Name: The Glen Rose Moonshine Raid
Brand: Martin Brown
SKU: 9781625859457
Price: 21.99 USD
Availability: InStock

The Glen Rose Moonshine Raid

9781625859457

$21.99

With hills studded with whiskey stills and cisterns brimming over with beer, Glen Rose operated in concerted defiance of one of Prohibition's chief champions, Governor Pat Neff. In 1923, Neff dispatched Texas Rangers and undercover agents to do the job of the unwilling local law enforcement. More than fifty men were arrested, including the sheriff and the county prosecutor. Outraged, the town's most prominent citizens stalked the Rangers and their agents, assassinating the primary operative in an ambush and further escalating the affair. Author Martin Brown follows the frenzy of the raid and its aftermath.

Unforgettable Texans

9781467137737

$21.99

History books burst at the seams with stories about Houston, Travis, Crockett and other icons of Texas history. Yet many of the Lone Star State's fascinating figures--well known in life but forgotten in death--remain obscure by omission. This scintillating company includes a World War I spy who became a movie star, the first gringo matador, a West Texas tent showman and the husband-and-wife trick-shot act that amazed audiences for forty years. Some characters cut across the common narrative, like the admiral whose advice might have prevented the attack on Pearl Harbor, the one and only Republican congressman in the first half of the twentieth century, the Klansman Texans elected to the U.S. Senate and the businessman who wrote the longest English-language novel in complete secrecy. Popular columnist and author Bartee Haile brings to life some of the most intriguing Texans who ever slipped through the cracks of history.

Haunted Old Town Spring

9781625859228

$21.99

Old Town Spring's historic streets may set the scene for a quaint shopping village, but they also serve as byways for one of the most haunted towns in Texas. A perfectionist past the end, Uncle Charlie still fusses around the historic Wunsche Brothers Café, the oldest commercial structure in the area. The spirit of a girl who died in a barn still plays with her group of friends in Doering Court, while a headless switchman runs after phantom trains trying to prevent a collision. Her path lit by unknown lights in the sky, author Cathy Nance leads the way through Old Town Spring's spookiest sites.

The Downfall of Galveston's May Walker Burleson

9781467139663

$24.99

Jennie May Walker Burleson was envied for having everything a woman of her time could want--the privileged upbringing, the dazzling good looks, the dashing war hero husband. She was admired for demonstrating that a woman could want more, from the front of the 1913 Woman Suffrage Procession to the bottom of a Mesoamerican archaeological dig. But as she stood over the body of her husband's second wife, gun in hand, society's envy and admiration quickly hardened into pity and scorn. T. Felder Dorn examines the complicated trajectory of her life as socialite, suffragist and shooter.

The Downfall of Galveston's May Walker Burleson

Ghosts of Galveston

9781467119658

$21.99

One of the oldest cities in Texas, Galveston has witnessed more than its share of tragedies. Devastating hurricanes, yellow fever epidemics, fires, a major Civil War battle and more cast a dark shroud on the city's legacy. Ghostly tales creep throughout the history of famous tourist attractions and historical homes. The altruistic spirit of a schoolteacher who heroically pulled victims from the floodwaters during the great hurricane of 1900 roams the Strand. The ghosts of Civil War soldiers march up and down the stairs at night and pace in front of the antebellum Rogers Building. The spirit of an unlucky man decapitated by an oncoming train haunts the railroad museum, moving objects and crying in the night. Kathleen Shanahan Maca explores these and other haunted tales from the Oleander City.

Ghosts of the Rio Grande Valley

9781467119924

$21.99

Tradition meets tragedy in the chilling local lore of the Rio Grande Valley. Hidden in the dense brush and around oxbow lakes wait sinister secrets, unnerving vestiges of the past and wraiths of those claimed by the winding river. The spirit of a murdered student in Brownsville paces the locker room where she met her end. Tortured souls of patients lost in the Harlingen Insane Asylum refuse to be forgotten. Guests at the LaBorde Hotel in Rio Grande City report visions of the Red Lady, who was spurned by the soldier she loved and driven to suicide. Author David Bowles explores these and more of the most harrowing ghost stories from Fort Brown to Fort Ringgold and all the haunted hotels, chapels and ruins in between.

Austin’s Flower Hill Legacy

9781467149396

$21.99

For nearly a century and a half, the Smoot family "cooperated with nature" to create the vibrant Texas wildscape of the Flower Hill Estate on West Sixth Street. But the generosity of spirit that cultivated that sanctuary extends beyond the iron fence surrounding the property. Institutions like the Central Presbyterian Church, the Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, the Austin American-Statesman, the Texas state capitol, The University of Texas and Travis and Austin High Schools all owe an incalculable debt to Flower Hill residents. Author Rosa Latimer traces the positive legacy of Flower Hill and the influential Austin family who lived there.

Train Crash at Crush, Texas

9781467139342

$24.99

On September 15, 1896, Crush boasted the highest population in Texas. Built near Waco, the town provided the staging ground for a publicity stunt ramming two trains together at top speed. Showrunner and Katy Railroad official William Crush thought he had planned for every contingency. But when elephant-sized chunks of steam locomotive began raining down into the packed stands, the extravaganza quickly unraveled into one of the Lone Star State's most confounding tragedies. The soon-to-be famous Scott Joplin commemorated the debacle in "The Great Crush Collision March,'? and entrepreneurs like "Head-On Joe'? Connolly of Iowa continued the tradition of the staged locomotive duel for decades. But the stupefying incident still slipped into the back pages of Texas lore. In the first-ever book on the subject, writer-historian Mike Cox finally tells the full story of the Crash at Crush.

The Galveston Buccaneers: Shearn Moody and the 1934 Texas League Championship

9781626198371

$21.99

Galveston survived the Great Depression with a healthy dose of baseball, boll weevils and bootleg business. Farmers like future Galveston Buccaneers star Buck Fausett fled the insect infestation of North Texas for the city's sunny shores along with throngs of visitors eager to visit Sam Maceo's clubs and catch a ballgame. Galvestonians had a long love affair with America's favorite pastime, fielding the first game played in the state. Cotton heir Shearn Moody purchased the Buccaneers in 1931 and turned the languishing squad into a dominating force that won the 1934 Texas League Championship. Author Kris Rutherford weaves a captivating history of the Moody family, a team of talented players and the island that claimed them.

The Galveston Buccaneers: Shearn Moody and the 1934 Texas League Championship

Austin in the Jazz Age

9781626199187

$24.99

Though renowned, Austin's contemporary music scene pales in comparison with the explosion of creative talent the city spawned during the Jazz Age. Dozens of musicians who started out in the capital city attained national and international fame--but music was just one form of artistic expression that marked that time of upheaval. World War I's death and destruction bred a vehement rejection of the status quo. In its place, an enthusiastic adherence to life lived without question or consequence took root. The sentiment found fertile soil in Austin, with the University of Texas at the epicenter. Students indulged in the debauchery that typified the era, scandalizing Austin and Texas at large as they introduced a freewheeling, individualistic attitude that now defines the city. Join author Richard Zelade in a raucous investigation of the day and its most outstanding and outlandish characters.

The Counterfeit Prince of Old Texas: Swindling Slaver Monroe Edwards

9781467117876

$21.99

After Monroe Edwards died in Sing Sing prison in 1847, penny dreadfuls memorialized him as the most celebrated American forger until the turn of the century. With a bizarre biography too complicated for easy history, his critical contributions to Texas settlement, revolution and annexation were inextricably mired in his activities as a slave smuggler and confidence man. Author Lora-Marie Bernard unravels the unbelievable story of one of the most notorious criminal adventurers ever to set foot on the soil of the Lone Star State.

The Counterfeit Prince of Old Texas: Swindling Slaver Monroe Edwards

Marvels of the Texas Plains

9781467152808

$23.99

Assemble a composite portrait of the Texas plains through these historic tales.

Many thousands of years ago, Clovis Man hunted huge mammoths here. More recently, Waylon Jennings drew his musical inspiration here. In the intervening time, the Texas prairie has been the backdrop for the wildest of Wild West shootouts, landmark legal battles and epic achievements in sports, music and medicine. Familiar icons like Roy Orbison and Dan Blocker, as well as forgotten characters like Charlie "Squirrel-Eye" Emory and John "the Catfish Kid" Gough all helped shape the colorful history of the Texas Plains. Who shot the sheriff? Who was the earliest American? Who invented the slam dunk? Author Chuck Lanehart answers these questions and many more in a wide-ranging collection of stories.

Texas Mass Graves

9781467152488

$23.99

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.

Lost Restaurants of Fort Worth

9781467137973

$21.99

Despite a thriving culinary scene, Fort Worth lost some of its most iconic restaurants decades ago. Locals still buzz about the legendary chili dished out at historic Richelieu Grill and the potato soup Sammy's served all night. Fort Worth could accommodate every palate, from the Bakon Burger at Carlson's Drive-Inn to the escargot and chateaubriand laid out at the Carriage House. Even movie stars like Bob Hope and Gene Autry frequented the city for steaks from the Seibold Café, and President Lyndon B. Johnson loved Cowtown for the barbecue from famed chuckwagon cook Walter Jetton. Join food writer Celestina Blok as she journeys through her hometown's dining past.

Frontier Medicine at Fort Davis and Other Army Posts

9781467152464

$23.99

From a headless burial to cocaine toothache drops, the true stories hidden in the Wild West's medical records are a match for its tallest tales.

In the 19th century, when dying young was a fact of life, a routine bout of diarrhea could be fatal. No one had heard of viruses or bacteria, but they killed more soldiers on the frontier than hostile raiding parties. Physicians dispensed whiskey for TB, mercury for VD and arsenic for indigestion. Baseball injuries were considered to be in the line of duty and twice resulted in amputations at Fort Davis. Donna Smith explains how an industrious laundress could earn more than a private, a female army surgeon won the Medal of Honor and a garrison illegally hung its bartender.

Frontier Medicine at Fort Davis and Other Army Posts

Coppell, Texas

9781467136617

$21.99

Coppell history is rooted in peace and community. In 1843, Sam Houston met with ten native tribes along Grapevine Springs Creek to negotiate an accord to end fighting and allow trade and settlement in the area. When Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport opened in 1974, Coppell transformed from a farming hamlet into a thriving town with expanding economic opportunity. Through firsthand accounts with longtime residents and meticulous research, authors Jean Murph and Lou Duggan unfold the contemplative story of a complex and historic community.

Texas BBQ Adventure Guide

9781467150897

$23.99

From the bayous of the east to the dusty deserts of the west, embark on a journey through the countless smokehouses, roadhouses and barbecue food trucks that line the back roads and main streets of Texas. Dive into a history that dates back to treasure-hungry conquistadors and swashbuckling buccaneers. Learn what divides the state into five main flavor regions and read your plate of BBQ like a roadmap through history. Author Jason Weems journeyed more than 3,500 miles around the highways and byways of Texas to bring you a guide that's dripping with pro tips and sizzling with backstory.

Due Santi and the University of Dallas

9781467147651

$24.99

With a name bearing witness to Peter and Paul's meeting on the Appian Way, Due Santi has been the setting for a thousand different stories. This collection celebrates twenty-five years of such stories at the current campus and half a century of the University of Dallas Rome Program. The narrative stretches from last semester's G[r]eek Olympics to the chariot races of ancient Bovillae and strolls from the history of the villa to the future of the vineyard. Anyone who still dreams of Due Santi will instantly recognize the timeless landscape and the people who lovingly made it home, even if only for a little while.

The Houstorian Calendar

9781467139878

$21.99

September 4, 2000, was Houston's hottest day on record, as well as Beyoncé's nineteenth birthday. Sam Houston was elected president on September 5, 1836. The city was awarded a National League baseball franchise on October 17, 1960, and on November 1, 2017, the Astros won their first World Series. On December 13, 1882, the Capitol Hotel became Houston's first public building to get electricity. Tragedy struck on April 16, 1947, when a ship carrying ammonium nitrate fertilizer exploded alongside a Texas City dock. James Glassman captures every single day of the year in the prism of Houston history, from the Texas Revolution to the moon landing.

Metroplex Monsters

9781467145435

$21.99

In the metropolitan mosaic that joins Dallas and Fort Worth together into a brightly lit metroplex, some mysterious figures still manage to keep to the shadows and slip through the cracks. Even after the Lake Worth Monster inspired a rash of phone calls to the Fort Worth Police Department, the "Goatman of Greer Island" faded back into the haze of myth. Is Lake Granbury's Ol' One Eye an impossibly large catfish or a sidetracked sea serpent? Could pterosaurs really coexist with the region's congested skies? From the Lady of White Rock Lake to the Creature of Copper Canyon and the Chupacabras of Cedar Hill, Jason McLean methodically follows inexplicable events to their source and bizarre beasts to their lairs.

Legends & Lore of the Texas Capitol

9781467137584

$24.99

From its beginning as one of the most ambitious construction projects west of the Mississippi, the imposing red granite Lone Star statehouse loomed large in Texas lore. The iconic landmark rests on a foundation of election rigging, an unsolved murder, land swaps and pre-dedication blackmail. It bore witness to the first meeting between LBJ and Lady Bird, as well as a bizarre resolution honoring the Boston Strangler. Mike Cox digs up a quarry's worth of the capitol's untold history, cataloguing everything from its ghost stories to its public art and collectible tourist kitsch.

Hill Country Hindsights

9781467153522

$23.99

Encounter fascinating characters and forgotten stories from the Texas Hill Country's past, before the crowds and amenities made life complicated. Settled by German immigrants in the 1840s, Fredericksburg's corner of the Texas Hill Country bustles with the trendy energy of an international tourist destination. But there was a time not long ago when the quiet community remained off the beaten path, even if it continued to draw in luminaries like O. Henry, Buck Taylor and Bob Hope. A working knowledge of Town Creek German wasn't necessary, but it sure came in handy. From the White Elephant Saloon to the 87 Drive-In, Michael Barr tours the bygone byways of the Hill Country, showcasing the heritage that predates the overbooked wine tours and vacation rentals.

The Houstorian Dictionary: An Insider's Index to Houston

9781467118002

$21.99

Houston is an innovative city informed by a diverse and eclectic past that is ever-present in its customs, expressions and dreams, even though most Houstonians don't realize it. Represented by landmarks, dishes and events, the culture of America's fourth-largest city is celebrated in the literature, movies, songs and memorable quotations credited to its vibrant citizenry. The Houstorian Dictionary is a guide for natives and newcomers alike. Each entry leads into the next to create a tapestry of the Bayou City's past and present. Discover that story and visit the places where it all happened. Meet the innovators, heroes, hucksters and misfit tinkerers who share the unique Houston DNA. The Houstorian, James Glassman, reveals valuable insights that make this a handy reference as well as an entertaining read.

The Houstorian Dictionary: An Insider's Index to Houston

Tamers of the Texas Frontier

9781467153508

$23.99

In the 1820s, Texas was a wilderness. Settlers thought it was uninhabited although rich with wild game. But many Native American tribes lived in Texas and were at war with the Spanish in Mexico. Mexico ignored Texas and did not try to inhabit this wilderness. Finally, in the late 1820s and early 1830s Stephen F. Austin was allowed to bring in three hundred Anglo settlers and Texas began to be civilized. But to start there was only one town, no roads, no bridges, no planted fields. Texas was starting from ground zero but started fast. They tamed the wilderness and fought the Indians. They got their independence from Mexico and became a Republic, soon a U S state. They established a stable government similar to the one in the US and developed the infrastructure for business and international commerce. In less than eighty years Texas had tamed the wild frontier and became a modern state in the United States. C. Herndon Williams has found forty-two stories that chart this progress.

Galveston's Maceo Family Empire

9781626197534

$23.99

At the dawn of the twentieth century, Galveston was a beacon of opportunity on the Texas Gulf Coast. Dubbed the "Wall Street of the Southwest," its laissez-faire reputation called those hungry for success to its shores. Led by brothers Salvatore and Rosario at the height of Prohibition, the Maceo family answered that call and changed the Oleander City forever. They built an island empire of gambling, smuggling and prostitution that lasted three decades. Housed in their nightclubs frequented by stars like Peggy Lee, Frank Sinatra and Duke Ellington, they endeared themselves to their Galveston neighbors by sharing their profits, imitating crime syndicates in their native Sicily. Though certainly no saints, the Maceos helped bring prosperity to a community weary from a century of turmoil. Discover the history of Galveston's famous crime family with authors Nicole Boatman, Dr. Scott Belshaw and Texas historian Richard McCaslin.

Austin Murder & Mayhem

9781626199170

$23.99

Beneath Austin's shiny veneer lies a dark past, filled with murder, lechery and deceit. Legislators, lawmen and lawyers killed, robbed and lied just as well and just as often as the drifters and grifters preying on newcomers. The nation's first known serial killer made his debut in Austin in the form of the Servant Girl Annihilator, who is still rumored to be Jack the Ripper. After the Willis brothers murdered their neighbors over rumored buried gold, a lynch mob hanged the boys from live oaks on present-day Sixth Street. Freshman representative Louis Franke died after he was robbed and beaten on the steps of the statehouse. Author Richard Zelade delivers a fascinating look at the seedier side of Austin history.

Mysteries of the Magnolia Hotel

9781467139786

$23.99

One night in 1874, a murderer crept into a New Braunfels home and killed twelve-year-old Emma Voelcker with an axe. The prime suspect was a family friend named Faust, lodging in the nearby Magnolia Hotel. A future governor prosecuted Faust, and an unknown assailant snuck past thirty-six armed guards to assassinate him. More than a century later, when Erin Wallace and her husband, Jim Ghedi, began restoring the hotel, first opened during the wild days of the Texas republic, they experienced eerie echoes from the past. One presence in particular cut through the chaos of slammed doors and roaming shadows to guide them to the Magnolia's darkest mystery. Wading through trial transcripts, newspaper archives and messages from disturbed ghosts, they discovered a secret history of Emma's death, a possible cover-up and its continuing legacy.

Galveston's Red Light District

9781467138833

$23.99

Known today as a colorful resort destination featuring family entertainment and a thriving arts district, Galveston was once notorious for its flourishing vice economy and infamous red-light district. Called simply "The Line," the unassuming five blocks of Postoffice Street came alive every night with wild parties and generous offerings of hourly love. A stubborn mainstay of the island cityscape for nearly seventy years, it finally shut down in the late 1950s. But ridding Galveston of prostitution would prove much more difficult than putting a padlock on the front door. Kimber Fountain pursues the sequestered story of women who wanted to make their own rules and the city that wanted to let them.

Canary Islanders of San Antonio

9781467138215

$23.99

Acting on a decree from the king of Spain, the first Canary Islanders arrived in San Antonio in 1731, just thirteen years after the city's founding. In the intervening centuries, the descendants of those sixteen families became inextricably intertwined with the story of their chosen home. From the formation of the first city council to the siege of the Alamo, they contributed to the formative moments of San Antonio's legacy. Several of these descendants collected oral family traditions and combed archival records to preserve this important thread running through the rich tapestry of San Antonio's heritage.

Texas Boomtowns

9781467118231

$21.99

On January 10, 1901, Beaumont awoke to the historic roar of the Spindletop gusher. A flood of frantic fortune seekers heard its call and quickly descended on the town. Over the next three decades, Texas's first oil rush transformed the sparsely populated rural state practically beyond recognition. Brothels, bordellos and slums overran sleepy towns, and thick, black oil spilled over once-green pastures. While dreams came true for a precious few, most settled for high-risk, dangerous jobs in the oilfields and passed what spare time they had in the vice districts fueled by crude. From the violent shanties of Desdemona and Mexia to Borger and beyond, wildcat speculators, grifters and barons took the land for all it was worth. Author Bartee Haile explores the story of these wild and wooly boomtowns.

Murder & Mayhem on the Texas Rails

9781467151450

$21.99

Texas has a long, romantic history when it comes to railroads. But even though steam engines and streetcars offer nonstop service to Nostalgia City, there's a dark side to Texas rail. The Black Widow of Fort Worth engineered a fatal double-cross at a railroad crossing. The Mountaineer Madman brought death to the Texas Electric Railway, while the Trolley Bandit terrorized the citizens of El Paso. From a freak accident involving a banana peel to a tragic trip to see Santa Claus, Jeff Campbell and the staff of the Interurban Railway Museum cross the Lone Star State on trains derailed by murder and mayhem.

San Antonio Beer:

9781467118781

$21.99

Haunted Denton

9781467151528

$21.99

Follow a trail of Denton ghost stories from nineteenth-century pioneers and outlaws to modern-day businessmen who don't intend to clock out. Locals report that John B. Denton still roams the grounds of the courthouse lawn and keeps watch over his namesake town square from an upper window. The 1949 Campus Theatre is said to be haunted by the playful spirit of J.P. Harrison, the first general manager of the building. Historic restaurants like Cartwright's Ranch House and Killer's Tacos pair the occasional full-body apparition with their delicious menus. From the specter showing up in a selfie at Dix Coney Island to a phantom threading its way through Rose's Costume shop, Teal Gray captures the haunted heritage of this fascinating Texas town.

Rio Grande Sniper Killings, The

9781467153430

$23.99

Untangle the complex conspiracy that led to the tragic deaths of Charlotte Kay Elliott and Kevin Edwin Frase on the banks of the Rio Grande. On the night of July 13, 1980, a hitman fired a high-powered rifle into the crowd at Pepe's On the River, an outdoor bar in Mission, Texas. He missed his target, a witness in the Loop 360 drug case, but killed two young bystanders. While state court prosecutions for capital murder inexplicably faltered, a federal court gave the assassin a life sentence for attempted murder of a grand jury witness. A member of the judge's staff who was present throughout the trial, author John W. Primomo revisits the dramatic twists and turns surrounding this murder on the Rio Grande.

Historic Tales of the Llano Estacado

9781467146548

$23.99

The distinctive high mesa straddling West Texas and Eastern New Mexico creates a vista that is equal parts sprawling lore and big blue sky. From Lubbock, the area's informal capital, to the farthest reaches of the staked plains known as the Llano Estacado, the land and its inhabitants trace a tradition of tenacity through numberless cycles of dust storms and drought. In 1887, a bison hunter observed antelope, sand crane and coyote alike crowding together to drink from the same wet-weather lake. A similarly odd assortment of characters shared and shaped the region's heritage, although neighborliness has occasionally been strained by incidents like the 1903 Fence Cutting War. David Murrah and Paul Carlson have collected some three dozen vignettes that stretch across the uncharted terrain of the tableland's past.