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Hidden History of Clinton, Iowa
9781467144841
Regular price $24.99 Sale price $12.50 Save 50%
Two things people frequently say about Clinton are that it was the lumber capital of the world and home to the most millionaires per capita. While those interesting nuggets are not exactly true, there are plenty of fascinating facts about the city. Learn why Clinton could easily be known as a holiday town if not overshadowed by the meetings and parties of America's lumber kings. See what life was like guiding an acre-long log raft down the Mississippi. Enter the century-long debate on the location of the Big Tree. And find out how Clinton fed the world. Matt Parbs, director of the Sawmill Museum, unearths Clinton's past from the weight of myth and details its hidden history.
Pella
9781467108249
Regular price $23.99 Sale price $12.00 Save 50%
The Dutch settlement at Pella, Iowa, had its start in 1847 when Rev. Hendrik Scholte moved his flock to America from the Netherlands. To this day, Pella retains a good part of its Dutch heritage, which includes a Tulip Festival held each May and a working windmill, the tallest in the United States. It also contains the childhood home of Wyatt Earp, which is on display with other historic buildings at the Pella Historic Village. As Pella moved into the 20th century, several manufacturing companies decided to locate there. Pella is also home to Central College, founded in 1853 and today known for its strong STEM programs and sustainability education. The Pella Historical Trust is very active preserving Pella’s rich architectural heritage, including the Pella Opera House, which was built in 1900 and renovated in 1990.
Iowa State Hockey and Al Murdoch
9781467153928
Regular price $23.99 Sale price $12.00 Save 50%
The Making of Iowa State Hockey During five decades, Alan Murdoch played for, coached and managed the Iowa State Cyclone hockey team, making a life's work out of his personal resourcefulness and initiative. Iowa State grew into a premier program in non-scholarship hockey, and as the network of similar teams became increasingly formalized under the auspices of the American Collegiate Hockey Association - an organization to which Murdoch was an essential contributor - the Cyclones played at a national championship-level. The trophy for which they were vying: the Murdoch Cup. By the time he left the bench, Murdoch's teams had won more than 1,000 games against opponents from around the world. Sometimes funny, sometime emotional, Murdoch and author Tim Harwood explore the story of how winning became a way of life for Cyclone Hockey.
Iowa Wesleyan University
9781467109406
Regular price $23.99 Sale price $12.00 Save 50%
Iowa Wesleyan University was founded in 1842, four years before Iowa's statehood. Pioneer Hall, in use by students and faculty by 1846, is among the oldest academic buildings in continuous use west of the Mississippi River. Abolition and women's enfranchisement were key hallmarks of this pioneer Methodist school. Iowa Wesleyan graduated its first female student, Lucy Killpatrick Byrkit, in 1859. Iowa Wesleyan's president, James Harlan, entered the national spotlight when he was elected to the US Senate in 1855. He was a stalwart abolitionist and supporter of Pres. Abraham Lincoln. Just after the Civil War, Iowa Wesleyan produced the first female attorney in the United States, Arabella Babb Mansfield (1866), who passed the bar exam in 1869. This small-town Iowa university also produced two explorers of space: James Van Allen (1935), discoverer of the magnetic belts that radiate around the planet, and Peggy Whitson (1981), the first female to serve as commander of the International Space Station. Today, Iowa Wesleyan University has the most diverse student body campus in Iowa, with young scholars hailing from small towns, big cities, and many nations abroad.
Sheldon
9781467108898
Regular price $23.99 Sale price $12.00 Save 50%
Sheldon, Iowa, the largest town in O’Brien County, was established when the Sioux City & St. Paul Railway (now the Union Pacific) reached the townsite on July 3, 1872. Named after Israel Sheldon, a stockholder in the railroad company, the area was known for its Prairie Queen Flour Mill, three railroads, and two major highways. Sheldon was also famous for its air shows; attracting one of the largest audiences in attendance at a Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus performance; and for being a regional business, agricultural, and industrial center. The collapse of the Sheldon National Bank in 1961 became a national story as the largest bank embezzlement in the United States at that time. This book covers from 1872 through the 1970s and shows Sheldon’s growth in business, education, and industry.
Iowa Women's Corrections
9781467147255
Regular price $21.99 Sale price $11.00 Save 50%
A History of Life Behind Bars in Iowa Iowa began building its first prison before achieving statehood, and women were sentenced to penitentiaries prior to the establishment of plans for their own housing. Beginning in the mid-19th century, incarcerated females were transitioned through a series of institutions and confinement environments, often as the result of persistent overcrowding, underfunding, discriminatory laws or practices, or to make room for incarcerated males. Early in Iowa's correctional history, women disproportionately served time for crimes considered to be against public decency, such as prostitution, lewdness and incorrigibility. Over time, their conditions and crimes evolved, but the situation continually faced obstacles such as access to treatment and programming, adequate facilities and opportunities for re-entry and reform. Author Erica Spiller dives deep into this intriguing history.
Langworthys of Dubuque, The
9781467148504
Regular price $21.99 Sale price $11.00 Save 50%
James, Lucius, Edward and Solon Langworthy arrived in the lead mining district of the Upper Midwest in the 1820s and made a lasting impression on what would become Dubuque. Their father, Dr. Stephen Langworthy, and their seventeen siblings soon joined in the wilderness adventure. Solon plowed the first fields, James built the first Methodist church and Lucius built the first road between Dubuque and Iowa City. Their ancestor James IV fought to secure victory at Fort Ticonderoga during the American Revolution, and cousin Hart Massey founded the Massey-Ferguson Company. Julia Langworthy led relief work for the Union soldiers and helped to found a home for orphans. Author Susan M. Hellert details how the Langworthys helped build a city.
