politicians, giants of industry, and humble folk who rose to greatness or infamy. Shreveport began as a rough and tumble frontier town that came late to being civilized. A Baptist preacher shot one of Quantrill's Raiders when he rode his horse into church during a Sunday service. The most famous madam in the region was also a suffragette. The first successful bankers in Shreveport were immigrants from Prussia who developed a business model that extends into the modern era. Shreveport lost one quarter of its population in less than a month due to a yellow fever epidemic. And that is just the beginning.

Legendary Locals of Eunice

9781467100243

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Long before C.C. Duson—realtor, sheriff, and state senator—established his town on the Louisiana prairie, Cajuns, Europeans, and Native Americans had forged homes on the isolated site. Then in 1894, Duson's city auction enabled numerous ethnic groups to buy lots in the new town. Railroad construction brought Anglo, African-American, and Irish laborers, while Lebanese and Jewish merchants saw retail opportunities in Eunice. Fearful of war rumors in Europe prior to 1914, German families immigrated to prairie farms. In 1929, Italians arrived as the Mississippi River's flooding disrupted their lives. By the 1930s, the Tepetate oil field was discovered south of Eunice, creating fortunes for Anglo workers. Men from nearby World War II military bases often settled in Eunice after marrying local girls. Eunice saw new arrivals as petrochemical plants and pipelines began construction in the 1950s. The diverse traditions of newcomers blended with the dominant Cajun culture, resulting in the rich gumbo of citizens' lives. Legendary Locals of Eunice celebrates some individuals who have contributed to the vibrant and diverse culture of Eunice through the years.

Black Women Writers of Louisiana

9781467151719

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

Louisiana has been home, by birth or adoption, to numerous literary greats. But among that talent, there's an under-celebrated cohort: Black women. Due to lack of education and opportunity, their record is fairly brief, but over the past century they have been responsible for a flowering of literature that portrays the Black experience through poetry, fiction, plays, essays and journalism. The writers profiled here have not gone wholly unrecognized though--far from it. Some have been honored with prestigious awards and have found a readership large enough to put them at the forefront of the national literary scene. Beginning with Alice Ruth Dunbar Nelson--a fiery activist, columnist and storyteller in the late nineteenth century--the work extends to Fatima Shaik, named 2021 Louisiana Writer of the Year. Join Ann B. Dobie on this celebration of Louisiana literary talent.

Krauss

9781625858627

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For almost one hundred years, generations of New Orleans shoppers flocked to Krauss. The Canal Street store was hailed for its vast merchandise selection and quality customer service. In its early days, it sold lace and fabric to the ladies of the notorious red-light district of Storyville. The store's renowned lunch counter, Eddie's at Krauss, served Eddie Baquet's authentic New Orleans cuisine to customers and celebrities such as Julia Child. Although the beloved store finally closed its doors in 1997, Krauss is still fondly remembered as a retail haven. With vintage photographs, interviews with store insiders and a wealth of research, historian Edward J. Branley brings the story of New Orleans' Creole department store back to life.

Johnny White's Sports Bar

9781467140904

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Johnny White's Sports Bar was a French Quarter institution. Often called the locals' living room, Johnny White's was the only twenty-four-hour bar on Bourbon Street and attracted a colorful cast of regulars, local characters and tourists looking for a good time. Memorable French Quarter personalities like Ruthie the Duck Girl and Perri the Hobo frequented the bar in their rounds. During Hurricane Katrina, the bar remained a refuge to those who'd stayed in the city, despite authorities ordering the bar to close at gunpoint. When the bar's lease was finally up in 2012, patrons mourned its loss with a full jazz funeral procession. Marita Woywod Crandle offers an insider's look at the gritty, unique and often hilarious world of this beloved and much-missed French Quarter icon.

Pat Browne Jr. Story, The

9781455626885

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Attorney Pat Browne Jr., a star athlete at Jesuit High School and Tulane University and a New Orleans All-American golfer, was blinded in a car accident. He would go on to win twenty-three blind pro golf tournaments. Arnold Palmer nominated him for the World Golf Hall of Fame. This inspiring book is his story.