Books for the Car Guy in Your Life

Name: Wilmington before Interstate 95
Brand: William Francis
SKU: 9781467163293
Price: 24.99 USD
Availability: InStock

The Tinkerer. The Race Fan. The Classic Car Buff. The Mechanic. There are many kinds of car lovers, and we have books for them all. For example, Lost Car Companies of Detroit features fascinating tales from many of the more than 200 car companies that tried their hand at making cars in Motor City. Explore the histories of classic names like Packard and Mustang. Thrill to the action-packed stories from the iconic oval of Charlotte Motor Speedway, to the hairpin turns of Watkins Glen, and the high-banked curves of Dover Downs in Delaware. Or, inspire your gearhead with San Diego’s fascinating Lowriders--intricately painted, low-to-the-ground cars with tricks up their sleeves. This year, give the gift of gears.

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Wilmington before Interstate 95

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Staten Island and the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge

Paperback

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Delaware Auto Racing

Paperback

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Pittsburgh and the Great Migration

Paperback

$23.99 $17.99 Save 25%

Rochester's Transportation Heritage

Paperback

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Ontario County Transportation

Paperback

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Cruising in Montgomery and Berks Counties

Paperback

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Wilmington before Interstate 95

9781467163293

$24.99

Readers who want a distinct and compelling look at the nation's first state prior to the building of Interstate 95 will enjoy the insight provided into Wilmington.

Interstate 95 was constructed as part of the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956, signed into law by Pres. Dwight Eisenhower. Francis “Frank” Victor du Pont (1894–1962), son of T. Coleman du Pont, who gave Delaware the DuPont Highway, was the US commissioner of the Bureau of Public Roads from 1953 to 1955. Frank du Pont was a key figure in promoting a national highway and for championing the need for this new interstate system to access city centers. This “Center City” requirement came into play when a lame duck Wilmington City Council on June 21, 1957, approved placing the interstate between Adams and Jackson Streets, essentially cleaving the city and ignoring various protest groups who favored a route east of the city.

Wilmington before Interstate 95 is author William Francis’s sixth book for Arcadia Publishing, all dedicated to the history of the First State. The book contains images primarily from the Delaware State Public Archives dated in the 1950s and early 1960s, highlighting west Wilmington and the neighborhoods demolished for the interstate as well as a city history and the downtown area from this bygone era.

Nazareth Speedway

9781467120487

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

In the early 1900s, Nazareth Speedway opened its gates to bring dirt racing to the masses. Located in the industrious town of Nazareth, these tracks hosted many racing legends, such as Mario Andretti, Frankie Schneider, and Al Tasnady, over the years. As the tracks became more popular for racing events, cars got faster, safety rules were modified, and track configurations were changed. In the late 1980s, asphalt was brought in to cover the big dirt track that Nazareth was known for. The new asphalt tri-oval course design was unique and challenged its drivers. Shortly thereafter, IRC merged with Roger Penske, and the track closed in 2004.

Staten Island and the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge

9781467170321

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

With the opening of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge in 1964, Staten Island was changed forever.

Sewers, schools, roadways, and even the politicians of New York City were not prepared for the onslaught of relocating Brooklyn residents who sought a rural lifestyle. Houses were bought as quickly as they were built. Schools were scrambling to find seats for thousands of newly arriving students. The antiquated sewer system of Staten Island could not handle the overload and there simply wasn't enough room for all of the septic tanks needed.

Who were the allies or adversaries of development? Who sought to make a meaningful plan for Staten Island's future?

Author Patricia Salmon examines the preparation, design, and opening of "The Bridge," as well as how it impacted the citizens of Staten Island during the next decade.

Delaware Auto Racing

9780738592077

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

The First State of Delaware has a truly legendary history of automobile racing.

Since the first racers roared down the dusty Delaware State Fairgrounds track in 1915 at Wawaset Park, Wilmington, Delaware, auto racing has thrilled capacity crowds all over the state. Images of Sports: Delaware Auto Racing documents and explores the tracks, cars, and people that made racing what it is today. The history of racing can be seen in historic photographs from the legendary dirt tracks, like Delmar and Georgetown Speedways, to the high banked turns of Delaware's NASCAR track--Dover Downs. Rare images have been collected from drivers, car owners, fans, and historians to provide an insightful look into auto racing in Delaware. Many of the historic photographs have never been published.

Pittsburgh and the Great Migration

9781467153140

$23.99 $17.99 Save 25%

During the Great Migration of 1916-1940 over two million African Americans left the American South seeking a greater quality of life, with the Steel City a major destination.

Men and women packed up what they could fit in a suitcase or the trunk of a car and left behind their homes and families in search of better opportunities in the budding industries of the North and Midwest. They were escaping discriminatory laws and racial violence.

Purchasing a car was one of the first things African Americans did as they moved into the middle class, providing a sense of freedom and automony unexerienced before. This mobility and the freedom to come and go as one pleases revolutionized the Black middle class in Pittsburgh and played a pivitol role in the Great Migration's effects upon the region.

The Frick Pittsburgh's Car and Carriage Museum presents the harrowing history of Pittsburgh in the Great Migration and the role the car played in the growth of Black mobility and automony.

Rochester's Transportation Heritage

9780738513300

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

A city's rich transportation history comes alive in Rochester's Transportation Heritage. Here, the evolution of transportation in Rochester is documented in vintage images from the 1890s through the 1950s. Included are photographs of Charles Lindbergh's visit to Rochester; images of the earliest locomotives and grand railroad stations; a picture of a trotting mare racing a lady bicyclist at the old Driving Park racetrack; views of boats on the Erie Canal; and shots of the city's first airplanes. Rochester's Transportation Heritage revives the horse-drawn trolley car days and the lost subway era. Rare images of the Regas auto and the cars that were destroyed by Rochester's 1932 tornado complete the story.

Ontario County Transportation

9780738509181

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Ontario County Transportation encompasses the means of travel in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in the towns of Canandaigua, Geneva, Phelps, Naples, Victor, Clifton Springs, Manchester, and Shortsville, New York. Beginning with the primitive horse and buggy and ending with the state-of-the-art automobile, this volume chronicles the history of transportation in a realistic and fascinating way. Featured in this diverse volume are never-before-published pictures of locomotives and railroads, early aviation and the Flying Farmers, delivery vehicles, water vessels, fire trucks, and trolleys.

Throughout history, Ontario County was regarded as an area of favorable influence. For this very reason, it had such iconic visitors as Franklin D. Roosevelt and Andrew Johnson, who are shown within the chapter entitled "Railway Classics." Also among the eminent persons who have appeared in the area in the past are Canandaigua native and automobile pioneer John North Willys, Geneva native and Secretary of the Treasury Charles J. Folger, and Phelps innovator Charles Lane, whose chief achievement was building one of the first fire trucks in Ontario County.

Cruising in Montgomery and Berks Counties

9781467115575

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Montgomery and Berks Counties have been central to the car industry for decades, employing residents of the cities and surrounding small towns. Pottstown first came to be known as the cruising capital of the East Coast in the 1950s and held on to the title for many years. In the 1960s, hundreds would line the sidewalks to watch the hot rods and classic cars cruise down High Street. Among the circuit favorites were the Tropical Treat, Hilltop Drive-In, and Dempsey Diner. Lansdale also attracted automobile enthusiasts who enjoyed cruising the Dale. In 1962, the Maple Grove Raceway, a quarter-mile strip in Mohnton, opened and became home to the popular Super Chevy Weekend, hosting great drivers like Fred Spiezio, Ken Hall, and John Johnson. The Grandview Speedway and the Reading Fairgrounds Speedway also emerged, attracting even more auto racing enthusiasts from around the area. Today, longtime residents enjoy reminiscing their beloved cruising pastime, with many belonging to historical automotive clubs.