Local History

Insulting the president is an American tradition. From Washington to Trump, presidents have been called "lazy," "feeble," "pusillanimous," and more. Our leaders have been derided as "ignoramuses," "idiots," "morons," and "fatheads," and have been compared to all manner of animals - worms and whales and hyenas, sad jellyfish, strutting crows, lap dogs, reptiles, and monkeys. Political insults tell us what we value in our leaders by showing how we devalue them. In Dangerous Crooked Scoundrels, linguist Edwin Battistella collects over 500 insults aimed at American presidents.

What began as the obscure local case of two Italian immigrant anarchists accused of robbery and murder flared into an unprecedented political and legal scandal as the perception grew that their conviction was a judicial travesty and their execution a political murder. This book is the first to reveal the full national and international scope of the Sacco-Vanzetti affair, uncovering how and why the two men became the center of a global cause célèbre that shook public opinion and transformed America’s relationship with the world.

Responding to reports of gold discoveries on the Fraser River, thousands of prospectors from California and other points on the Pacific coast crossed the 49th parallel to British territory in 1858. Most returned to San Francisco and Puget Sound later in the same year, blaming their failure to find wealth in the river canyons on uncooperative Hudson's Bay Company officials and the English government.

Border Bandits is an account of the many, many stories of back-and-forth skirmishes between the Mexicans and Texans during the late 1800s and early 1900s. There practically wasn't a border, which caused a lot of problems and thievery between the two countries. These 17 tales in this book re-create border raids that originated from both sides of the fluid and much contested line and tells the stories of colorful characters - Mexican and American - that have since secured their place in history.

From the marriage equality debate to the COVID-19 lockdown, ‘free speech’ has become the new battleground in Australian society. What does the furore over one footballer’s social media postings reveal about how it got that way? For a period in 2019, a tweet from rugby player Israel Folau...

For decades, history has considered Tammany Hall, New York's famous political machine, shorthand for the worst of urban politics: graft, crime, and patronage personified by notoriously corrupt characters. Infamous crooks like William "Boss" Tweed dominate traditional histories of Tammany, distorting our understanding of a critical chapter of American political history. In Machine Made, historian and New York City journalist Terry Golway convincingly dismantles these stereotypes.

Noted historian William J. Cooper has forged a reputation as one of today' s foremost Civil War experts. In We Have the War upon Us, Cooper takes a fresh look at the months between Lincoln's election and the attack on Fort Sumter that sparked the war. For years, compromise had kept the North and South from conflict but in these crucial months, the actions of major players on both sides pushed the country to the brink of destruction.

When a black man was accused of attacking a white woman in a rural Florida town, a tinderbox of racial hatred was ignited. On New Year's Day 1923, Rosewood, a town of hard-working, middle-class African Americans, was burned to the ground by an angry mob of whites. After hiding in frigid nearby swamps for days, the few survivors never returned.

The California revealed here is not the stereotypical land of movie stars, sensational trials, or tourist snapshots, but instead a remarkable patchwork of out-of-the-way places and everyday people. Former Los Angeles Times columnist Charles Hillinger hones in on what makes each county unique, such as Johnny Heinold's First and Last Chance tavern in Alameda County where Jack London first began writing his stories.

A comprehensive history of Philadelphia from the region’s original Lenape inhabitants to the myriad of residents in the twenty-first century. In Philadelphia: A Narrative History, Paul Kahan presents a comprehensive portrait of the city, from the region’s original Lenape inhabitants to the myriad of residents in the twenty-first century. As any history of Philadelphia should, this book chronicles the people and places that make the city unique: from Independence Hall to Eastern State Penitentiary, Benjamin Franklin and Betsy Ross to Cecil B. Moore and Cherelle Parker.

Anthony Bourdain chases the fumigation truck in Bergen County, New Jersey. Dave Eggers tells it straight: Illinois is Number 1. Louise Erdrich loses her bikini top in North Dakota. Jonathan Franzen gets waylaid by New York's publicist...and personal attorney...and historian...and geologist. John Hodgman explains why there is no such thing as a "Massachusettsean."

The Conquest of Texas is the story of the struggle between Anglos and Indians for land. Anderson tells how Scotch-Irish settlers clashed with farming tribes and then challenged the Comanches and Kiowas for their hunting grounds. Next, the decade-long conflict with Mexico merged with war against Indians. For fifty years Texas remained in a virtual state of war. Piercing the very heart of Lone Star mythology, Anderson tells how the Texas government encouraged the Texas Rangers to annihilate Indian villages, including women and children. This policy of terror succeeded.

The Tourist’s Guide to Lost Yiddish New York City offers a new look at over a century of New York’s history of Yiddish popular culture. Henry H. Sapoznik—a five-time Grammy-nominated performer/producer and Peabody Award-winning co-producer of NPR’s Yiddish Radio Project—tells the story in chapters on theater, music, architecture, crime, Blacks and Jews, restaurants, real estate, and journalism.

Auf der Jagd nach dem Mörder Santer wird Old Shatterhand von Winnetou getrennt und macht die Bekanntschaft eines alten Scout, mit dem er gegen den Ku-Klux-Klan kämpft. Als er seinen Blutsbruder wiedertrifft, erfährt er etwas über das tragische Schicksal von Winnetous großer Liebe. Gemeinsam mit Old Firehand wollen sie dem Mörder von Ribanna das Handwerk legen - und erleben eine unerwartete Überraschung.

This is a story of power, set against Puritan America and the English Civil War. Williams's interactions with King James, Francis Bacon, Oliver Cromwell, and his mentor Edward Coke set his course, but his fundamental ideas came to fruition in America, as Williams, though a Puritan, collided with John Winthrop's vision of his "City upon a Hill."

The Katrina List: An Untold Story of Hurricane Katrina offers an intimate and powerful account of one of America’s most devastating disasters. Going beyond headlines and statistics, it captures the raw human experiences of those who endured the storm—stories of survival, separation, and resilience. Through overlooked personal narratives, it exposes the emotional toll of loss and the failures of government response. This audiobook also highlights the importance of remembrance, showcasing the Katrina National Memorial Museum’s role in preserving these voices for future generations.

First in flight. Fierce in basketball. Divided by barbecue. And stubborn about everything. North Carolina has never been easy to pin down. It dragged its feet on secession yet sent more soldiers to die for the Confederacy than any other state. It boasts of being “first in freedom” while clinging to old hierarchies. It gave the world pirates, bootleggers, moonshine-fueled stock car races, and barbecue feuds so fierce they could outlast most wars. In this sharp and funny history, Jordan Blake Carter takes you on an irreverent ride through four centuries of contradictions.

Schon nach kurzer Zeit im Wilden Westen erwirbt sich ein junger Landvermesser den Kriegsnamen Old Shatterhand - und den Respekt seines kauzigen Lehrmeisters. Als die Apachen die Vermessungsarbeiten unterbinden wollen, verbündet sich die korrupte Bauleitung mit den Kiowas. Doch Old Shatterhand kann die gefangenen Häuptlinge Intschu-tschuna und Winnetou retten. Allerdings muss er lange warten, bis er von ihnen als ihr Befreier anerkannt wird und der Blutsbruder Winnetous werden kann. Die Häuptlingstochter Nscho Tschi verliebt sich in ihn - ein junges Glück, das nur von kurzer Dauer ist.

Radical Volunteers tells the largely unknown story of southern student activism in Tennessee between the Brown decision in 1954 and the national backlash against the Kent State University shootings in May 1970. As one of the first statewide studies of student activism—and one of the few examinations of southern student activism—it broadens scholarly understanding of New Left and Black student radicalism from its traditionally defined hotbeds in the Northeast and on the West Coast.

When Americans turn on their laptops, play video games, go to church, vote, eat TexMex, shop for groceries, listen to music, grill steaks, or watch football, they are, knowingly or not, paying tribute to Texas. Tracing the profound and surprising story of the Lone Star State, Benjamin Heber Johnson shines new light on why Texas has had such a powerful influence on United States history.