Illinois

Name: From Christmas to Twelfth Night in Southern Illinois
Brand: John J. Dunphy
SKU: 9781596299139
Price: 18.74 USD
Availability: InStock

Illinois history exceeds the capacity of the Sears Catalog for categorization and the World’s Fair for spectacle. And no matter what the self-appointed tour guide at the local diner might say, the heritage of the land of Lincoln doesn’t end with Capone’s demise. Like the Chicago Loop, the Prairie State’s past seems to defy straightforward chronology—Cahokia offered a version of urban sprawl more than a thousand years before the first Windy City skyscraper. From Park Forest to Cave-in-Rock, scan our shelf of Illinois history books with the unflagging enthusiasm of a Wrigley Field hot dog vendor. [View all Illinois books]

618 products

Sort

From Christmas to Twelfth Night in Southern Illinois

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Wicked Decatur

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

Arlington Heights, Illinois

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

When Hollywood Landed at Chicago's Midway Airport:

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

Lake Bluff

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Springfield Aviation

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

The Chicago Haymarket Affair

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

Chicago Aces

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Nick Blase:

$23.99 $17.99 Save 25%

Italian-American Women of Chicagoland

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Puerto Rican Chicago

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Bloomingdale

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Chicago and the State of Illinois:

$11.99 $8.99 Save 25%

Virginia Marmaduke

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Lewis University

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Murder and Mayhem in Chicago's Vice Districts

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

The Trout Valley Hertz Estate, and Curtiss Farm

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Boone County Originals:

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

Previous 1 … 5 6 7

From Christmas to Twelfth Night in Southern Illinois

9781596299139

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Journey to a region where all the perennials are said to bloom at midnight on Christmas Eve and where a family's luck is determined by the first person to walk through their door on New Year's Day. Spend a literary Christmas in Herrin, listen to the twelve bells of Belleville ring out the coming year and greet the Three Kings of Germantown at Epiphany. Whether you are a newcomer to southern Illinois or whether you feel like you have been singing La Guiannee since the tradition started in Prairie du Rocher in 1720, join John J. Dunphy for a season of sacred memories and merry recollections.

Wicked Decatur

9781609491604

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

In 1854, Decatur was nicknamed Hell's Half Acre. By the 1910s and 1920s, the town was referred to as the Second Most Corrupt City in Illinois, gaining notoriety as a place where murder, bootlegging, prostitution, kidnapping, gambling and political corruption were common. Members of the Decatur police force, like Troy Taylor's great-grandfather, were hard-pressed to bar the door against crime in a town that seemed determined to remain wide-open. Wicked Decatur presents a rogue's gallery of those who have slipped through the cracks of legality over the past century and a half.

Arlington Heights, Illinois

9781596296749

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

The village of Arlington Heights--beginning with the diligence and fortitude of William Dunton--is replete with stories of bitter hardship and exalting triumph. Originally named Dunton after its founder, the village's success was sealed by canny deal-making that brought a railroad through the middle of town. As the state of Illinois boomed, the village on the tracks flourished with agriculture, industry, transportation and an expanding population. From the influx of immigrants and industry to the resurrection of the Arlington Park Racetrack, read the compelling history of a small agricultural village's transformation into a thriving commercial district and the unique way in which its small-town charm and industrious spirit coexist.

When Hollywood Landed at Chicago's Midway Airport:

9781609495923

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

Al Capone dove for the floor when he saw the flash of the camera, while his startled body guards drew their guns. The actress Miriam Hopkins ran screaming from the camera while Lyndon Johnson ran towards it. General Jimmy Doolittle called him a Son of a Bitch, while the Pope called him his friend. Bob Hope asked if he would escort Hope's wife to church, and John Barrymore asked if he would hide him from his mistress. Cary Grant demanded a shoe shine, Eleanor Roosevelt demanded an apology, and Harry Truman demanded a bourbon. Who was this guy? He was Mike Rotunno, and he was a photographer for one of Chicago's newspapers. Yet, he also photographed airplanes for the airlines, starting in the 1920's, the beginning of his 50 year career at Chicago's Midway airport. In that span he got to know everyone, great or small, and his story is like a cross between the movie The Terminal" and "Forrest Gump." He introduced movie stars to baseball players, Marilyn Monroe to a room full o."

Lake Bluff

9780738552101

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

The shores of Lake Michigan, with towering bluffs and heavily wooded ravines, have attracted many to Lake Bluff during the past two centuries. The Potawatomis were the first to come, using the ravines for their tribal council meetings. The German and Irish came in the 1830s, drawn by the cheap land prices. The 1870s brought the Methodists, who, seeing the beauty of the lake and the ravines, purchased 200 acres and formed the Lake Bluff Camp Meeting Association. The summer chautauqua brought thousands of visitors every year to its quaint cottages and hotels. It was in Lake Bluff where Frances Willard, president of the Women's Christian Temperance Union, brought together other temperance leaders to form the national Prohibition party, which led to the ill-fated 18th Amendment. In the 20th century, Lake Bluff has retained its charming cottages and tree-lined village streets. It remains today a picturesque and historic northern suburb of Chicago, nestled along the shores of Lake Michigan.

Springfield Aviation

9780738561592

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Citizens of Springfield first witnessed human flight, a balloon ascent, on July 5, 1858. In 1861, the capital city's most famous resident, Abraham Lincoln, then residing in the White House, authorized the creation of the first U.S. "air force," a balloon to observe Confederate troops. Springfield's interface with aviation has been a steady stream of hot-and-cold-running enthusiasm since airplanes began flying from the state fair racetrack infield about 1910. Springfield Aviation chronicles that flow and concludes with photographs from Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport in early 2008. It presents photographs of memorable airplanes, airships, and prominent aviators from the author's extensive collection, augmented by contributions from Springfield Airport Authority, Lincoln Library's Sangamon Valley Collection, and many others.

The Chicago Haymarket Affair

9781467135740

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

On May 4, 1886, a bomb exploded during a labor demonstration near Haymarket Square. The ensuing gunfire and chaos brought a grisly end to what began as peaceful support for an eight-hour workday and led to the trial and execution of rally organizers. The incident also drew irrevocable attention to a conversation about workers' rights and the role of law enforcement that continues today. In this guide to the key moments and sites of one of Chicago's most confusing and chaotic events, author Joseph Anthony Rulli aims to establish a clearer understanding of its historical significance.

Nick Blase:

9781609495497

$23.99 $17.99 Save 25%

Nick Blase ruled the Chicago suburb of Niles for almost half a century, defeating every challenger and even facing down legendary Chicago mayor Richard J. Daley on occasion. Ultimately, Blase, the longest-sitting mayor in the country, resigned from office following an arrest on federal corruption charges the morning of his seventy-eighth birthday. He pled guilty and was sentenced to a year and a day in prison. Despite the cloud over his tenure, there is no doubt Blase made a huge impact on the sleepy suburb, turning the postwar bedroom community into an economic powerhouse that ranked with the largest cities in the state. After exhaustive research and hours of personal interviews, Andrew Schneider has put together a fascinating portrait of Blase's political career.

Puerto Rican Chicago

9780738533681

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Puerto Ricans have a long history in Chicago. Beginning in the 1920s, a handful of middle-class Puerto Rican families sent their daughters and sons to study at prestigious universities in the city. While most returned to Puerto Rico, migration to Chicago peaked during the 1950s and 1960s. Enticed by the prospect of a better life for their families and future generations, thousands of Puerto Ricans came to Chicago in search of a brighter tomorrow. They came to Chicago as American citizens, yet still faced rampant discrimination and prejudice. In 1950, there were only 255 Puerto Ricans in Chicago; today, there are over 113,000. Chicago is home to a thriving Puerto Rican community, and its members continue to make important contributions to the political, educational, social, and cultural institutions of Chicago.

Bloomingdale

9780738551982

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

This photographic journal traces Bloomingdale's development chronologically from its earliest days through its sesquicentennial celebration. The area claimed in 1833 by the Meacham brothers, who traveled from the east in search of land and opportunities, encompassed parts of present-day Roselle, Medinah, and Cloverdale. The Meacham brothers and those who followed formed an agricultural community that thrived in its location on a major thoroughfare, the Chicago Galena Highway. Retail was an important part of Bloomingdale by the time the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad came through the northern part of Bloomingdale Township in 1873. Largely "Smalltown, USA" for a number of years, Bloomingdale came into its own in the mid-1970s with an explosion of population, business, and prosperity.

Virginia Marmaduke

9780738519661

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Nicknamed "The Duchess" by a tongue-tied editor early in her career, Virginia Marmaduke is the First Lady of Chicago print journalism. She was the first woman to: cover both crime and sports for Windy City newspapers; be named (by Mayor Daley Sr.) to the Chicago Board of Health; be named Press Veteran of the Year by the Chicago Press Veterans Association; and to be inducted into Chicago's Journalism Hall of Fame.

First with the Chicago Sun, then the Sun-Times and the Chicago Tribune, the Duchess's newspaper career ran parallel to the 20th Century. She covered, as she called it, "blood, guts and sex," as well as presidents, natural disasters, women's issues, and-notably-humanitarian causes.

This volume, the first on the life and career of Virginia Marmaduke, reprints many of the famous articles from her Chicago heyday. Additionally, it documents her childhood in Carbondale, Illinois, her first newspaper job, and her return to Southern Illinois where she became a community booster, humanitarian, and beloved "all-Illinoisian."

Lewis University

9780738520223

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

Now the twelfth largest among more than 50 private colleges and universities in the State of Illinois, Lewis University was established in 1932 as a small aeronautical school for boys and has developed into a dynamic, coeducational, and comprehensive Catholic university with a richly diverse student body. Founded by the Archdiocese of Chicago and now sponsored by the De La Salle Christian Brothers, Lewis is faithful to its Catholic and Lasallian heritage, offering a values-centered curriculum rich in the Mission values of knowledge, fidelity, wisdom, and justice and guided by the spirit of association, which fosters community in teaching, learning, and service. As Lewis celebrates its 70th anniversary, this volume provides a visual glimpse into the history of this unique institution. Included are photographs of its humble beginnings, its evolution during and after World War II, dynamic enrollment growth during the 1960s, the dramatic campus transformation through construction, its student activities, its athletic successes, and the campus today.

Murder and Mayhem in Chicago's Vice Districts

9781596296923

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

From the very beginning, Chicago thrived on its reputation as a wide-open town. After the Great Fire, no part of the city was rebuilt more quickly than the vice districts, where bribed cops and brutal force emboldened professional wickedness to celebrate itself with gala events like the First Ward Ball, begun in honor of a madam's pianist and often so crowded that passed-out drunks couldn't even fall to the floor. Randolph Street was nicknamed Gambler's Row because men gambled with their lives by visiting it. In Little Hell, guns and knives could be rented by the hour. In these seedy areas only put to sleep by Mickey Finn's knockout drinks or Gentle Annie's knockout punches, it is no wonder that Detective Woolridge kept seventy-five disguises, made twenty thousand arrests and was shot at forty-four times.

The Trout Valley Hertz Estate, and Curtiss Farm

9780738561608

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

John D. Hertz, of rental car fame, discovered Trout Valley (then a part of unincorporated McHenry County) in the 1920s.

He built a mansion, barns, and polo grounds on the banks of the Fox River, calling his new country estate Leona Farms. Famous landscape architect Jens Jensen designed its scenic landscape, fishing streams, and ponds. Here Hertz raised racehorses, including two Kentucky Derby winners, and hosted Gatsby-like parties for the rich and famous, including Myrna Loy, Will Rogers, and Walt Disney. Eleanor Roosevelt was once a guest too. In 1943, Hertz sold his estate to Otto Schnering, of Baby Ruth and Butterfinger fame, who transformed the grounds from a lush playground to the headquarters of a 10,000-acre farming operation. Old-timers still remember Schnering's six-pony hitch carrying joy-filled passengers down Main Street, the state-of-the-art livestock arena, and the trophy-winning cattle raised at Curtiss Farm.

Boone County Originals:

9781596299382

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

Daniel Boone may never have set foot in the Illinois county that bears his name, but his tradition of blazing new trails is certainly honored here. Boone County has been the home of Native American legends, a Major League Baseball player, a Miss America and a cross-dressing Civil War soldier. And don't forget Hairbreadth Harry, King of the Hobos, "? who wrote poetry, walked backward and bathed in gasoline. Enjoy the best of Mike Doyle's historical columns as he introduces the fascinating folk of this "garden on the prairie, "? where some of the tallest tales are true."