Images of America Sale

There have been few cars that ignited the public’s interest as much as the Ford Mustang.

Introduced at the opening of the New York World's Fair in April 1964, the Mustang was based on mechanicals from the earlier Ford Falcon compact car; it quickly established a new motorcar category which was widely copied by domestic and overseas competitors—the “pony car.” From the outset, the Mustang represented inspired product planning and design, followed by brilliantly executed marketing. Ford's Mustang team effort used every tool in the vehicle-marketing toolbox: clever teases long before the new product went on sale, unprecedented publicity, simple but effective advertising, the stage at the World's Fair, movie placement, distribution of toy plastic models, and even a replica pedal car for the young drivers of the future. With a measure of luck, it became a classic case of releasing the right product at the right time, and Ford sold one million units in less than two years. Even today, the Mustang is held high as a symbol of American design, engineering, and the freewheeling American spirit.

From historical richness to unparalleled natural beauty, Michigan's Mackinac Island is the crown jewel of the Great Lakes, unique in America. Forts were established and battles fought between American and British soldiers.

Native American visitors preceded French explorers and missionaries of the 17th century. Commerce, including fur trading and fishing, later surpassed military importance, in turn yielding to the tourism industry that has dominated the past 150 years. Accessible by water, ice bridge, or air, Mackinac Island encompasses a state park, harbor, city, and Victorian hotels and homes. A permanent automobile ban helps preserve the island's historic character, leaving land movement to foot, bicycle, and horse-drawn carriage. This book uses historical photographs to depict Mackinac Island heritage and culture. Rare images capture bygone days and lifestyles on this island where 19th century charm surprises and intrigues even today.

Relive the history of Hudson's department store, a fixture in downtown Detroit , when retailing was an event and the department store ruled the shopping scene and was a Detroit icon.

The J. L. Hudson Company redefined the way Detroiters shopped and enjoyed leisure time. Many Detroiters share memories of times spent shopping and enjoying spectacular events sponsored by Hudson's. A solid and lofty icon built by businesspeople who believed in their passion, Hudson's defined Detroit's downtown, creating trends and traditions in consumer culture that still resonate with us today. Now and in the future, as Hudson's boxes, shopping bags, and artifacts are discovered in closets, attics, basements, and flea markets, many will remember that it was once as solid a civic fixture as the City-County Building or the Detroit Public Library.

As the roaring twenties came to an end and a new decade dawned, the United States found itself locked in the grips of the Great Depression.

The City of Detroit was no exception as industry laid off workers and bread lines formed across the city. Detroit Mayor Frank Murphy led the country in supporting state and federal welfare programs to help people through the economic crisis. By the middle of the 1930s, Detroit began picking itself up out of the economic mud and was soon flexing its industrial muscle as manufacturing, led by the auto industry, put the Motor City back into shape. As the decade ended and war approached, the city was ready to take its place on the world stage. The country reeled from the shock of the attack on Pearl Harbor and had to shift its industrial might from civilian use to the war effort. Nowhere was that more evident than in Detroit. Its huge manufacturing capabilities, when turned to the making of the implements of war, earned the city a new nickname. The Motor City became to the Arsenal of Democracy and began to evolve once more. The influx of workers from the Deep South to the war industry added yet another facet to the city's society and culture. As the Second World War came to a close and production re-tooled for the return to civilian life, an economic boom swept through Detroit. The city celebrated its 25oth birthday in 1951, prompting an outpouring of funds to build with. Major additions were made to the Art Institute, the Detroit Historical Museum, and the riverfront.

On November 1, 1957, traffic officially opened on the far-reaching Mackinac Bridge.

That was the culmination of 70 years of talking and dreaming about a bridge acrossthe Straits of Mackinac, of discouraging attempts for legislative and congressional approval, of efforts to raise the funds, and finally of a three-year construction program necessary for the world's longest and costliest (to date) suspension bridge.Michigan's greatest symbol is expertly maintained, fully funded, and amazingly resilient to the many forces and factors of man and nature that have failed to seriously affect its status as the lone highway link between Michigan's two main peninsulas. The miracle bridge at the Straits of Mackinac truly allows a view that epitomizes the state motto of Michigan, Si quaeris peninsulam amoenam, circumspice, or If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you.

Founded in 1903, Ford Motor Company has enormously impacted the history and development of America, and the world, in the 20th century.

What began as a small operation in a converted Detroit wagon factory has become the second largest industrial manufacturing corporation in the world, with active operations on six continents. Unlike other automotive corporations, the Ford company has remained under the control and active management of its founding family for 100 years. Like the Kennedys, Vanderbilts, and Roosevelts, the Ford family has made an irreversible impact on American history and society. Through a collection of over 200 images, Ford Dynasty tells the story of one extraordinary American family, their company, and its accomplishments over the course of a century.

In 1913, the Michigan Central Station opened its majestic entrances to the people of Detroit.

Designed by Warren & Wetmore and Reed & Stern, the firms also noted as the architects of the Grand Central Station in New York City, the depot was a marvel of grandeur and comfort for the traveler lucky enough to utilize its facilities. Soldiers went to war, families both separated and rejoined, and folks looking for an honest living in the Motor City all walked the Michigan Central's elegant corridors. Since the last train pulled away from the station in 1988, the structure has fallen prey to rapidly paced deterioration. Detroit's Michigan Central Station captures the glory of the Michigan Central and its environs. Using photographs from the Burton Historical Collection, as well as private collections, the book illustrates the use of the Michigan Central Station by a city whose story dramatically parallels that of this magnificent structure. The book also includes imagined futures of the station from some of the many people who have been inspired by the magic this grand building continues to exude.

Photo by photo, discover the stories of an iconic American company and the cars they made.

Images of America: Chevrolet: 1960–2012 is the second of a two-volume photographic history of Chevrolet, one of the world's best-known automotive brands, symbolized by the bow tie emblem. From 1960 to 2012, the US auto industry and Chevrolet experienced fundamental changes in their products and business plans. In the 50-plus years illustrated here, two basic changes in the marketing of motor vehicles is evident: the rising proportion of trucks among all vehicles sold and the incursion of European and Asian brands into the market. Even though the number of different Chevrolet passenger car models tripled, total car sales for the brand fell. Chevrolet: 1960–2012 relates the year-by-year evolution of the US auto business via what was once the largest-selling make.

Detroit is famous for its cars and its music. From the 1950s through the 1970s, Motor City fans experienced a golden age of rock and roll.

Rock was the defiant voice of the boomer generation. The 1960s and the 1970s were turbulent decades. Blacks and women asserted themselves, breaking down the establishment. Rock music, and the spirit and events that defined it, advanced these interests. The war in Vietnam brought tension and national conflict. Drugs and a sexual revolution, made possible by the introduction of the birth control pill, added to the volatile mix. Woodstock, May Day protests, and the resignation of Pres. Richard Nixon were just a few of the upheavals that made these decades two of the most important in the nation's history. Motor City Rock and Roll: The 1960s and 1970s features 200 images, capturing local musicians who started in Detroit and then traveled the world, as well as world-famous acts who came to the city to perform. Intimate stories of musicians, bands, and other members of the rock community make this history a must for dedicated fans.

The General Motors Corporation opened over a century ago with humble beginnings to grow into the company that became the global business powerhouse it is today.

Established in 1908 by William C. Durant, General Motors was the end-product of combining the Buick, Oldsmobile, Cadillac, and Oakland companies. From the 1920s onwards, GM grew from a company that accounted for about 10% of new auto sales in the U.S. to becoming the largest producer of cars and trucks in the world. By the 1960s, due to a series of federal safety regulations and competetive challenges, General Motors' business would never be the same. Though they've suffered their fair share of setbacks, GM is still one of the biggest motor companies in the world, even today. General Motors: A Photographic History explores the growth of the company in a series of 200+ black-and-white images, from the first assembly line to post-WWII recovery, and takes the reader on an intriguing visual tour of a tremendously important piece of the industrialization of the U.S.

Author Michael W.R. Davis journeys through the more-than 100 year history of Chevrolet automobiles, from its earliest days to the present.

The Chevrolet car and truck business traces its roots back to Michigan's lumber industry in the middle of the 19th century. Lumber mills gave way to carriage and wagon manufacturing and the claim, before motorcars burst on the scene, that Flint was the vehicle capital of the world.

This is the story of how those wagon makers quickly converted to producing automobiles, overtaking automotive pioneer and archrival Ford in sales, and building the Chevrolet brand into the global powerhouse entity it is today. This volume traces the first half (1911–1960) of Chevrolet's 100-year history in photographic detail and provides an unparalleled spotter guide for long-forgotten (or never-known) Chevrolet cars and trucks. From its beginnings under entrepreneur Billy Durant, through the Knudson years, Unionization, and World War II, Chevrolet weathered many highs and lows, successes and challenges.

Author Michael W.R. Davis is a veteran automotive journalist and historian and served as the executive director of the Detroit Historical Society for five years. He is a member of the Society of Automotive Historians and a trustee of the National Automotive History Collection at the Detroit Public Library.

In September 1927, the scion of a great Detroit automotive manufacturing family met with Pres. Calvin Coolidge on the White House lawn to be presented with a major motorsports trophy. This person was not a Ford or an Olds and also had not been behind the wheel of a race car. Delphine Dodge Cromwell, daughter of Grosse Pointe Farms residents Horace and Anna Dodge, was meeting with President Coolidge to be awarded the trophy for winning the American Power Boat Association President’s Cup, and she was the first woman to do so. In addition to having quiet streets, architecturally distinct homes, and one of the most beautiful drives in America, Grosse Pointe Farms is the source of many engrossing stories rich in history and cultural significance. In this book, readers can learn of the Grosse Pointe High School graduate whose tragic story led to a battleship being named for him, the Democratic Michigan governor and Grosse Pointe Farms native who was elected to that office a record six times, and the Republican governor who led a civil rights march that ended up at the high school football stadium. In the entertainment world, stars like the Supremes and Emmy Award–winning actress Julie Harris have ties to this gracious city.

Retired educators Terry and Barbara Nelson, whose two sons are Grosse Pointe South High School graduates, have scoured local school, church, and town archives—as well as private sources in locations ranging from the West Cost to Italy—to secure unique images of life in Grosse Pointe Farms over the decades.

The first inhabitants of Grosse Pointe can be traced back to the mid-18th century, when French farmers occupied ribbon farms on the shores of Lake St. Clair.

Since then, Grosse Pointe has come a long way. The once rural farming community, located on marshland and notoriously difficult to reach, has become home to some of the most prestigious residences in the country. During the early 20th century, Grosse Pointe transitioned from a popular summer retreat for wealthy Detroit families to a permanent home for prominent professionals, who hired the finest architects money could buy to build grand mansions. By the 1930s, Georgian and Tudor residences were commonplace, and Grosse Pointe was a thriving community awash with renowned families, natural beauty, historical architecture, and grand estates.

Katie Doelle is a writer and designer. Originally from England, she moved to Grosse Pointe in 2012 and became fascinated by the architecture. In 2014, she joined the Grosse Pointe Historical Society (serving on the historic plaque committee for two years) and began writing a weekly architectural blog for local realtor Higbie Maxon Agney (HMA). The majority of the images used in the book are from HMA’s archives.

Vernor's Ginger Ale has sparkling fizz, a unique taste, and a history that goes back before Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Hires, or Moxie.

At over 140 years old, Vernor's is America's oldest continuously produced soft drink. Upon returning from the Civil War in 1866, James Vernor opened a pharmacy in Detroit. He also opened a barrel of ginger ale extract he had created before the war. He discovered the four years of aging had mellowed the taste to perfection. A new "deliciously different" flavor had been created, and Vernor's Ginger Ale was born. From a small drugstore in Detroit to a product enjoyed across America and Canada, Vernor's is a success story. Vernor's is the story of a small back-room product turned into a highly successful brand. Vernor's Ginger Ale takes readers on a journey from pharmacy to factory, from entrepreneur to franchised corporation.

For over a century, the J.L. Hudson's Department Store was more than just a store - it was a Detroit icon and a world-class cultural treasure.

At 25 stories, Hudson's was the world's tallest department store, and was at one time home to the most exceptional offerings in shopping, dining, services, and entertainment. The store prided itself on stocking everything from grand pianos to spools of thread. In addition to regular department store fare, the original Hudson's store featured an auditorium, a circulating library, dining rooms, barber shops, a photo studio, holiday exhibits, a magnificent place called Toytown, and the world's largest American flag. As a legendary symbol of urban and entrepreneurial American history, the J.L. Hudson's Department Store earned a permanent place in Detroit's collective memory. Although the big store no longer graces Woodward Avenue, its legacy lives on in the hearts and minds of generations, and in the remarkable photographs that preserve its reign.

Explore the lasting influence of the Finnish people in the Upper Peninsula.

At the time, Hancock consisted of nothing more than a small cluster of humble buildings, but it was here, on the outskirts of mid-19th-century civilization, that Finnish settlement in Michigan's Upper Peninsula (UP) took root. Much to the surprise of these new Americans, Midsummer was not a religious holiday marked by feasts in celebration of the season's prolonged sunlight. Rather, the newcomers were immediately hastened into the bowels of the earth to extract copper in pursuit of the American Dream. In short order, hardworking Finnish immigrants became reputable miners, lumberjacks, farmers, maids, and commercial fishermen. A century and a half later, the UP boasts the largest Finnish population outside of the motherland and sustains the determined spirit the Finns call sisu - an influence that remains palpable in all 15 UP counties.

From automobiles to tanks, planes, and ammunition, author Michael W.R. Davis captures a visual history of Detroit’s industrial conversion guaranteeing victory at home and abroad.

Gentlemen, we must out-build Hitler, proclaimed General Motors President William Knudson. Through the course of the World War II years, Detroit did exactly that. But how did the Motor City so successfully shift its focus from automobiles to become the leading producer of America’s Arsenal of Democracy?

Just as Detroit symbolizes the U.S. automobile industry, during World War II it also came to stand for all American industry's conversion from civilian goods to war material. The label Arsenal of Democracy was coined by Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt in a fireside chat radio broadcast on December 29, 1940, nearly a year before the United States formally entered the war. Detroit’s Wartime Industry is the pictorial history of one Detroiter's unique leadership in the miraculous speed Detroit's mass-production capacity was shifted to output of tanks, trucks, guns, and airplanes to support America's victory and of the struggles of civilians on the home front.

Detroit’s Wartime Industry is the perfect book for enthusiasts of World War II, automobiles, and Detroit’s unbreakable spirit. Author, historian, and journalist Michael W.R. Davis is former Executive Director of Detroit Historical Society and has previously published books on Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors.

Beginning as a group of delinquents committing petty crimes, they became Detroit's infamous Purple Gang, of one of the most notorious organized crime groups of the 20th century.

The photographs in this fascinating collection chronologically follow the evolution of the Purples from their days as a juvenile street gang through their rise to power and eventual self-destruction. Detroit had a gold rush atmosphere and a thriving black market during the 1920s that attracted gangsters and unsavory characters from all over the country. The gang's reputation for hijacking and terror spread far, and they became associates with Al Capone, their location a perfect midway point to smuggle Canadian whisky across the border and down into Chicago. Their reputation was such that they were even suspected by the FBI for being involved with the Lindbergh baby kidnapping. Using rare police department mug shots and group photographs, the book transports readers through the dark side of Prohibition-era Detroit history.

The prosperous town of Wyandotte in Michigan, named for the Wyandott Indians, has been the home to American industry and the people who helped to build it.

Wyandotte, located between Detroit and Toledo along the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario, has enriched area history from the days of the first inhabitants, the Wyandott Indians and French farmers, through the industrial ages of iron and steel. In latter years, Wyandotte has been the stage for the manufacture of the first steel rails and iron plate and was home to shipbuilding and chemical industries. All of these contributed significantly to the growth of the nation and to the continuing development of a great American city. Businesses, churches, and community organizations are captured in these historic photographs, along with the people whose commitment to hard work helped the city prosper and grow.

Since the arrival of its first settler in 1829, the story of Kalamazoo has been an interesting one.

Out of the southwest Michigan wilderness, a small 19th century village quickly blossomed into a 20th century city. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a wide variety of industries made Kalamazoo a boomtown. Everything from paper, corsets, taxicabs, and pharmaceuticals allowed Kalamazoo to develop into a major center of manufacturing. At the same time, several colleges that would establish the area as a center for education were organized and expanded. Fortunately, much of Kalamazoo's development has been well-documented through photographs and other visual illustrations. These images are the subjects of this volume, which is organized to show the varied elements of Kalamazoo's history. Gathered from local archives and private collections, most of these rare photographs have never before been published.

Eloise, which started out as a poorhouse, later became known as Wayne County General Hospital. Today, all that remains are five buildings and a smokestack.

From only 35 residents on 280 acres in 1839, the complex grew dramatically after the Civil War until the total land involved was 902 acres and the total number of patients was about 10,000. Only one of them, the Kay Beard Building, is currently used.In Eloise: Poorhouse, Farm, Asylum, and Hospital, 1839-1984, this institution and medical center that cared for thousands of people over the years, is brought back to life. The book, in over 220 historic photographs, follows the facility's roots, from its beginnings as a poorhouse, to the founding of its psychiatric division and general hospital. The reader will also be able to trace the changing face of psychiatric care over the years. The book effectively captures what it was like to live, work, and play on Eloise's expansive grounds.

Utilizing remarkable images from the Manning Brothers Historical Collection, the Michigan Opera Theatre Archives, and several additional collections, Michael Hauser and Marianne Weldon have captured the excitement of the shared entertainment experience in Detroit Opera House.

The theater known today as the Detroit Opera House has been an integral part of the city’s culture and history as well as the live entertainment industry. Its existence has been threatened in the past, but it has survived wars, the Great Depression, civil unrest, economic meltdowns, the abandonment of downtown, and, most recently, a pandemic. Generations of patrons have fond, vivid memories of attending films, stage presentations, or events with family and friends as it transitioned from the Broadway Capitol to the Paramount to the Grand Circus to the Detroit Opera House. The reason for building these “temples of amusement” was to literally transport a guest into another world, and the Detroit Opera House has valiantly fulfilled that task. What began as an idea by David DiChiera, founder of Michigan Opera Theatre, the owner and operator of today’s Detroit Opera House, blossomed into a magnificent performing arts center with its formal opening in 1996.

Hauser is marketing manager for the Detroit Opera House, and Weldon is the collections manager for art and artifacts at Bryn Mawr College.

Take a fascinating tour of the influential art deco movement and its manifestations in and around Detroit.

Since the 1920s, Art Deco, or The Modern Style, has delighted people with its innovative use of materials and designs that capture the spirit of optimism to create the style of the future. Although the Detroit metro area is primarily known as an industrial region, it boasts some of the finest examples of Art Deco in the country.

Through a panorama of photographs,Art Deco in Detroit explores the wide-ranging variety of these architectural marvels, from world-famous structures like the Fisher and Penobscot Buildings, to commercial buildings, theaters, homes, and churches. The grandeur evident in some of the major buildings reflects a time when artisans and architects collaborated to craft structures that transcend functionality - they endure as standing works of art.

Learn the story behind one of Detroit's most infamous mobs with rare photographs documenting their rise and fall.

Motor City Mafia: A Century of Organized Crime in Detroit chronicles the storied and hallowed gangland history of the notorious Detroit underworld. Scott M. Burnstein takes the reader inside the belly of the beast, tracking the bloodshed, exploits, and leadership of the southeast Michigan crime syndicate as never before seen in print. Through a stunning array of rare archival photographs and images, Motor City Mafia captures Detroit's most infamous past, from its inception in the early part of the 20th century, through the years when the iconic Purple Gang ruled the city's streets during Prohibition, through the 1930s and the formation of the local Italian mafia, and the Detroit crime family's glory days in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, all the way to the downfall of the area's mob reign in the 1980s and 1990s.

The origin of the name Southfield is not conclusively known, but it is surmised that the area gained its name because it was located in the “fields” south of Bloomfield Township. For much of its settled history, Southfield was a rural, agricultural community; however, that changed when Detroit experienced phenomenal growth in the early 20th century.

As Detroit’s borders strained to contain the influx of people and spurred by the development of the massive Northland Mall, Southfield rapidly developed in the mid-century. With its central location and connection to other major cities via the newly built John C. Lodge and Southfield Freeways, Southfield was also appealing to businesses. Fueled by the people and wealth flowing into the community, Southfield became an epicenter of the burgeoning Mid-Century Modern movement in architecture. Later, Southfield developed a reputation as a welcoming and tolerant place, and today, residents take pride in the highly diverse community.

Nestled among northern Michigan's pine trees in Roscommon County is the state's largest inland lake, Houghton Lake.

Lumbermen made use of its 20,044 acres to move timber. They banked logs on the lake, the headwaters of the Muskegon River, during the winter cutting season and drove them downriver in the spring to southwestern lumber yards. As Houghton Lake's reputation for good fishing grew, visitors came to try their luck. By the mid-20th century, Houghton Lake became one of the most popular destinations in Michigan. Now, the area is known for its bars, resorts, and winter festival Tip-Up Town USA. Water sports, summer cottages, and nightlife still attract thousands of visitors from Lower Michigan and surrounding states today.

Ottawa and Pottawatomi Indians called Muskegon home at least 200 years before Jean Baptiste Recollect opened his trading post in 1836. Michigan's abundant forests created the logging industry.

Lumber mills flourished as the Muskegon River and Lake Michigan provided easy transport. The city was called the Lumber Queen, and it was said that Muskegon lumber built Chicago. The lumber barons' influence is still felt. Charles Hackley's name graces a major street, park, library, and hospital, and the local hockey team is called the Lumberjacks. Shipping followed, with Brunswick, Sealed Power, and Continental Motors among the industrial heavyweights. Residents have also appreciated cultural pursuits. The famed Actors' Colony, founded by the Keaton family, is where Buster honed his vaudeville skills before hitting the big time. Max Gruber's Oddities of the Jungle act featured an elephant that rode a tricycle and bowled. Former area residents include M*A*S*H star Harry Morgan, astronaut David Leetsma, two Miss Americas, singers Iggy Pop and Wayne Static, and sports greats Earl Morrall, Bobby Grich, and Nate McLouth. Snowboarding began here but was called snurfing (snow surfing).

Find out how Detroit's Belle Isle withstood the test of time and became a haven where cultures came together to relax, celebrate and play.

One of the most unique urban parks in the world, Belle Isle has long been a source of civic pride in Detroit. In 1879, just as its population, land area, and industry were flourishing, the city of Detroit purchased this 700-acre island for use as a park. Famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted was soon commissioned to transform the island into an idyllic retreat from the industrial city. This book uses remarkable images drawn from the Walter P. Reuther Library to document Belle Isle's distinctive history throughout the city's periods of accomplishment, economic flux, and social turmoil.

Northern Michigan Asylum, which opened in 1885, was known during most of its years as Traverse City State Hospital. More than 200 photographs and images are provided, including many of the features and buildings long gone.

It was run during its first decades by Dr. James Decker Munson, who left his legacy in the landscaped grounds and the medical center that today bears his name. Traverse City State Hospital served the mental health needs of a large part of Michigan for 104 years until its closure in 1989, housing a population as large as 3,000 in its many buildings.This book traces the history of this great institution, from the local and mental health context in which it was founded, through its growth, development, and decline, and finally to its renovation and preservation as a vital part of the Traverse City community.

Detroit broadcasting history is rich with character . . . and characters.

It began atop the Penobscot Building on October 23, 1946, when WWDT shot a signal to the convention center, part of a ""New Postwar Products Exposition."" WWJ-TV offered scheduled programming in June 1947, and WXYZ-TV and WJBK-TV jumped in a year later. The medium has influenced the city's personality and social agenda ever since. Soupy Sales turned getting a pie in the face into an art form. Mort Neff celebrated the state's outdoor charms. George Pierrot showed Detroiters the world. Other beloved personalities include: Milky the Clown, Ed McKenzie, Sonny Eliot, John Kelly, Marilyn Turner, Robin Seymour, Bill Bonds, Dick Westerkamp, Jingles, Bill Kennedy, Lou Gordon, Captain Jolly, Johnny Ginger, Auntie Dee, and many more.

They made our cigars and our cars, but they also made Detroit their own. This is the history of Detroit's Polish community, Polonia.

More than a century has passed since the first Polish immigrants settled in Detroit. These pioneers left Poland for freedom of language and religion, and to own property, the American Dream that had talked about all over Europe. They replicated village life in the big city, living in close-knit neighborhoods anchored by the parish church. Polish immigrants made cigars, built railroad cars, molded stoves, established businesses and breweries, and eventually moved into the political arena. The struggles and triumphs of these early settlers are on display in the pages of Detroit Polonia, a photographic history that links future generations with their Polish heritage.

Grosse Pointe documents the rich history of this Detroit community.

If Detroit was characterized as The Paris of the Midwest at the turn of the 20th century, then Grosse Pointe was the Riviera. There wealthy summer colonists, influential transplants from the bustle of the metropolis, founded private clubs where they could pursue polite pleasures and high society soirees away from the honky-tonk atmosphere of the area roadhouses which shared the shoreline of Lake St. Clair. Architecturally significant mansions on rambling estates soon replaced quaint French farm houses and gingerbread cottages. As the good times rolled, no one was willing to let a little thing like Prohibition spoil the fun! The fact that the residents' elegant yachts and ice boats had to share the waters with rumrunners and federal agents only added to the excitement of an area fast becoming one of America's premier suburban enclaves. This new publication successfully captures the magical spirit of the Pointes. With photographs from personal and public collections, the authors have painted a wonderful picture of what it was like to live in Grosse Pointe during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Baseball in Detroit documents nearly a century of this sport, following the Detroit Tigers closely.

Covering over 80 years of America's favorite pastime, Baseball in Detroit 1886–1968 takes fans back to the glory days of Ty Cobb in the early 20th century and follows the progress of the Detroit Tigers. From the three-time pennant winners of this century's first decade to the last real championship team of 1968, Detroiters have flocked to see their team play, win or lose. The fact that they have played at the same intersection of town for over a century is a tribute to the pride and loyalty that each has shown for the other. It could be said that no other baseball franchise has such a close relationship with its constituency. This relationship is clearly shown in a fascinating photographic collection, and sports fans everywhere will appreciate this candid glimpse into our nation's favorite game. As we approach the next millennium, a new stadium is under construction for this historic team. It, too, will be the place of legends, where great players and fans will create another glorious 100 years of baseball history in Detroit. The American League, to which the Detroit Tigers belong as charter members, is fast approaching its own centennial.

This collection of over 200 images chronicles the life and times of this once fledgling township established in 1843, to its incorporation as a city in 1951, and on to its present day prosperity.

During the late 19th century, a small group of Frenchmen from the fort at Detroit settled north along the shore of Lake St. Clair at the mouth of the Milk River. Originally known as L'anse Creuse, this tiny settlement soon grew into a bustling farming community. Historian Arthur M. Woodford has compiled maps, photographs, and drawings to tell the story of this ""Village on the Lake."" Here the reader will find views of Lake St. Clair, the Milk River, and the many 19th century families and farms that fostered the growth of the area. Included are the stories of the infamous Blossom Heath Inn, Jefferson Beach Amusement Park, the grand Masonic Country Club, and the Interurban railway. Following World War Two, St. Clair Shores grew as part of the population boom of southeastern Michigan, and this once quiet village is now a modern suburban community of over 66,ooo residents.

Join author Susan Roark Hoyt as she explores the history of these remarkable structures, the courageous people who maintained them, and the harbors they safeguarded.

After the first settlers reached northwestern Michigan, the region's immense pine forests were quickly cultivated into a thriving lumber industry. Coastal towns sprang up to support sawmills, and soon lumber schooners arrived to carry large loads of timber to ports across Lake Michigan. Their journeys were not without dangers, however. Rudimentary harbors made docking and loading hazardous while shoals and reefs, hidden beneath the water's surface, threatened to ravage the unsuspecting vessels. The need for lighthouses to mark these dangerous waters and harbor entrances was crucial to prevent the loss of lives and valuable cargo. Through a unique collection of archival images, Lighthouses of Northwest Michigan takes readers on a stirring journey through the development of 27 lighthouses that secured the waters from Little Point Sable to the Straits of Mackinac.

In over 200 rare and historic images, the story of Marquette comes to life.

This fascinating pictorial history of Marquette, Michigan, marks the occasion of the city's sesquicentennial celebration. Containing over 200 historic images, including photographs, lithographs, and maps from almost every decade of the city's history, Marquette delves into the physical setting, economic life, architecture, weather, popular activities, and lives of the people that have made Marquette what it is today. Originally a boom town, Marquette was a convenient shipping point created to service the iron ore mines in the area. Many settlers with high spirits and energy were attracted to Marquette with hopes for a big chance at success. By the time the mines faded, however, these settlershad already built a city of enduring importance—a vital and attractive center of commerce, education, and culture.

Between 1914 and 1951, Black Bottom's black community emerged out of the need for black migrants to find a place for themselves.

Because of the stringent racism and discrimination in housing, blacks migrating from the South seeking employment in Detroit's burgeoning industrial metropolis were forced to live in this former European immigrant community. During World War I through World War II, Black Bottom became a social, cultural, and economic center of struggle and triumph, as well as a testament to the tradition of black self-help and community-building strategies that have been the benchmark of black struggle. Black Bottom also had its troubles and woes. However, it would be these types of challenges confronting Black Bottom residents that would become part of the cohesive element that turned Black Bottom into a strong and viable community.

Since 1845, along the River Raisin in the southeastern Michigan town of Monroe, the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) have distinguished themselves as educators, activists, and Catholic pioneers.

At the congregation’s peak, the motherhouse dispatched nearly 1,600 nuns to more than 100 schools across metropolitan Detroit and several states.For 175 years, the sisters taught the three Rs and the meaning of faith to nearly 700,000 students and established important metro Detroit institutions such as Marygrove College, Immaculata and Marian High Schools, and St.Mary Academy.Widely known by their initials, the IHMs have extended their reach worldwide.Monroe IHM members have served in key roles at the Vatican, as leaders of organizations representing Catholic sisters in the United States, as missionaries in Third World countries, and as groundbreaking activists and theologians.The Monroe IHMs today also attract lay women and men who dedicate themselves to the congregation’s values and goals by becoming IHM Associates.

With over 230 photographs, Detroit 1860–1899 encompasses a visual history of the city before the birth of the automobile industry.

In this rare and unprecedented collection, discover Detroit as it once was, with the people and industries that flourished in this community prior to the twentieth century. With over 230 photographs, Detroit 1860–1899 encompasses a visual history of the city before the birth of the automobile industry. Join Mr. Poremba on a trip down memory lane to the beginnings of the Motor City.  Witness its growth and change, and its lasting contributions to our nation's history. Detroit 1860–1899 will be enjoyed by young and old, resident and visitor alike.

Long before it became a premier residential community and a social, cultural, and commercial center, Birmingham was a pioneer village in search of an identity.

Birmingham, Michigan was born when the first three European settlers, John West Hunter, Elijah Willits, and John Hamilton, established taverns within shouting distance of one another on a trail used by Native Americans and trappers. The isolated outpost was soon a fledgling village with a railroad, mill, and foundry. '

Early leaders had high hopes that Birmingham would one day become an industrial center to rival its namesake in England. But the Industrial Revolution largely bypassed Birmingham, instead landing on four wheels at nearby Detroit and Pontiac. By the 1920s, the quiet and cozy village of church bells, ice-cream socials, and tidy storefronts was well on its way to becoming one of the most desirable communities in the country.

Craig Jolly draws on the extensive resources of the Birmingham Historical Museum to tell the fascinating story of Birmingham's transformation from a pioneer settlement to an extremely appealing 21st-century town that symbolizes, for many, the fruition of the American dream

The April 1917 declaration of war on Germany hastened the need for US training camps. Camp Custer, named for Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer, was established on July 18, 1917. Thousands of soldiers were inducted at Camp Custer, and hundreds of thousands of soldiers would start their military training at Camp and later Fort Custer, which became a permanent base in 1940. Images from Camp and Fort Custer gives the reader insight into camp life during both world wars, including the German prisoners of war experience. Images of America: Fort Custer in the World Wars features the influence Camp and Fort Custer had on military training. The young soldiers trained here served their country honorably and are deserving of gratitude.

Brenda Glover Leyndyke, board member and volunteer librarian for the Fort Custer Historical Society, is the daughter of a Fort Custer veteran. Leyndyke updated the Research in Michigan book published by the National Genealogical Society. Along with her volunteer work, Leyndyke writes an award-winning blog. She works closely with the Fort Custer Historical Society board and draws on the society’s collection of over 2,000 photographs.

Detroit has always been at the forefront of American popular music development, and the ragtime years and jazz age are no exception.

The city's long history of diversity has served the region well, providing a fertile environment for creating and nurturing some of America's most distinctly indigenous music. With a focus on the people and places that made Detroit a major contributor to America's rich musical heritage, Detroit: Ragtime and the Jazz Age provides a unique photo journal of a period stretching from the Civil War to the diminishing years of the big bands in the early 1940s.

An engaging history of the beginnings of Lansing's R.E. Olds.

Upon the dedication of a new Capitol building in 1879, the city of Lansing was just beginning to emerge from the swampy wilderness of its recent past. As industry began to take root along the banks of the Grand River, Ransom Eli Olds brought his father's motor shop to national prominence with advancements in gasoline and steam engines, and then horseless carriages. By the early 20th century, Oldsmobile became the world's first mass producer of automobiles and Olds had moved on to found a second car company, making Lansing the first Auto City. Through these efforts, Olds rose to become one of the nation's greatest industrialists and entrepreneurs. Using primary documents and historical images, this book traces the industrial history of the Capital City within the context of one of the 20th century's greatest entrepreneurs, R.E.

Once considered the most famous African-American resort community in the country, Idlewild was referred to as the Black Eden of Michigan in the 1920s and '30s, and as the Summer Apollo of Michigan in the 1950s and '60s.

Showcasing classy revues and interactive performances of some of the leading black entertainers of the period, Idlewild was an oasis in the shadows of legal segregation. Idlewild: Black Eden of Michigan focuses on this illustrative history, as well as the decline and the community's contemporary renaissance, in over 200 rare photographs. The lively legacy of Lela G. and Herman O. Wilson, and Paradise Path is included, featuring images of the Paradise Club and Wilson's Grocery. Idlewild continued its role as a distinctive American resort throughout the 1950s, with photographs ranging from Phil Giles' Flamingo Club and Arthur Braggs's Idlewild Revue.

Join author Michael W. R. Davis as he retraces the history of what went on behind the scenes of testing automotive tracks in Detroit, Michigan.

The catastrophic failure of a new but unproven copper-cooled Chevrolet in 1923 led the General Motors Corporation to buy back the 100 cars it had sold to the public and recall another 400 in company and dealer hands. As a result, in 1924 General Motors started building the industry's first scientific proving ground to test new vehicle designs before they were released for production and sale. Before this, all automakers tested new cars haphazardly on public roads and within limited engineering laboratories. Better known by the public as test tracks, the proving grounds became a source of curiosity for decades about the secrets they might hold. Detroit Area Test Tracks goes behind the test track walls to show how the facilities evolved and what typically takes place inside.

Hancock is a 19th-century mining boomtown in the heart of Michigan's Copper Country.

Situated on the northern shore of Portage Lake, it grew into a regional center of shipping and commerce. Hancock's early residents were predominantly emigrants from Prussia, Ireland, and England (largely Cornwall) who came to work in area mines. Germans and French Canadians were also part of the diverse ethnic mix, and they were later joined by Finns, Scandinavians, and Italians. The harsh winter climate and geographic isolation, with limited means of transportation for roughly half the year, required a hardy citizenry. The pioneer inhabitants were resolute achievers, forging a community that with each generation grew less dependent on mining and its ancillary industries. Hancock became the Copper Country's first city in 1903 and remains Michigan's northernmost city to this day. It is also home to the only private university in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

From a peaceful farming community to a thriving commercial suburb, Novi, Michigan, has undergone many periods of dramatic change, creating a rich history.

This collection of over 200 photographs provides a fascinating record of the development of Novi through the 19th and 20th centuries. In the early days of westward exploration, the fertile land surrounding Detroit attracted the first settlers of Novi. The town grew quickly after the 1825 opening of the Erie Canal, and by 1830, a bustling business district had emerged. The major changes came in the 1950s, with the building of freeways that cut directly through the heart of Novi. The sudden easy access to Detroit and Lansing ensured the town's future as a true American suburb. Shopping centers soon followed in the tire tracks of the freeway, and the area rapidly expanded.

Not-a-pe-ka-gon was the Native American name given to the Ludington area and translates as ""heads on sticks.""

The name refers to a battle between the Ottawa and Mascouten Indians in the 17th century that raged along the river toward Lake Michigan. The heads of the defeated Mascoutens were placed on sticks as a warning to all. Later a bluff overlooking the lake and river was the site of the 1675 death of Fr. Jacques Marquette, a Jesuit missionary and explorer. When the first settlers of European descent arrived, they gave the name of Pere Marquette to their village, lake, and river in honor of the fallen missionary. Eventually renamed after lumber baron James Ludington, the community became a bustling maritime port and the home of the largest car ferry fleet in the world.

Forgotten Detroit delves into the wellspring of history to retell some of Detroit's lesser-known stories within the Motor City's rich heritage.

Detroiters know their history well. Founded in 1701 by Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, the city subsisted on a variety of industries: fur trading, stove building, and, of course, the automobile. Names such as Henry Ford and Charles Lindbergh resonate in Detroiters' common memory while Detroit's meteoric rise during the 20th century established the city as an influential leader in commerce, culture, and religion. This growth spawned the development of numerous businesses, organizations, and institutions, many now forgotten after the passing of so many years. Individuals from the Michigan metropolis, such as Albert Kahn, Mary Chase Stratton, and Henry Ford II, all made their marks on the history books, even if the average Detroiter couldn't tell you who they were.

Lake Superior Country: 19th Century Travel and Tourism to Michigan's Upper Peninsula will follow these 19th century travelers, from the explorers in search of land titles and valuable mineral deposits in the early part of the century, to "literary travelers" seeking to witness the romantic region made famous by Henry W. Longfellow's poem "The Song of Hiawatha," to the sportsmen and sportswomen who found a bounty of wildlife and fishing grounds. It will also illustrate the various methods of travel undertaken by these people, from birch bark canoes, to steamers, to the railroads, and how these different methods of travel defined the overall tourist experience.

Included in Midland: The Way We Were are photographs that span the first 100 years of the city.

Midland, Michigan began life as The Forks, where the Tittabwassee and Chippewa Rivers met. By 1858, The Forks became the Village of Midland, and in 1869 it was incorporated and named the Village of Midland City. Lumbering and farmland attracted the first settlers, and in 1897 a brash young man named Herbert Henry Dow persuaded 57 investors to start a new business there named the Dow Chemical Company. Midland, by then a city, was forever changed. Included in Midland: The Way We Were are photographs that span the first 100 years of the city. From Main Street landmarks such as the Frolic Theater, to the churches and schools where Midland's residents worshiped and learned-here are over 200 images detailing Midland's history.

The 1930 Holland Evening Sentinel banner headline read: "Tulip Reigns as Queen of City." Throughout the decade, motion picture and radio personalities visited to promote the festival. The Holland Furnace Company, then the city's largest corporation, sponsored special radio programs that were broadcast nationwide.

After World War II, Holland saw the festival grow into the nation's third largest annual event. Visitors have enjoyed parades that included street scrubbing, "klompen" dancing, floats, and more than 50 bands. When Tulip Time began, 85 percent of the names in the Holland telephone directory were Dutch. Over time, the community's cultural diversity has evolved and is now reflected in the festival.