The History Press [new releases]

Discover the Beautiful Valley's Harrowing Past

Genesee County has seen trials, tribulations and triumphs throughout its storied history as national events have been brought to its doorstep. Cold War anxiety was on full display in the preparedness drills of the 1950s and the effect those had on Batavia's studnets. Too often overlooked, the scourge of racism has reared its ugly head in the region, as the Ku Klux Klan once had a presence in the county. Locals were rocked by the assassinations of MLK and John F. Kennedy in the 1960s. Genesee women from acitivists to farmers have left an indelible mark on the county's past.

Join author and historian Michael Eula as he reveals historic chronicles of Genesee County.

America's Only Shelter Established for Holocaust Refugees

During the height of the second World War, at the order of President Roosevelt, Fort Ontario in Oswego, New York housed 982 refugees, rescued from the horrors of the Holocaust. The community of Oswego answered the call of service and opened its arms to the survivors.

Oswegonian and WWII veteran Joseph Spereno's connection with refugee Jake Sylber helped launch his tailoring business that was a fixture in the city for more than 20 years. Then high school Principal Ralph Faust was among local educators who fought to allow the refugee children into Oswego schools, forging connections with those young people who went on to distinguished careers. Local Boy Scout leader Harold Clark created a troop for refugee children to share in the American experience of scouting.

Author Ann Callaghan Allen presents the harrowing narrative of how Oswego gave shelter to hundreds of Holocaust survivors.

In 1911, two neighbors in their 40s helped start one of the first garden clubs in America, in Bedford, NY. Two years later they were notable early members of the Garden Club of America. After joining the groups, these originals - in affiliations and personality - wakened their underutilized potential and discovered how women, one good friend at a time, can unite to change their town and country.

Eloise Luquer's exquisite wildflower watercolors and her fostering of nature trails and preservation earned her the title "The Audubon of Wildflowers." Delia Marble empowered the Bedford Agricultural Training Camp for Women - the first such prep site for WWI farmerettes in the nation. Together and with other allies, the small-town spinsters made an impactful difference in culture and environmental history.

Author Judy Culbreth reveals the remarkable lives of two Bedford garden club originals.

Culinary Traditions Preserved, Stories Never to be Forgotten

This vital collection of survivor stories uplifts and inspires alongside recipes that nourish your soul. Read about daring partisans who fought in the woods, hidden children who sought comfort from strangers and those who endured unimaginable internment. For Holocaust survivors, food was a way to connect their lives before the war with the homes they created after. Their kitchens were filled with the aromas of familiar foods like chicken soup and brisket while unfamiliar delights they adopted, like arroz con pollo and gnocchi, became part of their repertoire. These are the recipes they share with you. Culinary icons such as Michael Solomonov, Jonathan Waxman, Ina Garten and more contribute their own recipes as tribute to the remarkable survivor community. Author June Hersh gives readers a taste of history and a life-affirming message that honors the legacy of Holocaust survivors.

Discover the history of the development of Long Island and its intimate relationship with New York City.

Beginning in the Roaring Twenties, Wall Street money looked eastward to Nassau and Suffolk counties looking generate wealth from a land boom. After the Great Depression and World War II, Long Island was the site of the creation of the quintessential postwar American suburb, Levittown. Levittown and its spinoff suburban communities served as a primary symbol of the American dream through affordable home ownership for the predominately White middle class and established a core attribute of the national mythology. Starting in the 1960s, the dream began to dissolve, as the postwar economic engine ran out of steam and Long Island became as much urban as suburban.

Author Lawrence R. Samuel charts how the island evolved over the decades and largely detached itself from New York City to become a self-sustaining entity with its own challenges, exclusions and triumphs.

Everyone loves an underdog who succeeds against the odds. CCNY Made. Profiles in Grit is the story of City College of New York alumni who beat the odds to reach the pinnacle of their professions and in the process transformed our world.

Here are just a few:

Discover the Black pioneers who shaped St. Lawrence County through grit and determination.

From its origins as part of New France through the Civil War and eventual industrialization of the region, St. Lawrence County has been shapped by all too often overlooked Black families and individuals. Author Bryan S. Thompson reveals the history of the African American community in New York's North Country.

Discover the spooky history of New York's central region

From the edge of the Adirondacks, to the heart of Syracuse and everything in between, central New York boasts some of the most haunted history in the state. Utica, Rome and Cazenovia all have historic tales of ghostly moments and unexplained aparations. Join author Dennis Webster as he reveals the hidden haunted history of central New York.

Les Dames d' Escoffier New York, the most influential and accomplished women in the food world, present their favorite recipes for everything from simple weekday meals to spectacular party dishes.

Authors Silvia Baldini and Sharon Franke showcase seventy-six family recipes and pairings by Pascaline Lepeltier, MOF, and including a dedication by Lidia Bastianich to LDNY founder Carol Brock and a foreword by Carla Hall.

From Lidia's "Cavatappi with Asparagus and Spinach Pesto" or Ellie Krieger's recipe "Family Favorite Minestrone," to a stunning "Radicchio Salad with Radish, Basil, and Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette" by two-Michelin star Chef Melissa Rodriguez, these recipes are for every occasion and for every level of skill.

Discover the dishes and recipes that some of the most heralded women in the food business, in the greatest city in the world for food, cook when they are in their own home kitchens.

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.

Oenophile Tom Russ presents the remarkable story of Dr. Konstantin Frank, the father of Finger Lakes wine.

Dr. Konstantin Frank forever changed the palate of American wine. Forced from his home in Soviet Ukraine during World War II, he was astounded by the terroir when he arrived in the Finger Lakes region. Against popular notions, he believed that the vinifera grapes that produced some of Europe's and California's finest wines would prosper in New York. He proved his detractors wrong, and by sharing his knowledge freely with others, Konstantin's innovativeness has allowed the region to produce some of the world's finest Riesling, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and other varietals. Four generations of Franks have continued his legacy, and their winery has won record numbers of prestigious awards every year.

Author Gretchen Knapp brings to life the challenges and contributions of daily life in World War II Buffalo.

When President Roosevelt visited Buffalo in November 1940, he found a hardworking city with a large immigrant population manufacturing aircraft for the Allies. Nearby Fort Niagara inducted over 100,000 young men, resulting in an acute labor shortage. American Brass, Bell Aircraft, Chevrolet, Curtiss-Wright, Houde Engineering and Republic Steel reluctantly, then gladly, hired women. More than 300,000 defense workers toiled in hot factories for high wages despite transportation, housing and food shortages. The aircraft plants alone employed 85,000 on forty-eight-hour workweeks. Buffalonians watched the flag raising at Iwo Jima, participated in the Manhattan Project and observed the formal surrender of Japan in Tokyo Bay. Author Gretchen Knapp brings to life the challenges and contributions of daily life during wartime.

Experience the architecture and colorful history of the Historic Theaters of New York's Capital District as author John A. Miller charts the entertaining history.

For generations, residents of New York's Capital District have flocked to the region's numerous theaters. The history behind the venues is often more compelling than the shows presented in them.

John Wilkes Booth brushed with death on stage while he and Abraham Lincoln were visiting Albany. The first exhibition of broadcast television was shown at Proctor's Theater in Schenectady, although the invention ironically contributed to the downfall of theaters across the nation. A fired manager of the Green Street Theatre seized control of the theater with a group of armed men, but Albany police stormed the building and the former manager regained control.

The American Revolution sharply divided families and towns on Long Island. Washington's defeat at the Battle of Long Island in August 1776 started seven years of British occupation.

Patriot sympathizers were subject to loyalty oaths, theft of property and the quartering of soldiers in their homes. Those who crossed the British were jailed on prison ships in Wallabout Bay in Brooklyn, where an estimated eleven thousand people died of disease and starvation. Some fought back with acts of sabotage and espionage. Washington's famed Culper spy ring in Oyster Bay, Setauket and other areas successfully tracked British movements. Dr. Joanne S. Grasso explores the story of an island at war.

Chronicling the incomparable life of boxing and Saratoga Race Course legend John Morrissey.

John ""Old Smoke"" Morrissey was one of the most dynamic characters of his time. He went from a career as an undefeated bare-knuckle boxer, founded the Saratoga Race Course and eventually won elections to Congress and the New York State Senate. A poor, uneducated Irish immigrant, Morrissey became a leader in the Dead Rabbits street gang. He won fame as a fighter and fortune as the operator of a string of successful gambling houses.

Morrissey then took Saratoga Springs by storm, improbably resurrecting thoroughbred racing during the Civil War and opening his famous Club House, which was the most glamorous casino the country had ever seen. Author and National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame director of communications Brien Bouyea takes you on this fascinating journey and shows just how Morrissey did it all.