Name: Steel City Mafia
Brand: Paul N. Hodos
SKU: 9781467153751
Price: 16.79 USD
Availability: InStock

Steel City Mafia

9781467153751

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

Pittsburgh's small but lucrative Cosa Nostra mafia family was on the rise in 1985 with a newly crowned Don... The men who came to dominate the rackets in western Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio, and West Virginia opened the family to massive profits from drug trafficking and a street tax on other criminal activities. At the same time, the Youngstown, OH faction of the family launched a brutal mob war against the weakening Cleveland mafia and the Altoona, PA crew violently clamped down on their city. Discover gritty stories of a made member who controlled who a local police department hired, an informant who betrayed his own mafia grandfather and father, numerous unsolved murders and a mob mole in the Pittsburgh office of the FBI. This is the tale of a mafia family at the pinnacle of its power, willing to do anything to hold on to that power and its downfall in the criminal underworld.

Native American History of Washington, DC

9781467154215

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

Read the missing stories of DC's precolonial history.

Native Americans lived on the land that is now Washington, DC for several thousand years before English settlers arrived in the early 1600s. The Native people had villages, quarries and burial grounds throughout the city, ranging from what is now Rock Creek Park to the grounds of the White House. These sites speak of the history of the Anacostans and the preceding tribes who once walked the land under historic sites and museums that now neglect them. Local author Armand Lione details the record of the Native tribes of the District and deals with the complex question of why these stories have not been offered to the public.

Native American History of Washington, DC

The Mount Washington Transit Tunnel Disaster

9781467142717

$21.99 $15.39 Save 30%

On Christmas Eve 1917, an overcrowded, out-of-control streetcar exited the Mount Washington tunnel, crashing into pedestrians. Twenty-three were killed and more than eighty injured in the worst transit incident in Pittsburgh history. The crash scene on Carson Street was chaotic as physicians turned the railway offices into a makeshift hospital and bystanders frantically sought to remove the injured and strewn bodies from the wreckage. Most of the victims, many women and children, were from the close-knit neighborhoods of Knoxville, Beltzhoover and Mount Oliver. In the aftermath, public outrage over the tragedy led to criminal prosecution, civil suits and the bankruptcy of the Pittsburgh Railways Company, which operated the service. Author Mary Jane Kuffner Hirt explores the tragic history of the Mount Washington transit tunnel disaster.

The Mount Washington Transit Tunnel Disaster

Wade Hampton's Iron Scouts

9781467139380

$21.99 $15.39 Save 30%

Author D. Michael Thomas presents the previously untold story of the Iron Scouts for the first time.

Serving from late 1862 to the war's end, Wade Hampton's Scouts were a key component of the comprehensive intelligence network designed by Generals Robert E. Lee, J.E.B. Stuart and Wade Hampton. The Scouts were stationed behind enemy lines on a permanent basis and provided critical military intelligence to their generals. They became proficient in "unconventional" warfare and emerged unscathed in so many close-combat actions that their foes grudgingly dubbed them Hampton's "Iron Scouts."

Virginia's Lost Appalachian Trail

9781467153393

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

Walk in the footsteps of Virginia's earliest hikers. For more than two decades hikers on the Appalachian Trail in Virginia walked through some of the most beautiful landscapes of the southern mountains. Then, in 1952, the Appalachian Trail Conference moved the trail more than 50 miles to the west. Lost in that move were opportunities to scramble over the Pinnacles of Dan, to sit on Fisher's Peak and gaze out over the North Carolina Piedmont, or to cross the New River on a flat-bottomed boat called Redbud for a nickel. Historian and lifelong hiker Mills Kelly tells the story of a 300-mile section of the Appalachian Trail that is all but forgotten by hikers, but not by the residents of the Southwestern Virginia counties that the trail used to cross.

Mount Dora

9780738505688

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

Located approximately 50 miles north of Disney World, the small community of Mount Dora, Florida, has become a peaceful oasis in the bustling region

It offers a respite to the weary traveler and a refreshing connection to an earlier time. The town rests on the shores of the beautiful Lake Dora, named for early settler Dora Drawdy by government surveyors in the 1840s. Looking at the quaint city streets, placid lake, and turn-of-the-century homes, it's easy to imagine life long ago in Mount Dora as inordinately idyllic, but like all communities, Mount Dora has faced challenges to its growth and prosperity. The collapse of the real estate boom in the mid-1920s was quickly followed by the Great Depression, ruining lives and fortunes in Mount Dora and around the state. But from the beginning, one of Mount Dora's strongest assets has been its inviting lake, an advantage that has helped a thriving tourism industry to develop in this small town. Visitors flock to Mount Dora, not only for the tranquil setting, but also for the community's old-fashioned charm, antique district, and architectural distinctiveness.

Chicago's 1893 World's Fair

9780738594415

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

Step into the future of the past in Chicago's 1893 World's Fair!

What came to be known as the World's Columbian Exposition was planned to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's 1492 landfall in the New World. Chicago beat out New York City, St. Louis, Missouri, and Washington, DC, in its bid as host - a coup for the Windy City. The site finally selected for the fair was Jackson Park, a marshy area covered with dense, wild vegetation. Daniel H. Burnham and John W. Root were selected as chief architects, creating the famous White City. The fair featured several different thematic areas: the Great Buildings, Foreign Buildings, State Buildings, and the Midway Plaisance, a nearly mile-long area that featured exotic exhibits. The exposition also showcased the world's first Ferris Wheel and introduced fairgoers to new sensations like Cracker Jack, Pabst Beer, and ragtime music. Unfortunately, by 1896, most of the fair's buildings had been removed or destroyed, but this collection takes readers on a tour of the grounds as they looked in 1893.

Ellis Island

9780738513041

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

The United States is considered the world's foremost refuge for foreigners, and no place in the nation symbolizes this better than Ellis Island.

Through Ellis Island's halls and corridors more than twelve million immigrants-of nearly every nationality and race-entered the country on their way to new experiences in North America. With an astonishing array of nineteenth- and twentieth-century photographs, Ellis Island leads the reader through the fascinating history of this small island in New York harbor from its pre-immigration days as one of the harbor's oyster islands to its spectacular years as the flagship station of the U.S. Bureau of Immigration to its current incarnation as the National Park Service's largest museum.

Remembering Hudson's

9780738583662

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

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.

Yellowstone National Park

9780738548494

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

Yellowstone National Park is one of the earth's most famous places. Established in 1872 as the world's first national park, it has preserved remarkable natural wonders like Old Faithful Geyser and cultural icons such as Old Faithful Inn. For centuries, it was home to the Shoshone, Crow, Bannock, Blackfeet, and other Indian tribes, but these groups were banished in the 1870s by park
promoters who feared that tourists would not visit if American Indians lived there. Almost immediately after its establishment, Yellowstone became the primary destination for tourist travel to the American West following the Civil War. By 1900, it was a vast tourist success, and today it is both a world biosphere preserve and a world heritage site.

Lincoln Funeral Train, The

9781467109529

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

The effective end of the American Civil War on April 9, 1865, had hardly sunk in when, only five days later, another disaster stunned the battered and bloodied nation. On the night of April 9, Pres. Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. There would be time for vengeful thoughts later, but first the Great Emancipator was going to get a royal send-off. At the center of what would become a three-week national funeral was a spectacular train that would carry Lincoln's remains, and those of his deceased son, from Washington, DC, to Springfield, Illinois. "The Lincoln Special" steamed slowly out of spring mists, allowing thousands of mourners lining the tracks a lingering view. It was a logistics miracle; a romantic pageant of sorrow and wonder, carried off flawlessly. Through the tears, however, was a sense that America's identity had turned a corner and was about to enter a dynamic and hopeful future. Author of nine books, Michael Leavy is an avid Civil War and railroad historian. Leavy has searched through archives to locate rare photographs and new details and dispel some lingering myths surrounding this tragic but formative American event.

The 1964-1965 New York World's Fair

9780738536064

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

The 1964-1965 New York World's Fair was the largest international exhibition ever built in the United States.

More than one hundred fifty pavilions and exhibits spread over six hundred forty-six acres helped the fair live up to its reputation as "the Billion-Dollar Fair." With the cold war in full swing, the fair offered visitors a refreshingly positive view of the future, mirroring the official theme: Peace through Understanding. Guests could travel back in time through a display of full-sized dinosaurs, or look into a future where underwater hotels and flying cars were commonplace. They could enjoy Walt Disney's popular shows, or study actual spacecraft flown in orbit. More than fifty-one million guests visited the fair before it closed forever in 1965. The 1964-1965 New York World's Fair captures the history of this event through vintage photographs, published here for the first time.

Remembering Marshall Field's

9780738583686

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

or more than 150 years, Marshall Field's reigned as Chicago's leading department store, celebrated for its exceptional service, spectacular window displays, and fashionable merchandise.

Few shoppers recalled its origins as a small dry goods business opened in 1852 by a New York Quaker named Potter Palmer. That store, eventually renamed Marshall Field and Company, weathered economic downturns, spectacular fires, and fierce competition to become a world-class retailer and merchandise powerhouse. Marshall Field sent buyers to Europe for the latest fashions, insisted on courteous service, and immortalized the phrase "give the lady what she wants." The store prided itself on its dazzling Tiffany mosaic dome, Walnut Room restaurant, bronze clocks, and a string of firsts including the first bridal registry and first book signing.

The Westside Park Murders

9781467144889

$21.99 $15.39 Save 30%

On a warm night in September 1985, teenagers Kimberly Dowell and Ethan Dixon were brutally murdered in Westside Park in Muncie, Indiana. Their killer has never been charged. Early on, police focused on a family member of one of the teens as a primary suspect. The investigation even ruled out fantastic scenarios, including a theory that the perpetrator was a Dungeons & Dragons devotee. The case grew cold. Only decades later did a dogged police investigator narrow the scope to a suspect whose name has never been publicly revealed until now. Keith Roysdon and Douglas Walker, authors of Wicked Muncie and Muncie Murder & Mayhem, have followed the investigation into the Westside Park murders for decades and, for the first time, report the complete and untold story.

The Perfect Amount of Wrong

9781467154079

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

In just over a decade, a tiny, do-it-yourself stand-up scene on the North Side of Chicago produced some of the most successful and influential stand-up comedians of their generation. Hannibal Buress, T.J. Miller, Kyle Kinane, Cameron Esposito, Pete Holmes, Beth Stelling, Matt Braunger and Kumail Nanjiani make up a partial list of names of comics who emerged from a scene that had very little industry attention--or even a home club.

It was also a scene that took a backseat to the city's vaunted improv institution, and if we're being completely honest, it was a scene where comics mostly performed to drunks in the backs of dingy bars on their off nights. None of it was glamorous. None of it should have worked at all. But somehow, some way, the comedians from this scene have managed to etch their own names into the Chicago comedy pantheon. The Perfect Amount of Wrong is the story of that scene, as told by its veterans.

Roosevelt Homes of the Hudson Valley

9781467145275

$21.99 $15.39 Save 30%

Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his family may be most remembered for their time at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, but it was the Hudson Valley they called home. In Manhattan, the president's mother built a townhome on East Sixty-Fifth Street, and Eleanor was born on East Thirty-Seventh. On the banks of the Hudson River, Hyde Park was Franklin's birthplace and where he entertained some of the most important leaders of the twentieth century. Up the Albany Post Road, several homes of family and friends played important moments in history. Laura Delano's Tudor-style house was where FDR met with Churchill, and the beautiful Wilderstein was home to Daisy Suckley, a devoted confidante. In Albany as governor, FDR installed a therapy pool in a converted outdoor greenhouse to assist his physical challenges in the Executive Mansion. Historian Shannon Butler traces the historic homes that shaped the Roosevelt family in the Hudson Valley.

John F. Kennedy at Rest in Arlington

9781467104036

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

John F. Kennedy is one of only three presidents not interred in his home state. Sitting next to his coffin on the flight home from Dallas, Jacqueline Kennedy began formulating plans for his funeral and burial. The following day, in a raw November rain, she selected the Arlington hillside as his final resting place. For three days, in a majestic display of elegance, strength, grace, and courage, the 34-year-old widow led the nation through the excruciating task of laying its president to rest. Within days, she returned to Arlington, and in a brief ceremony, their two infant children were laid to rest beside their father, beneath the eternal flame she lit. Work immediately began on the permanent resting place and memorial, and in March 1967, the final reinterment took place. A half-century later, four million people come yearly to pay their respects to President Kennedy, his widow, and two children.

Confederate South Carolina

9781626198203

$21.99 $15.39 Save 30%

The Civil War never left South Carolina, from its beginning at Fort Sumter in 1861 through the destructive, harrowing days of Sherman's march through the state in 1865.

Included here are the stories of Confederate civilians and soldiers who remained true to their cause throughout the perilous struggle. An English aristocrat risked his life to run the blockade and become one of the defenders of Charleston. The Haskells of Abbeville sent seven sons into Confederate service. Many South Carolina women made heart-rending sacrifices, including a disabled woman from Laurens County whose heroic efforts preserved Mount Vernon, the home of George Washington, from wartime ravages. Author Karen Stokes details the lives of men and women whose destinies intertwined with a tragic era in Palmetto State history.

Hoover Dam

9780738596099

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

Hoover Dam was America's shining light during the dark days of the Great Depression. This monumental structure was the largest federal works project of its time, constructed after years of scientific study and political maneuvering by California boosters. This thirsty state looked to the untapped Colorado River to supply reliable water for Imperial Valley farms and the fast-growing Los Angeles metropolitan area. Harnessing the unruly Colorado River would be no easy task. Only the federal government could fulfill the dream. An unprecedented high dam, over 700 feet tall, was designed to store two years of river flow, trap tons of silt, and gain control of the river. The project was financed by the sale of hydroelectric power to southern California, Arizona, and southern Nevada. Today, Imperial Valley is an American garden spot, and Los Angeles is one of the nation's most influential cities. The Las Vegas Valley also witnessed tremendous growth beginning with the dam and followed by legalized gambling, defense industries, and tourism. Meanwhile, the small town of Boulder City, born during the dam's construction, still thrives in the shadow of Hoover Dam.

Route 66 in California

9780738530376

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

The "Mother Road" hauled it all, traversing the American West from Chicago to Santa Monica Beach, the last 350 miles through Southern California. For settlers, Depression-era "Okies" and "Arkies," and post-World War II families bound for suburbia, Route 66 was a migration funnel for generations. Wending through the mountains and badlands of San Bernardino County into Los Angeles County, Route 66 became a state of mind and a catchphrase for travelers everywhere, especially after singer Bobby Troupe popularized the hit song "(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66" and actors Martin Milner and George Maharis hit the road with the ragtop down and the shades on in the namesake television series that seemed to go anywhere every week. The shield of the Route 66 sign has become iconography for the growth of Southern California's economy, population, popularity, and folklore.

Haunting Poe

9781467151269

$21.99 $15.39 Save 30%

Edgar Allan Poe has had a busy afterlife.

The author of "The Raven" and "The Tell-Tale Heart" might have died back in 1849, but some claim that did not stop him from composing poetry for another four decades. Others say he still makes appearances in no fewer than five cities, and that his ghost is a regular at a couple of different taverns, one of which saves a seat for him. Like a character from one of his short stories, Poe refuses to stay buried.

Author Christopher Semtner explores the ghost stories and hauntings associated with his life--from the supernatural legends that inspired his writing to the alleged paranormal activity inspired by those terror tales.

A Murder in Amish Ohio

9781467147538

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

In the summer of 1957, a young Holmes County farmer was gunned down in cold blood. There was little to distinguish this slaying from hundreds of others throughout the United States that year except for one detail: Paul Coblentz was Amish. A committed pacifist, Coblentz would not raise a hand against his killers. As sensational crimes often do, the "Amish murder" opened a window into the private lives of the young man, his family and his community--a community that in some respects remains as enigmatic today as it was more than half a century ago. Authors of Wicked Columbus, Ohio's Black Hand Syndicate and others, David Meyers and Elise Meyers Walker unravel the intricacies surrounding one of Ohio's most intriguing murder cases.

Ghosts and Legends of Hollywood

9781467155182

$21.99 $15.39 Save 30%

Cursed awards, haunted estates, and deadly sets.

Hollywood is supposed to be the place where dreams come true, but it's also where nightmares come to life. Spirits haunt the halls of renowned studios, legendary cafes, and lavish estates, while rumors of curses lurk in the shadows of the rich and famous. It's said that stars like James Dean, Carrie Fisher, and Prince once predicted their own deaths, while slain screenwriter Paul Bern tried in vain to warn Sharon Tate about her own fate. Ghosts reportedly linger in the corners of the El Coyote Café and the Falcon Lair boasts sightings of Rudolph Valentino long after his death.

Join author and paranormal historian Brian Clune for a star-studded tour of the dark side of Hollywood.

The Medal of Honor at Gettysburg

9781467155229

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

Above and Beyond the Call of Duty

In early summer, 1863 Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia began moving northward. As Lee moved toward Maryland, the Union army followed, taking a parallel path on the opposite side of the Blue Ridge Mountains. From June 9 to the beginning of July the two armies skirmished at various locations along the route. Then, from July 1 through July 3, they clashed in the epic Battle of Gettysburg. Throughout the Gettysburg Campaign, seventy-two men earned the Medal of Honor, the highest honor in the American military. Discover the harrowing narratives of those who served to keep a nation united with the highest valor. Including the story of the unknown soldiers awarded the medal, these profiles showcase some of the most intense moments of the most important battle in the Civil War.

Author James Gindlesperger presents the Medal of Honor at Gettysburg.

Italians in the Pacific Northwest

9781467160469

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

From hardscrabble days as homesteaders and farmers in the 1880s to becoming successful entrepreneurs of the postwar boom generation, Italians settled and later thrived in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Italians labored in several industries, including railway tie hacking in Idaho, coal mining in Black Diamond, logging in Aberdeen, canning salmon in Astoria, terra-cotta and brick manufacturing in Taylor, and growing onions in Walla Walla. Those who ventured into business later grew notable local companies such as DeLaurenti Food & Wine, Pacific Food Imports, Oberto Sausage, Napoleon Oil, and La Panzanella Crackers. Further still, Italians in the area contributed to inventions from the collapsible crab pot and trawl nets to the atomic bomb, the vaudeville circuit, the Pellegrini bean, and one-of-a-kind accordions. Italian pioneers in the Pacific Northwest also have a connection to Hemingway, Elvis, President Kennedy, Mother Cabrini, and the Loprinzis, the "strongest family in America." Today, over 300,000 Italian Americans call this region home, and it is the author's hope that this book highlights the contributions of many Italians, known and unknown.

The Witch of Mansfield

9781467155212

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

Meet one of Richland County's most colorful citizens.

There are those who thought Phebe Wise was a witch. More thought that the cranky old lady was "tetched," meaning crazy. And she was crazy--like a fox. An eccentric who outwitted violent robbers, a mad stalker, and a society that expected her to marry and raise children, Phebe alternated between dressing up in men's clothes and strutting to town in an antique ball gown, the trail dragging behind her in the dirt. If anyone had the gall to stare, she'd cuss them out. She was in touch with a different world, and she used it to help launch the career of a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer, Louis Bromfield.

Local author and historian Mark Sebastian Jordan unravels the myth and history of Phebe Wise.

Oklahoma Freedmen of the Five Tribes

9781467154772

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

Explore accounts of Oklahoma's Freedmen as told by their descendants in these stories of resistance and resilience on the Western frontier.

The Freedmen of Oklahoma were black people, both enslaved and free, who had been living among the Indian nations. After the official abolition of slavery in 1866, they forged an identity as their own people as they faced the challenges of the western frontier. By 1906, before Oklahoma statehood, over 20,000 people were classified as "Freedmen" from Five Tribes: Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek and Seminole Nations. For decades, their descendants have been rediscovering their family history and restoring its place in the larger narrative. Angela Walton-Raji has compiled this collection of stories, told by descendants from all five tribes, to ensure that the Freedmen of Oklahoma claim their vibrant part of the state's heritage.

Grand Central Terminal and Penn Station

9781467103251

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

Opened in 1913, Grand Central Terminal is a world-famous landmark building with a magnificent 48-foot-high, 1,500-ton statuary group on top of the main facade. Designed by sculptor Jules-Felix Coutan, a 13-foot-wide Tiffany clock serves as the centerpiece. The figure above the clock is Mercury, with Hercules to the left and Minerva to the right. In the late 1990s, a historic restoration was performed on the terminal after which two cast-iron eagle statues were placed over entrances at Lexington Avenue and Forty-Second Street/Vanderbilt Avenue. These eagles were from the 1898 Grand Central Station building that was demolished in 1910 to make room for the construction of the new Grand Central Terminal structure. Penn Station, which opened in 1910, covered two full city blocks and had statuary groups, designed by sculptor Adolph Weinman, on all four sides of the building. After Penn Station was demolished in the mid-1960s, the statuary was dispersed throughout various locations, mainly in the Northeast.

Southern Pacific's Slim Princess

9781467108782

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

For 60 years, the Southern Pacific's Slim Princess served as the lifeline to remote areas of western Nevada and eastern California. In 1880, the financiers of the Virginia & Truckee Railroad organized the Carson & Colorado Railroad to build a narrow-gauge line from the Carson River to the Colorado River, but that dream was never fully realized. In 1900, the Southern Pacific Railroad purchased the 300-mile line, envisioning it as a shortcut from Nevada to Southern California. The northern half of the line was converted to standard gauge in 1905. The section from Mina, Nevada, to Keeler, California, remained an isolated and celebrated part of the Southern Pacific until it succumbed to the scrapper's torch in 1960.

The Philadelphia Eagles

9781467107112

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

The history of the Philadelphia Eagles spans multiple championships, many more near misses, and a cast of characters both on and off the field.

The passion of the game has flowed through the veins of generations of Philadelphians, and this book details the history of the Eagles from a unique fan perspective. Compiled from more than two dozen sources, The Philadelphia Eagles features rarely seen archival and personal photographs, including ones from Pete Pihos, Vince Papale, Upton Bell, Ed Mahan, and fans across the Delaware Valley.

Brian Michael is a college professor whose love for sports history led him to open Shibe Vintage Sports in Center City Philadelphia. Andrew Palagruto was born and raised in South Philadelphia near the sports complex and is Philly fandom personified. Andrew Weicker operates several digital properties related to Philadelphia sports from his fan cave in Northeast Philadelphia.

The North Shore Line

9781467108966

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

As late as 1963, it was possible to board high-speed electric trains on Chicago's famous Loop "L" that ran 90 miles north to Milwaukee. This was the Chicago North Shore & Milwaukee Railroad, commonly known as the North Shore Line. It rose from humble origins in the 1890s as a local streetcar line in Waukegan to eventually become America's fastest interurban under the visionary management of Midwest utilities tycoon Samuel Insull. The North Shore Line, under Insull, became a worthy competitor to the established steam railroads. Hobbled by the Great Depression, the road fought back in 1941 with two streamlined, air-conditioned, articulated trains called Electroliners, which included dining service. It regained its popularity during World War II, when gasoline and tires were rationed, but eventually, it fell victim to highways and the automobile. The North Shore Line had intercity rail, commuter rail, electric freight, city streetcars, and even buses. It has been gone for nearly 60 years, but it will always remain the Road of Service.

Cookie Table, The

9781467153065

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

All you need is love and cookies. Everyone loves cookies, but the people of the Steel Valley take this love to another level. Nowhere else in America will you behold hundreds--or even thousands--of cookies piled high for events of all kinds. This is the regionally famous cookie table. But how did this tradition start? Why do residents of the Pittsburgh and Youngstown areas always create them not just for weddings but for birthdays, graduations, fundraisers, community events, and so much more? How did this once quaint local custom become a social media phenomenon? How are the cookies made, and how is a cookie table organized? Join author and cookie table enthusiast Alice Crosetto on a delectable journey through this beloved Steel Valley tradition.

Selling Sex in the Silver Valley

9781467136563

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

Once the largest silver producer in the world, Wallace became notorious for labor uprisings, hard drinking, gambling and prostitution. As late as 1991, illegal brothels openly flourished because locals believed that sex work prevented rape and bolstered the economy, so long as it was regulated and confined to a particular area of town. The madams enjoyed unprecedented status as influential businesswomen, community leaders and philanthropists, while elsewhere a growing aversion to the sex trade drove red-light districts underground. Dr. Heather Branstetter's research features previously unpublished archival materials and oral histories as she relates the intimate details of this unlikely story.

Illinois Midland Railway

9781467107754

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

Located 50 miles southwest of Chicago, the Illinois Midland Railway connected Newark and Millington, two small towns surrounded by farmland barely two miles apart.

The Illinois Midland Railway began in 1914. Originally, plans called for a 120-mile railroad to be built across northern Illinois, connecting the cities of Rockford and Kankakee and bypassing congested Chicagoland rail traffic. A turbulent financial start resulted in just 1.962 miles of rickety track that meandered through forests, pastures, and across a creek. Townspeople there rescued the struggling railroad then ran it successfully under the tutelage of the Newark Farmers Grain Elevator Company, getting into record books along the way as "The World's Shortest Railroad." The end came in 1967, when vandals burned a couple of the railroad's bridges. The Midland ceased operations, and the rails were removed, but again townspeople in Newark and Millington came to the rescue, each establishing museums to keep the memory of their Midland alive today.

Jeff Kehoe is a retired history teacher and active member in several railroad historical societies. Growing up in a Chicagoland railroad family, he has written stories for numerous publications. As a lifetime member of the Milwaukee Road Historical Association, he has written four books for that organization. This is his first book for Arcadia Publishing. The photographs and maps are courtesy of various sources, including the Fern Dell Museum in Newark, Millington Illinois Historical Museum, and the author's own collection.

Irving Berlin

9781455625406

$10.95 $7.67 Save 30%

Irving Berlin and his family fled anti-Jewish Russia before he went on to become one of America's most popular commercial composers. As a self-taught pianist, Berlin is responsible for many hit songs such as "God Bless America," "White Christmas," as well as the musical Annie Get Your Gun.
Author Paul Kaplan traces the path of the man behind the songs through this rags-to-riches story and Berlin's place in the music business in the early twentieth century, including the tragedies that befell him on this journey.