The History Press [New Releases]

Did the phrase “That’s what I was wondering…” solve a murder?

In the morning hours of July 16, 1936, Helen Clevenger’s uncle discovered her bloodied body crumpled on the floor of her small room in Asheville’s grand Battery Park Hotel. She had been shot through the chest. Buncombe County Sheriff Laurence Brown, up for reelection, desperately searched for the teenager’s killer as the public clamored for answers. Though witnesses reported seeing a white man leave the scene, Brown’s focus turned instead to the hotel’s Black employees and on August 9 he arrested bell hop Martin Moore. After a frenzied four-day trial that captured the nation’s attention, Moore was convicted of Helen’s murder on August 22. Though Moore confessed to Sherriff Brown, doubt of his guilt lingers and many Southerners feared that justice had not, in fact, been served.

Author Anne Chesky Smith weaves together varying accounts of the murder and investigation to expose a complex and disturbing chapter in Asheville’s history.

Author Kathy Benjamin accompanies the pioneering women of the Lone Star State's funeral business.

The intimate task of caring for the dead had long fallen under women's sphere of responsibilities. But after the Civil War, the sudden popularity of embalming offered new financial opportunities to men who set up as undertakers, pushing women out of their traditional role. In Texas, from the 1880s to the 1930s, women slowly regained their place by the bier. Many worked while pregnant or raising children. Most shouldered the additional weight of personal tragedies and persistent sexism. All brought comfort to the bereaved in the isolation of the Texas frontier, kept its cities free of deadly disease and revolutionized an industry that was just coming into its own.

Forgotten Gems of Gatlinburg

When the Great Smoky Mountains was dedicated a national park in 1934, tourists flocked to the area. Ray Bohanan, who owned Bohanan’s Craft Shop and Cabins, stood by the road shouting, “Cabins for rent!” The Frost Lodge reminded tourists of the days when a room cost five dollars. Residents at the LeConte Creek Cottages and Motel were treated to a “woodland wonderland.” Parkway Motor Inn was a haven for weary drivers for decades. The Mountain View Hotel boasted a list of famous residents like Eleanor Roosevelt. Guests at the Terrace Motel remembered waters from the Roaring Fork Creek lulling them to sleep. Brian McKnight relives the simpler times and the city’s finest, long-forgotten lodging.

In April 1938, Swift River Valley residents held a farewell ball to mark the demise of the quintessential New England town of Enfield and its three smaller neighbors, Greenwich, Dana, and Prescott.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts sacrificed these three towns to build the Quabbin, a massive reservoir of drinking water for residents of Boston. Three prominent residents attended the somber occasion. Marion Andrews Smith was the last surviving member of an important manufacturing family. Willard "Doc" Segur was the valley's beloved country doctor and town leader. And Edwin Henry Howe was Enfield's postmaster and general store proprietor. They helped build their beloved community for decades, only to watch grief-stricken as it was destroyed by 400 billion gallons of water.

Author and historian Elena Palladino recounts the story of these communities as seen through eyes of those who lived there until the end.

Desire, Deceit and DebaucheryTombstone was a wild place during Arizona’s territorial era, with violence and criminal activity running rampant. It wasn’t just the Earp brothers’ iconic gunfight at the O.K. Corral that left behind a trail of death and destruction—lawlessness and vigilante justice reigned throughout the Old West era. Driven by tension between the sheriff’s office and the local Deputy Marshal, daily life for infamous outlaws, corrupt civil servants, and even ordinary customers of the saloons and brothels was apt to devolve into chaos at any moment.Join author Cody Polston as he brings to life the characters who walked the dusty streets and left their mark on Tombstone's bloody past.

Hand-colored, vivid details bring these historic photographs to life like never before. Witness the beginnings of the sweetgrass basket tradition. See the bleak devastation on Meeting Street after the Civil War. Note intense contrast in blues and grays of prisoners captured at the Battle of Bull Run. Explore the Battery as it looked in the 1800s. And dazzle in the bright fashions of flappers at the dawn of "the Charleston" dance craze. Author Mark Jones and artist Lewis Hayes bring a new vision to Holy City history.

South Dakota’s Mathis Family Murders brought death and deception to the heartland.

It was perhaps the most infamous murder case in state history. Ladonna Mathis was shot twice in the head at point-blank range inside the family’s metal shed serving as their makeshift home. Two of her three children, ages 2 and 4, were also shot in the head. The brutality of the killings shocked the state and set off a frenzy of law enforcement activity. Despite its intensity, the investigation never found the murderer or the murder weapon. Though charged with the crime, the husband was acquitted, leaving the door open for endless speculation about what really occurred on that late summer morning of Sept. 8, 1981.

With renewed insight from those involved, veteran South Dakota journalist Noel Hamiel explores this cold case of murder and mystery that still haunts the Mount Rushmore state.

Walk in the footsteps of the Marquis de Lafayette as he makes a final trip through the young United States.

Against the backdrop of a tumultuous election, a beloved hero of the American Revolution returned to America for the first time in forty years. From August 1824 to September 1825, the Marquis de Lafayette traveled throughout the United States, welcomed by thousands of admirers at each stop along the way. Although the tour brought him to each state in the Union, the majority of his time was spent in Washington, D.C., Virginia, and Maryland.

Public historian Elizabeth Reese traces Lafayette’s route throughout the National Capital Region, highlighting the locations and people the famous General held closest to his heart.

The effort to win the war began at home--and for the researchers at Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory, enhancing America's military aviation arsenal was the key to victory.

Formed in 1915, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics established itself over the next 25 years as one of the world's finest research organizations. When World War II began in 1939, the NACA employed a mere 500 workers and maintained a budget slightly in excess of $4 million. To meet the demands of the war, a special partnership was quickly forged between NACA researchers, industry designers, and military planners. The Langley laboratory possessed world class aeronautical research facilities and flight research operations, making it ideally suited to help America win the war.

Military historian Mark Chambers tells the story of the monumental task of developing the planes that spurred Allied victory in World War II.

Though removed from the frontlines, Cleveland played an active role in national events before, during, and after the Civil War.

President Lincoln visited this abolitionist hotbed after his 1860 election. Following his assassination five years later, his funeral train made a stop there. Cleveland and Cuyahoga County sent over 9,000 troops to war. More than 1,700 never returned. Born just outside Cleveland, James Garfield emerged from the war to become President of the United States. Most vitally, the economic prosperity of the war years began the transformation of this small but thriving village into a future manufacturing powerhouse.

Author W. Dennis Keating, member and past president of the Cleveland Civil War Roundtable, creates a panoramic view of the city through one of the nation's most troubled times.

The saga of The Montana Stranglers in Dakota Territory embodies the violence and vigilantism of the Old West

In the early 1880s, desperate characters left over from the fur trade began robbing arriving settlers in the wilderness of Eastern Montana and Northwestern Dakota Territory. Gangs of horse thieves sprang out of camps from the Musselshell in Montana, along the Missouri into Dakota Territory, up into Mouse River-Dogden Butte country and ending at Turtle Mountain. Cattlemen and homesteaders formed vigilance committees, including Granville Stuart's Montana Stranglers, resulting in the violent death of fifty-four people from September 1883 to December 1884. They weren't all guilty and there were probably more. Author Ron Berget shares this thoroughly researched, true story of the Montana Stranglers' bloody pursuits throughout the northern plains.

Trace the monumental story of a transatlantic flight to the Century of Progress Exposition.

In an era when transatlantic travel was still dangerous, Italy caused a sensation by announcing its participation in the upcoming Century of Progress World's Fair would be highlighted by an unprecedented formation flight from Rome to Chicago. Led by renowned aviator Italo Balbo, the squadron of two dozen seaplanes accomplished a daring navigational feat that was commemorated by a number of civic monuments that stand in Chicago to this day. Since the United States fought Italy in World War II, the monuments have weathered decades of intermittent controversy. Don Fiore provides a fascinating account of the complex legacy of Balbo's flight.

A Fabulous Fable of the Supernatural Kind

The saga of the Morristown ghost has been told around campfires and dinner tables in Morris County for generations. Local legend claimed British Loyalists secretly buried stolen Patriot treasure on Schooley Mountain as they fled the oncoming forces of George Washington during the Revolutionary War. Years later in 1788, a former school teacher from Connecticut, Ransford Rodgers, convinced local prominent Morristown families that a ghost was protecting the true location of the treasure and he alone could exercise it. Little did the victims know, Rodgers was perpetuating an elaborate hoax and eventually extorted large sums of money from the embarrassed local elite. The tale has been recounted in various sensational pamphlets and publications ever since, leaving behind a mystery of what is true or myth.

Author Peter Zablocki separates fact from fiction in the story of the great Morristown ghost hoax.

Southeast Minnesota has regularly felt the wrath of nature.

In 1890, a driving straight-line wind on Lake Pepin overturned the Sea Wing, killing ninety-eight people within minutes in the worst marine tragedy in Minnesota history. In 1940, a raging blizzard trapped duck hunters on islands in the Mississippi River and left motorists stranded across the region, leaving dozens injured or dead. Then, in 1965, flood waters of the Mississippi River and its vast network of tributaries kept area residents in fear for two months, shattering records for high water marks and destroying buildings and farmlands before receding and leaving behind damage that took years to rebuild.

Local author Steve Gardiner examines these powerful natural disasters and their ramifications on the people of Southeast Minnesota.

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.

Join author Lisa M. Russell on a tour through these icons of Georgia backroads.  At one time, Georgia had over 250 covered bridges. By 1955, that number had shrunk to 75. By the 1970s, only 25 remained. But thanks to preservationists and Georgia's Department of Transportation, sixteen historic bridges have endured. Meet the bridge builders—including an enslaved apprentice who out-built his “master,” and travel back in time underneath the elegance of these simple yet masterfully crafted structures.

At the turn of the twentieth century, railroads meant progress, growth and development.

In the 1890s Southport, North Carolina became the target destination for a major coaling terminal for ships sailing the Atlantic coast. A new terminal would require a railroad to bring in coal and other supplies. More than twenty companies were formed to pursue this idea over the years, with a few actual accomplishments, but most were purely speculative. Wearying the expectant town for more than twenty-five years, the vision for a great port was whittled down until local entrepreneurs finally built a 30-mile rail line to connect the town to Wilmington.

Local author and railroad historian Mark Koenig chronicles the short life of a short line and the long process of making it a reality.

Stretching from Victorville to Carson City, Highway 395 offers a snapshot of California's diverse landscapes - and oddities.

Tales of skinwalkers and sasquatch sightings flourish among the bones of ghost towns, and stories of the elusive Lone Pine Mountain Devil ignite the curiosity. Far from fiction, the Sierra Phantom lived among the hills for fifty years, and Mountaineer Norman Clyde used his skills to find lost hikers and climbers. Rumors of the Lost Cement Mine, with a rich vein of gold, lures people in, and the Tuttle Creek Ashram, built high above Lone Pine, offers peace.

Author Brian Clune explores the strange and fascinating side of the majestic mountains and lonely deserts along the El Camino Sierra.

At its height, Cleveland was a center of industry. Nearly a million people called the city home, and all of them needed various assortments of goods, wares and sundries. To serve their desires, fabulous stores once graced the city. The names alone - Higbee's, Halle's, May Company, Taylor Son & Company, Sterling Linder and Bailey's - conjure a comforting memory of sophisticated style and lost glamour. At the heart of this consumer paradise stood Euclid Avenue, Cleveland's golden façade. With its dynamic retail stores, homes to countless millionaires, and elevated air, it was one of a trio of famous American retail promenades alongside New York's Fifth Avenue and State Street in Chicago.

Author of Lost Cleveland and Lost Grand Hotels of Cleveland, Mike DeAloia offers an illuminating chronicle of the city's golden age of prestige and elegance.

A tender and meticulously compiled exploration of the Sandusky shopping experience as it once was

The Sandusky Mall was the iconic shopping hub for locals who grew up in the 1970s and '80s. Kids visited the Circus World toy store, shopped for local amusement park souvenirs at Cedar Point Gifts, and fawned over the kittens and puppies at Petland. Teens scarfed Scotto's Pizza or a tasty treat at Baskin Robbins before taking in the latest feature at the Mall Cinema. Many others pumped quarters into the games at Goldmine or browsed the collection at Musicland.

Gathering more than 200 images, the original floor map, and the history of every store at every location, author Chris Bores delivers a trip down memory lane as well as never-before-told stories of the scandals and struggles--and the triumphs--that made the Sandusky Mall the place to be.

Take a juicy foray into the all-but-forgotten history of Chilton County, Alabama.

The Epicenter of Steel City Sports

From Forbes Field to Pitt Stadium, Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood has been home to some of the most iconic moments in sports history. Including the Fitzgerald Field House and the Duquesne Gardens, Oakland has drawn in both professional and college sports fans alike.

Local authors and sports historians David Finoli, Tom Rooney, Robert Healy III, Douglas Cavanaugh and Chris Fletcher celebrate the glorious victories and heartbreaking losses throughout the history of Pittsburgh's Oakland section, the epicenter of Steel City Sports.

Circle City Catastrophes/

Disaster was a fact of everyday life in 1800s and early 1900s Indianapolis. During the 1860s, more than 1,700 people died in what is now the Herron-Morton Place neighborhood. In 1882, ten people drowned under the Union Railroad Depot. Ropes were considered an adequate fire escape in the 1890s, but when the National Surgical Institute caught fire, they proved unequal to the task. The owners of the Prest-O-Lite Company created the world-famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but their company also had four major incidents that caused eleven deaths and destruction in the city. In 1917, Hollywood was responsible for the deaths of six people in an Indianapolis apartment building. Join Jack Finney as he explores these and other Indianapolis fires and disasters./ 

Join Jack Finney as he explores these and other Indianapolis fires and disasters./ 

Journey down one of the most important roadways in the annals of Illinois transportation history.

Stretching from Chicago to Cairo, the Egyptian Trail was one of the earliest "improved" roadways in Illinois. Dating to 1915, it was the longest road in the state, running four hundred miles through 20 counties and over 60 towns. The project was the brainchild of two Mattoon men, Dr. Iverson Lumpkin and Ernest B. Tucker, who realized the southern reaches of the state should be linked with Chicago along the same path as the Illinois Central Railroad. Though long forgotten today, the trail also served as the basic template for the route of Interstate 57. Author James R. Wright takes a road trip through the fascinating heritage of the Egyptian Trail.

How the Bluegrass State Helped Win a War

While not a single battle of the War of 1812 was fought on Kentucky soil, Kentuckians were involved to the very end. Henry Clay and his War Hawks convinced Congress and President Madison to declare war, and helped negotiate the Treaty of Ghent that ended it. After two massacres of Kentucky militia on the Northwestern front, Governor Isaac Shelby, still the only sitting governor to lead troops into battle, more than 4,000 locals and a pig marched to Canada to defeat the British and kill Tecumseh at the Battle of the Thames. Author Doris Dearen Settles explains how Kentuckians won the war of 1812 and why it is far more significant than textbooks record.p/>

The steel facility that helped advance the modern American West.

Through his record-busting construction career, Henry J. Kaiser continuously pulled off the impossible. When he announced his plans to enter the wartime shipbuilding business and to mass-produce steel in the small, agricultural town of Fontana, experts were shocked, but his determination made him a national figure. "Miracle Man Kaiser" built a steel plant in record time, and it churned out over a million tons of the invaluable metal for the 1940s war effort. In an industry rocked by disharmony, his company adopted the slogan 'Together We Build', and his skill in navigating labor relations made it a powerhouse.

Join author and historian Ric A. Dias as he highlights the successes, failures, and limits of this trailblazer's dreams.

Moonshining is deep-rooted in the history of Oregon.

In 1844, when it was still Oregon Territory, one of the first moonshiners, James Conner, challenged a lawman to a duel for busting his illegal operation. The McKenzie River Bandits had better luck hiding from the law and produced bootleg booze for nearly five years before their arrest. It wouldn’t be the last time they were caught. Over the years, outlaw moonshiners engaged in car chases, shootouts and even attempted an assassination to protect their hidden distilleries—and way of life.

Join author Bruce Haney as he chronicles the intoxicating history of Oregon Moonshine.

An amazing piece of Brainerd’s proud past

For over eighty years, the Northern Pacific Railroad Shops was the largest employer in the Brainerd area. After the Depression, the NP provided steady jobs for Brainerd railroad workers, whose paychecks contributed to the growth of Brainerd. The NP Shops built freight cars and conducted maintenance and disassembly of the NP’s rolling stock. The workforce of several trades called themselves “shop dogs.” Shop dogs built a workplace culture with its own jokes, stories, ethics, and nicknames – an unintended circumstance could result in a nickname, such as Scoop Swanson or the Soo Line Bull, that stuck to a shop dog for the rest of his life. After shop dogs retired and the NP shops closed, their nicknames and stories live on. Author Bob Roscoe gathers the stories from this vital piece of Brainerd history.

Explore the sacred homeland of the Cherokee people

Created in 1920, the 650,000-acre Cherokee National Forest lies north and south of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Located in the sacred homeland of the Cherokees, it pays tribute to its heritage in its name and protects ancient indigenous burial caves and portions of the Trail of Tears. By car, foot, horse, or watercraft, visitors explore the natural beauties of the region, such as the Roan, Max Patch, Unicoi, and Unaka mountains and the Ocoee, Hiwassee, Nolichucky, Watauga, and French Broad rivers. The Appalachian, Benton MacKaye, and John Muir trails and other pathways lead to mountain-top views, rock cliffs, forested coves and gardens of abundant wildflowers.

Local author Marci Spencer tells the stories of these wonders and the early settlers, railroad workers, loggers and miners who lived and worked among them.

Four decades after Jeannette DePalma's tragic death, authors Jesse P. Pollack and Mark Moran present the definitive account of the shocking Springfield township cold case.

As Springfield residents decorated for Halloween in September 1972, the crime rate in the quiet, affluent township was at its lowest in years. That mood was shattered when the body of sixteen-year-old Jeannette DePalma was discovered in the local woods, allegedly surrounded by strange objects. Some feared witchcraft was to blame, while others believed a serial killer was on the loose. Rumors of a police cover up ran rampant, and the case went unsolved - along with the murders of several other young women.

Local historian Seth Bate tells the story of the Walnut Valley Festival with reflections from staff, emcees, performers, campers, and characters from throughout its history.

The Festival was launched in 1972 when a guitar maker, a farmer, and a businessman built their own music festival from the ground up. It has made the small town of Winfield into an annual destination for acoustic musicians and music lovers from around the world and it has always been participatory, with the informal campsite pickin’ as much a part of the event as the stage shows and instrumental contests. The Walnut Valley Festival has always been proud of its deep-rooted traditions, but most of all, it is a community celebration.

Discover what life was like in the heyday of the abandoned mines that dot the Nevada landscape, now host to the spirits of those who lost their lives in pursuit of gold, silver, and salt.

Step into the Silver State’s past, where the echoes of once-thriving boomtowns and mining operations reverberate through the desert to this day. Explore the remnants of a drowned town exposed by the receding waters of Lake Mead, and an abandoned pet cemetery sure to send chills down your spine. The bones of prehistoric creatures lie beside the former residents of Berlin, and in Goodsprings, reports of ghostly celebrity sightings stir up excitement.

Join author Heather Leigh on a journey through the eerie history of Nevada’s ghost towns.

Author Keri Watson guides readers on a tour through New Deal era Sunshine State parks and post office murals. Even before the stock market crash on October 29, 1929, the Florida economy was depressed from two major hurricanes, a citrus export embargo, and the collapse of the real estate market. Florida desperately needed the relief promised by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal and actively participated in and benefited from a number of federally sponsored initiatives during the Great Depression. These programs were aimed at what the president termed “Relief, Recovery, and Reform,” and they impacted every sector of society from banking and farming to art and architecture. This collection offers a detailed look at the state parks and post offices built in Florida between 1931 and 1946. Looking at Florida’s Depression-era parks and post offices in concert elucidates the ways in which the natural and built environments work together to constitute the cultural landscape and provides insight into the role of the federal government in Florida’s construction as an exotic and tropical paradise.

Often relegated to a footnote, the Archive War almost plunged the Republic of Texas into civil war. Houston’s Archive War began with the Texas Revolution, as the spoils of the battlefield gave way to bitter political strife. Sam Houston didn’t expect a two-year standoff with Austin residents over the location of the new republic’s capital. But if a few things had gone differently, his attempt to shift the seat of government back to the city named after him could have ended with Austin residents in outright rebellion. As it was, the feud between Lamar and Houston over the seat of government escalated into cannon-fire and continued until Texas was a Republic no more. Author Lora-Marie Bernard thumbs through the incendiary files of the Texas Archive War.

On December 26, 1910, Oscar Chitwood lay lifeless on the courthouse lawn in Hot Springs, his wrists shackled together, and his body torn by bullets. The deputies on the scene claimed that masked men had lynched their prisoner and that the lawmen were innocent bystanders to the carnage. Newspapers everywhere proclaimed this killing another example of vigilantism run rampant. Within days, however, the official story fell apart, and these deputies were charged with cold-blooded murder. Authors Guy Lancaster and Christopher Thrasher tell the little-known story of accused outlaw Oscar Chitwood, the authorities he dared defy, and the mysterious resort town of Hot Springs, a place where the Wild West met the epitome of civilization, and where the boundaries between lawman and outlaw were never all that clear.

For more than 50 years, there was no more iconic Florida tourist attraction than Silver Springs.

Its sheer popularity meant that the surrounding area—indeed, the entirety of Marion County—serviced the entertainment, gas, food, and lodging needs of millions of tourists annually. Visitors flocked to places like Ross Allen’s Reptile Institute, Tommy Bartlett’s Deer Ranch, and natural attractions like Rainbow Springs and Ocala Caverns. Sadly, as Florida tourism moved into the theme park era, scores of smaller attractions and their related businesses were abandoned. Author Tim Hollis revisits these once-thriving tourist spots and what happened when those tourists stopped coming.

By the late 20th century, Montpelier, the home of James and Dolley Madison, had been altered until it would no longer have been recognizable to the couple.

In 2000 the newly-created Montpelier Foundation took over management of the historic home with the seemingly insurmountable task of restoring it to be a visual record of the Madisons' era. Within ten years, the Foundation overcame numerous hurdles, turning Montpelier into a monument to the Father of the Constitution. Over the next decade the site also became a monument to Montpelier's enslaved. The buildings in their community next to the Madisons' home were reconstructed, and award-winning exhibits dramatically illustrate the tragedy of slavery and essential role of enslaved people in Madison's life.

Foundation co-founder William H. Lewis details the nonprofit's ambitious preservation projects and remarkable achievements.

Lawrence County may seem a sleepy little place, but looks are deceiving.

The red light district in Ironton attracted enough attention for an FBI raid. On the other side of the law, Judge Lloyd Burwell became nationally known for his strict sentencing, which made him the subject for a movie starring Andy Griffith. A 1915 shooting on a shanty boat on the Ohio River sparked a fierce contest between Ohio and West Virginia over who had jurisdiction to prosecute the case. The mob ties of Continental Nite Club in Chesapeake ran all the way to the Stardust Hotel in Las Vegas.

Local historian and author Lori Shafer gathers a selection of thrilling and occasionally gruesome tales from Lawrence County’s dark past.

Founding the Pennsylvania Wilds and Preserving Elk Country

The village of Benezette is ground zero for the famous elk herd of the Pennsylvania Wilds. Before becoming a popular ecotourism destination, the community was a quiet village with a hardworking ethos. The region’s first settlers arrived in the 1780s, looking for new frontiers and economic opportunities. Reuben Winslow purchased more than three hundred acres of land along the Bennett’s Branch of Sinnemahoning Creek and, by 1844, had laid down the town’s lots as the founder of Benezette. The arrival of the Pennsylvania Railroad in the late 1800s fueled the rise of local industry such as timber and coal. Nearby villages such as Weedville, Caledonia, Medix Run, Summerson and others looked to Benezette as the center of the of the region while developing their own communities. Author Kathy Myers presents the history of Benezette and its influence in the heart of the Pennsylvania Wilds.

Author Alan Brown shines the light on some of worst characters in Mississippi history. Mississippi’s nickname—“The Magnolia State”—highlights the region’s natural and architectural beauty. However, Mississippi is also home to a rogue’s gallery of thieves and murderers, beginning with the nation’s first serial killers—the Harpe Brothers—and continuing to the present with Glen Rogers, “The Cross Country Killer.” Lurking through Mississippi Scoundrels is a wide variety of scalawags, ranging from the 19th century “hell raisers ” in Natchez-under-the-Hill to racist murderers, like Byron De La Beckworth and Samuel Bowers. Readers will also find “bad men” who have morphed into folk heroes, like Rube Burrow—“The King of the Train Robbers”—and Texas Red, Franklin County’s African-American outlaw. But this book isn’t all about atrocious men. Here you’ll encounter vile women such as Ouida Keaton and Ruth Thompson, both of whom committed matricide, and Carolee Biddy, who killed her stepdaughter.

On July 27, 1903, spurred into action by inmate Richard ‘Red’ Gordon, thirteen men attacked their jailers and made a run for freedom.Folsom Prison had only been open for 20 years and was already one of the toughest and most brutal prisons in the country. It had one major flaw—no walls. A statewide manhunt ensued, following a deadly trail of attacks, kidnappings, and murder. Among the escapees were Joseph Theron and Frank Case, both sentenced to life in prison for robbery, and Joseph Murphy, burglar and poet. Sightings were reported from San Franciso to Reno and in the end, five of the prisoners were never found.Join author Josh Morgan as he recounts the violence and heroism of Folsom Prison’s biggest breakout.

Building the Tradition/

Most University of Michigan basketball fans know about the school's success during the Cazzie Russell era, and how the Wolverines built on that foundation, rising ever higher until they reached the pinnacle with their 1989 NCAA championship. But few know the stories behind the headlines. For example, how did Michigan coach Dave Strack, who admitted that U-M basketball was 'bad' when he became the coach, land a player of Russell's caliber? And how did Michigan find Russell's perfect complement, a future All-American who was virtually unknown?

Using fresh interviews with dozens of coaches and players – including Russell, Rudy Tomjanovich, Johnny Orr, Bill Frieder, Glen Rice and many others – author Mike Rosenbaum digs behind the scenes to reveal the fascinating stories behind Michigan's basketball successes from 1960 to 1989.

The rise of the crimson and gray.

In 1987, Dennis Erickson arrived in Pullman, Washington to take over the struggling Washington State University football program. Under his leadership, the Cougars ended 1988 with a 9-3 record and a victory in the Aloha Bowl. In just two years, the team had transformed, and Erickson’s lifelong friend, Mike Price, took over in 1989 to build on that legacy. By the end of Price’s tenure, WSU had appeared in five bowl games including two Rose Bowls, eclipsing the four bowl games in the entire program’s history. The coaches also produced a number of high-profile NFL quarterbacks, including Drew Bledsoe and Ryan Leaf.

Join author Ben Donahue as he explores how the Washington State University Cougars went from doormats to perpetual contenders.

Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt changed America with a government on the side of the people that put Americans back to work and inspired confidence that the nation could overcome the Great Depression.  This is the story of their progressive legacy when FDR was Governor during the era of Prohibition and the advent of radio in the Roaring Twenties, a decade that ended with the Great Depression upending life for most Americans. This is the story of how as Governor of New York he tried the programs that became the New Deal that transformed America. It was the place where his warm, easily relatable voice heard on the radio for the first time created a bond of trust with the public that inspired confidence at a time of great fear.Author Michael J. Burgess reveals the often overlooked history of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt in Albany at the helm of the Empire State.

Every mass grave in Texas offers morbid proof that at one time, in that place, something went very, very wrong.

Texans have resorted to mass graves out of necessity, desperation and appalling indifference. These sites mark natural disasters or hide unnatural crimes that tested the limits of human endurance and empathy. Because of this, memorializing those who lie in mass graves can be controversial. Not everyone wants to dig up the darkness of the past, much less admit that the dirt is still fresh. Nevertheless, to honor those whose bones lie mixed with others, their stories must be told. In so doing, Kathy Benjamin exhumes essential shards of Lone Star history, from the Alamo to the present day.

The disappearance of Horace Marvin, Jr. became a national sensation.

In early March 1907, young Horace, just a few weeks shy of his fourth birthday, was playing in the yard of his father's new farm in a sparsely populated area near Dover, Delaware. The family had just moved from Iowa and this was the first day Horace had to explore their new home. In the farmyard with Horace were his brother John and cousin Rose, all visible to neighbors helping the previous owner move off the farm. Then Horace disappeared without a trace. Within two weeks this heartbreaking event was being reported to hundreds of other families in newspapers across the country and around the world.

Horace's disappearance would be the most publicized missing child story until the Lindbergh kidnapping exactly twenty-five years later. Local author Brian G. Cannon tells the full story of this tragedy for the first time.

In the Footsteps of Oregon’s beloved U.S. Olympic Athlete, Activist, and Icon

Born in the small town of Coos Bay, Oregon, Steve “Pre” Prefontaine’s meteoric rise to cross-country and track superstardom included national recognition in high school followed by state, national, and world records. From the University of Oregon track to a fourth-place finish in the 1972 Munich Olympic Games, he never stopped striving to make his mark on the world. Even today, his name conjures up images of athleticism, activism, and charisma. While his life tragically ended in a car accident at the youthful age of 24 – at which time he owned every American record from 2,000 to 10,000 meters and two to six miles – his legacy lives on.

Join author and runner Paul C. Clerici as he brings you this legendary Oregon athlete.

Erie's Shocking Turn of the Century Extortion Scandal

On February 8, 1911, the Scott Mausoleum, a symbol of wealth for the Scott and Strong families in Erie, Pennsylvania, was desecrated by unknown vandals, coined by nationwide papers as ghouls. With the inside of the mausoleum heavily damaged - and a body missing - the crime set off shockwaves throughout the country during a time in which grave robbery, extortion and murder reigned supreme. 

Hundreds of reporters and newspaper correspondents throughout the country and world descend upon the Great Lakes port city. Private Detectives from the Perkins Detective Agency in Pittsburgh took charge of the case, pitted against rival detectives from the famous Burns Detective Agency. The case took a sinister turn when a series of letters were sent to wealthy local philanthropist Charles Hamot Strong, threatening to blow up his mausoleum and murder his granddaughter.

Author Justin Dombrowski presents the twists and turns of a historic and shocking crime and coverup in Erie, Pennsylvania.

Lost and Forgotten Gems of Missouri History

From the mining industry to the shipping industry to the Civil War, Missouri has lost a lot. Emigrants and traders have lost countless values during their travels. The Civil War caused a loss of not only citizens, but numerous valuable historic items. The host of outlaws who traversed the area have hidden loot that has never been found. Join author Craig Gaines as he details the state treasures lost to time.

Discover the dark corners of Norton, Ohio, history

For such a small city, Norton's past is rife with bloody deeds, tragic accidents, and destructive disasters. This community on the edge of Akron had its share of train wrecks, plane crashes, and devastating fires, but other events were decidedly more sinister in nature. In 1931, a young robber allowed his twelve-year-old brother to ride along on a bank heist--to little brother's great delight. A labor dispute in 1950 resulted in two bombings of a local farm in a single year. In the 1970s and 80s, serial killers Robert Buell and Edward Wayne Edwards left their evil mark on the city. Digging through two centuries of news coverage, local author Lisa Merrick uncovers Norton's most loathsome crimes and heartbreaking calamities.

On February 5th, 1946, the Ferguson brothers were concluding a night out celebrating Charles Ferguson's reenlistment in the Army...

Charles, wearing his military uniform, walked with his brothers Alphonso, Joseph, and Richard towards the Freeport Bus Terminal to go home. A provisional Freeport police officer named Joseph Romeika stopped the brothers over a disorderly conduct complaint. Words were exchanged, and Officer Romeika killed Charles, Alphonso and shot Joseph within minutes of the initial stop. Following the unarmed shooting, Romeikia was acquitted despite changing stories of eyewitnesses.

Discover how the shooting became a catalyst for civil rights efforts and immortalized in a Woody Guthrie protest song.

Locals and visitors alike will enjoy this step back through time into Put-in-Bay's forgotten past.

An island vacation getaway on Lake Erie, Put-in-Bay is known today for its family fun, cocktail culture, dining and live entertainment, but a deep-rooted history lies beyond. Grand hotels like the Hotel Victory and Put-in-Bay House were reduced to embers and ash and exist today solely in stories and song. Roller coasters, carousels and an electric railroad now rumble and sing only in memory. The many steamboats that brought visitors to the island run no more. Virtually no traces remain of a blockhouse and cemetery dating back to the War of 1812.

Join author and investigative historian William G. Krejci on this journey to an island of yesterday.

Spirits of the Gateway City

Since 1764, St. Louis has been the gateway to the unknown. Walk along the limestone cobbles of Laclede’s Landing and witness the birth of a city with large aspirations and crooked dealings. Here you will find fur traders hardened by wilderness “law,” former slaves fighting for their future, criminals immortalized in song, the rise and fall of the elite and the fight for the soul of a child. Meet the people behind Eads Bridge, the Old Courthouse, City Hospital, Lemp Brewery and more. From the Louisiana Purchase, the Civil War and Reconstruction to the modern day, hear their stories and learn why they may still haunt the cobblestones beneath your feet. Jennifer Elwyn delves into the dark side of a historic city.

Echoes of the past can be found in every corner of Monroe County.

Incredibly, the county has over a hundred lost towns across its fifteen townships. Some of these towns have notorious histories, such as the murderer who founded a village and the town that robbed its own citizens. Some succumbed to tragedy, including one that was swallowed up by the water and a resort town that disappeared. Others were simply absorbed by another state. Local historian and author of Hidden History of Monroe County, Michigan, Shawna Mazur collects the stories behind these vanished communities, revealing where these towns were located, how they grew and why they disappeared, often without a trace.

The rich history of St. Clair County has been shaped by the colorful people of its past.

From the Kerley Lot to the City Flats Hotel, the corner of Military and Water Street in Port Huron is forever etched with the spirit of diverse and passionate citizens like Daniel B. Harrington and James W. Sanborn. The bankruptcy of John Johnston & Co. shaped the fortunes of a local family. Local lumbermen influenced the lumber industry not just in the county but across Michigan. The Radical Republicans contributed to the rise and fall of Congressman Omar D. Conger, and the controversial John P. Sanborn played an outsized role in local politics. Author Brenda L. Williams leads a historical journey into the captivating lives of early local luminaries.

The Dark in the Dark Corner

Years ago, when travelers to northern Greenville County asked a local where the Dark Corner was, invariably their reply was, “Just a little further up the road.” In those days few people wanted to admit they lived in that much storied and much maligned part of the county known as the Dark Corner. The Dark Corner in those days was legendary for its moonshine, murder and mayhem. This is the story of that well-known region. We travel back to the Dark Corner’s earliest days when its only human inhabitants were the Cherokee, and we move into the present where horse farms and multi-million-dollar homes dot the countryside that once contained moonshine stills and cornfields.