In old Omaha, the scent of opium wafted through saloon doors, while prostitutes openly solicited customers. When the St. Elmo theater ran short of the usual entertainment, the residents could always fall back on robbing strangers. Tenants of the Burnt District squirmed under the extorting thumb of a furniture dealer dubbed the Man-Landlady. The games of chance and confidence and outright municipal graft all played a part in a wicked city where gambler Tom Dennison ran politics and Madam Anna Wilson drove philanthropy. Join Ryan Roenfeld for a stroll along the seamier side of Omaha's past.
A History Lover's Guide to Minneapolis
9781467141932
Regular price
$23.99
Sale price
$16.79
Save 30%
Minneapolis began at the Falls of St. Anthony, the sole waterfall on the Mississippi River. The cataract, the great hydrological engine, propelled the city's economic growth and physical expansion, and two distinct municipal identities emerged. A city of seasons, Minneapolis celebrates winter flurries and chills with ice skating and hot chocolate at the annual Holidazzle Festival. In the sultry midsummer heat, the Aquatennial brings swimmers and boating enthusiasts to the Chain of Lakes and the river. Landmarks, too, define the topography-Spoonbridge and Cherry, the Stone Arch and Hennepin Avenue Bridges, the Foshay Tower and the IDS Center. Join local authors Sherman Wick and Holly Day on a trip beyond the typical guidebook as they explore the architecture, parks and historical figures of the Mill City.
History Lover's Guide to Omaha, A
9781467148450
Regular price
$21.99
Sale price
$15.39
Save 30%
In Omaha, an evening stroll can provide passage into a fascinating past. Travel from a madam's elaborate grave in North Omaha to the site of the first U.S. airmail flight in Aksarben. Chase down the echoes of a Duke Ellington performance at the Dreamland Ballroom in the Jewell Building. Stow away on a tour that treats the whole city like a museum. Colorful street murals and Gilded Age mansions stand in as exhibits alongside the more traditional offerings of state markers and archival collections. Gain fresh appreciation for familiar landscapes and famous landmarks as Eileen Wirth and Carol McCabe move through Omaha neighborhood by neighborhood.
Lost Rochester, Minnesota
9781625858320
Regular price
$21.99
Sale price
$15.39
Save 30%
Rochester is synonymous with one of its most famous landmarks, the Mayo Clinic, but there's so much more to the Med City. It began as a frontier town, struggling to make its mark in a sparsely populated wilderness. By the late nineteenth century, Rochester had expanded into a vibrant city, rich with business, educational and cultural opportunities. Rediscover the Dubuque Trail and the beautiful summer lake retreats, along with the Cook Hotel, the Central Fire Station and more. Author Amy Jo Hahn uncovers the lost beginnings of Rochester and brings the stories of this unique place to life.
Minnesota Caves
9781467135924
Regular price
$23.99
Sale price
$16.79
Save 30%
Minnesota's caves have a deep history. Carver's Cave is the first to be described in the literature of North America after explorer Jonathan Carver visited it in 1766. The storied Fountain Cave was the birthplace of the city of St. Paul. Just after the American Civil War, Chute's Cave inspired an elaborate national hoax regarding an ancient civilization. Folklore surrounds Petrified Indian Cave, where a strangely shaped stalagmite was mistaken for a person turned to stone. Geologist and urban explorer Greg Brick, PhD, uses decades of research to uncover the secrets of geological wonders.
Murder at the Roosevelt Hotel in Cedar Rapids
9781467119603
Regular price
$21.99
Sale price
$15.39
Save 30%
Byron C. Hattman sealed his fate when he checked into the Roosevelt Hotel on December 13, 1948. A maid found his body in a blood-spattered room two days later. An investigation linked him to the young wife of St. Louis pediatrician Robert C. Rutledge, who confessed to the brutal attack after trying to poison himself. The scandal made national headlines and seemed like an easy case for the Linn County court. That is, until new evidence changed the story completely. Reporter and author Diane Fannon-Langton uncovers the truth and compiles the complete details of the Hattman slaying for the first time.
Detour Iowa
9781467143455
Regular price
$21.99
Sale price
$15.39
Save 30%
Iowa history ranges from the natural to what's been made by humans over many centuries. Find and hold the fossilized remains of sea creatures that lived 375 million years ago. Walk through a small-town home where one of the nation's most infamous--and unsolved--murders occurred in 1912. Savor pastries that originated in the Netherlands before the 1840s and watch where wheat is ground into flour in a windmill first built in Denmark and then rebuilt in Elk Horn. Listen to time softly tick away in an elaborately carved clock that auto pioneer Henry Ford tried and failed to buy in 1928 for $1 million. Join writer-photographer Mike Whye on trips to the known, little-known and unknown historic places in Iowa.
Haunted Lawrence
9781625859204
Regular price
$21.99
Sale price
$15.39
Save 30%
Founded in 1854 as an abolitionist outpost, Lawrence is a seemingly unassuming college town with a long history of hauntings. A ghostly guest never checked out of the Eldridge Hotel's mysterious room 506. Sigma Nu's fraternity house, the former home of Kansas's eighteenth governor, is still haunted by the specter of a young woman. Learn the tragic stories of Pete Vinegar, George Albach and Lizzie Madden and uncover the devilish truth behind the "legend" of Stull Cemetery. Author Paul Thomas reveals the ghoulish history behind these stories and many more.
A Culinary History of the Nebraska Sand Hills
9781626195561
Regular price
$21.99
Sale price
$15.39
Save 30%
Spanning nineteen thousand square miles of central Nebraska, the Sand Hills--North America's largest sand dune--is held in place by only a thin, sturdy layer of native prairie grasses and continuing faith that the land can be made prosperous by its residents. Settlers in the area had to be hardy and resourceful, making use of what the land provided and holding fast when their hard work blew away with the prairie winds. From foraging to ranching, food meant survival, but it also meant community. Staples like fried chicken, biscuits, fruit pies, preserves and cakes all play a role in the fascinating story of the region. Join food writer Christianna Reinhardt as she dishes up the unique and tasty history of this exceptional part of the world.
A young commercial wine industry notwithstanding, winemaking traditions run deep in the Mount Rushmore State. Sodbusting pioneers like Anna Pesä and Jon Vojta defied South Dakota's harsh terrain and paved the way for Prairie Berry Winery. University biologists, including Dr. Ronald Peterson, cultivated the unique grapes needed for the climate, like the Valiant, Marquette, Brianna and Frontenac grapes. Despite subzero winters and torrid summers, strawberries, buffaloberries and rhubarb have grown on both sides of the Missouri River. Since the 1996 Farm Winery Bill passed, the state welcomed thirty vintners, including Strawbale Winery, Wilde Prairie Winery and Belle Joli' Winery. Denise DePaolo and Kara Sweet explore the heritage behind winemaking from the harvests of the prairie.
Lost St. Louis
9781625859242
Regular price
$21.99
Sale price
$15.39
Save 30%
St. Louis has been a shining beacon on the shores of the Mississippi River for more than 250 years, and many iconic landmarks have come and gone. The city hosted the World's Fair in 1904, with beautiful acres of buildings, gardens and fountains, nearly all of which are lost to time. Famous Busch Stadium now sits on an area that was once a vibrant community for Chinese immigrants. St. Louis Jockey Club was an expansive and popular gathering spot in the late nineteenth century until the state outlawed gambling. The Lion Gas Building was home to a unique mural featuring more than seventy shades of gray in tribute to famed aviator Charles Lindbergh. Author Valerie Battle Kienzle details the fantastic forgotten landmarks of St. Louis.
Detour Nebraska
9781625858818
Regular price
$23.99
Sale price
$16.79
Save 30%
For many, Nebraska is the flat prairie seen from the interstate. Yet with the Sandhills, bluffs and river valleys, the state has an abundance of riches. The heritage of early settlers is evident. Fort Kearny and Chimney Rock were pioneer harbors. The Fur Trade Museum and the Homestead Monument of America tell of those who came to make a life. Carhenge is a nationally known treasure. The Joslyn Art Museum features world-class art, and the Nebraska National Forest is the largest hand-planted forest in the nation. Native Nebraskan Gretchen Garrison details the places and people that make the Cornhusker State unique.
Minnesota Moxie
9781467135719
Regular price
$23.99
Sale price
$16.79
Save 30%
Minnesotans are a tough lot, capable of pulling a house six miles by muscle alone or giving birth to a sixteen-pound boy. In 1921, young Phoebe Fairgrave set a parachute world record, stepping off the wing of a biplane 15,200 feet above the Twin Cities. In 1962, the last powerhouse Gophers football team brought home the Rose Bowl trophy. A year later, thirteen-year-old Jean Webb of Minneapolis risked arrest and refused to leave a segregated restaurant. In 1979, Gerry Spiess crossed the Atlantic alone in a 10-foot sailboat he built in his White Bear Lake garage. These inspiring stories and dozens more, culled from the Star Tribune newspaper archives, are presented in their original form by author Ben Welter, along with in-depth background, fresh interviews and more than seventy-five historic photos.
Hidden History of Fargo
9781467136594
Regular price
$21.99
Sale price
$15.39
Save 30%
Fueled by ambition and pipe dreams, Fargo's earliest residents created an entire city out of the dust of a flat, desolate prairie. Roberts Street might not exist if it weren't for Matilda Roberts, a resourceful pioneer wife who encouraged her husband's cousin to set up his law firm on that important downtown thoroughfare. O.J. deLendrecie generated so much success through his retail store that he was able to buy President Theodore Roosevelt's ranch in western North Dakota. Oliver Dalrymple may have been the bonanza farm king, but the better manager was his rival, Herbert Chaffee of the Amenia and Sharon Land Company. Author Danielle Teigen reveals the intriguing true stories behind many of the most engaging characters and what continues to make the "Gateway to the West" unique.
Wicked Branson
9781467137119
Regular price
$21.99
Sale price
$15.39
Save 30%
Branson's wholesome brand of entertainment made it the nation's destination for family fun, but the vacation wonderland can't claim a spotless past. Murder and mischief dogged the town's efforts at respectability from the very beginning. The founder's own brother, Galba Branson, was a prominent member of the notorious vigilante gang the Bald Knobbers. He died in a picnic shootout that originated in a church prank. Branson's transformation into a showbiz mecca brought quarrel and scandal in its wake, from provoked orangutans to wire-tapped dressing rooms. Three comedians and authors--Ed and Karen Underwood and John Pinney--offer this backstage pass to the seamier side of Branson's history.
Canoeing the Boundary Waters Wilderness
9781609497323
Regular price
$21.99
Sale price
$15.39
Save 30%
Canoeing the Boundary Waters Wilderness: A Sawbill Log continues the story of wilderness canoeing begun in A Boundary Waters History: Canoeing Across Time, this time offering historical information about black bear attacks on humans, loon calls and behaviors, lightning strikes on the waters, the experience of a woman going into labor while canoeing with her husband, the sighting of spectacular northern lights, and reflections on the wilderness experience. All the while Wilbers reflects on experiences canoeing with his family. As in the first book, quotes from some of Minnesota's well known wilderness authors appear throughout the manuscript.
