Hidden History Of Augusta

Situated along the Georgia border, Augusta is known for its golf, beautiful private gardens and southern culture. But its history is also brimming with strange stories yet to be told. A beleaguered German princess gave the city its name. A "haunted pillar" survived a tornado that destroyed the area in 1878. The famous Wright brothers opened a branch of their flying school here in 1911. Author and historian Tom Mack uncovers and celebrates these gems hidden in Augusta's rich and teeming history.

Situated along the Georgia border, Augusta is known for its golf, beautiful private gardens and southern culture. But its history is also brimming with strange stories yet to be told. A beleaguered German princess gave the city its name. A "haunted pillar" survived a tornado that destroyed the area in 1878. The famous Wright brothers opened a branch of their flying school here in 1911. Author and historian Tom Mack uncovers and celebrates these gems hidden in Augusta's rich and teeming history.

It was an unlikely place for a city, scourged by disease-ridden mosquitos and pummeled by hurricanes. But for more than three hundred years, Mobile has thrived on the unlikely and endured the unimaginable. Mobilians love their gumbo but are likely unaware that it was first served up here by women sent from France to foster population growth. Times were once so dire for free blacks that a shocking number petitioned the courts to become slaves. The city witnessed the first operational submarine, the first Mardi Gras celebration and the last major battle of the Civil War. Author Joe Cuhaj navigates the backwaters of Mobile's fascinating history.

Situated between the mountains and the coast, Aiken County attracted ailing members of the southern planter class once the railroad from Charleston to Hamburg was completed in 1833. After the Civil War, grand hotels and sporting activities drew wealthy northern capitalists south for the winter here. A third era of prosperity came in the 1950s, when the Cold War prompted the construction of a nuclear reservation. Local author Tom Mack uncovers the lesser-known stories behind the major events that shaped the area's colorful past. Meet inventor James Legare, political insider George Croft and singing sensation Arthur Lee Simpkins. Learn about the controversial Graniteville murder of 1876 and how an abdicated king found solace in Aiken in 1936. And discover so many more interesting stories.

When prospectors set up camp on Cherry Creek in 1858, Denver emerged as a lightning rod for the extraordinary. Time has washed away so many unusual stories—from the dark days of nineteenth century Law and Order League lynchings and the KKK’s later rise and fall to the heroism of suffragettes and the touching plight of the gypsies. Elizabeth Wallace knocks the dust off these details and introduces readers to characters like world heavyweight boxing champion Charles L. “Sonny” Liston, hit-man turned rodeo promoter Leland Varain, aka “Diamond Jack,” and the city’s daring wall dogs, whose hand-painted building advertisements are fading reminders of a bygone Denver.

A heartfelt collection of personal stories that connect a common past and offer hope for a promising future For many, South Carolina is a sunny vacation destination. For those who have been lucky enough to call it home, it is a source of rich memories and cultural heritage. In this final volume of State of the Heart, thirty-eight nationally and regionally known writers share their personal stories about places in South Carolina that hold special meaning for them. While this is a book about place, it is ultimately about people's connections to one another, to a complex, common past, and to ongoing efforts to build a future of promise and possibility in the Palmetto state. Editor Aïda Rogers groups the essays thematically, with poetry, vintage photographs, and even recipes introducing each section. She unites pieces by New York Times best-selling novelists Patti Callahan Henry, CJ Lyons, and John Jakes; USA Today best-selling mystery writer Susan Boyer; historians Walter Edgar, Orville Vernon Burton, and Bernard Powers; artist and author Mary Whyte; and cookbook authors Sallie Ann Robinson and the Lee Brothers—just to name a few. Nikky Finney, a South Carolina native and winner of the 2011 National Book Award for poetry, provides the foreword. The afterword is written by Cassandra King, author of six novels, including the New York Times best seller The Sunday Wife.

When celebrity aviator Harry Atwood made the first aeroplane flight over Bangor in 1912, observers were astonished. It was a sign that the city had recovered from the great fire of 1911 that had destroyed its downtown the year before. While some events are well known, many stories from turn-of-the-century Bangor have been lost to time. In this collection, local author Wayne E. Reilly brings some of the most exciting and intriguing hidden Bangor tales to light--from a gas explosion that left a thirty-foot crater in the middle of downtown to the escape of a mayor's pet pig. Join Reilly as he reveals the hidden stories from Queen City history.