Located at the head of the Thames River, Norwich is known as "the Rose of New England." This small city boasts a complex history, from its role as an important Colonial seaport to its development into a thriving manufacturing city. The nearly two hundred images in Norwich bring this history to life, from the industry and innovation represented by the Ponemah Mill, to the grandeur of the Wauregan Hotel, to the devastation of the flood of 1886. The city's many sides can be seen in these page...

In 1877, the U.S. Navy purchased the fast steam yacht Stiletto from the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company of Bristol, Rhode Island, for "automobile" torpedo experiments in Narragansett Bay. The submarine service was in its infancy, and interest in the self-propelled torpedo as an undersea weapon flourished. Herreshoff's fast, steam-powered boats were the first of the delivery platforms accepted by the U.S. Navy Department for experiments at the Newport Naval Torpedo Station and service duri...

During the 1930s in the United States, the Works Progress Administration developed the Federal Writers’ Project to support writers and artists while making a national effort to document the country’s shared history and culture. The American Guide series consists of individual guides to each of the states. Little-known authors-many of whom would later become celebrated literary figures-were commissioned to write these important books. John Steinbeck, Saul Bellow, Zora Neale Hurston, and Ral...

Although famous for his purported last words—“I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country”—few people know the real Nathan Hale. M. William Phelps brings into focus the life of this famed patriot and first spy of the American Revolution, charting Hale’s rural childhood, his education at Yale, and his work as a schoolteacher. Like many young Americans, he was soon drawn into the colonies’ war for independence and became a captain in Washington’s army. When the general was ...

"[Burlington's] Ghost Guru . . . is responsible for keeping alive those things that are dead but still floating around, sometimes quite literally" ( Ravenous Monster).The vibrant city of Burlington is a perpetual hub of activity, with hordes of shoppers strolling up and down Church Street and groups of college students scattered about the lawns of UVM. Stop and listen to the stories of Queen City Ghostwalk guide Thea Lewis, and discover the ghostly shapes ...

In the opening pages of Moby Dick, Herman Melville called New Bedford, Massachusetts, “the dearest place to live in, in all of New England.” But the old fishing port and manufacturing center—once one of the richest cities in New England—has withered in the modern economy. Its once-prosperous fishermen now struggle with government regulations and fished-out seas, while its empty factories now offer more work to the Fire Department than anyone else.In Down at the Docks

Scrape the city off your shoes as you enter the town of Bolton, where both historic and natural heritage are remarkably preserved. In this panoramic view of Bolton's past, DePold retraces the footprints of Mohegan natives, pays homage to the natural, glacier-carved cathedrals of Bolton Notch and calls up the ghosts of the town's bluecoat boys, lost in the Battle of Antietam. Follow the long strides of Reverend George Colton across the fields of BoltonHeritage Farm and catch the ringing ech...

A Place Apart features essays and firsthand accounts of notable experiences throughout Cape Cod, including native Wampanoag creation myths; eyewitness accounts of the landing of the Pilgrims in 1620; candid stories of early life in the Old Colony; fascinating and often-harrowing accounts of the whaling and fishing industries; and so much more.The collection includes famous passages by and about such writers as Melville, Thoreau, Helen Keller, Edmund Wilson...

Maine once had more than one hundred covered bridges. Only seven of these bridges remain today, but the photographic record of the others is surprisingly complete. Maine's Covered Bridges offers views of these structures that once graced the state's roads and railroads, many of them in the Oxford Hills and Western Mountains regions. All of Maine's major rivers-the Saco, Androscoggin, Kennebec, Penobscot, and Aroostook-and even smaller rivers-including the Presumpscot, Ossipee, Little Andro...

By 1900, Worcester was home to the largest Swedish population in the eastern United States. These new residents brought an innovative and unique spirit to the community. Industrialist John Jeppson invented an artificial emery stone, and his experiments in the abrasives field became the foundation of the Norton Company. Worcester welcomed Swedish immigrants who preserved traditions through various lodges, church congregations and Swedish-owned businesses like Holstrom's Market, Lundborg's a...

This fascinating and moving book brings to life the industrial and immigrant experience which gave birth to Manchester in the nineteenth century and continued to shape the city's destiny well into the twentieth century. More than a hundred years ago, thousands of immigrants from Europe and Canada were drawn to the mills of Manchester by the promise of a better life. In stirring photographs and text, Manchester: The Mill and the Immigrant Experience examines the aspirations, the struggles, ...

The skilled craftsmen of New York founded The General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen in 1785, and the organization's history is aligned with the city's physical and cultural development. In 1820, The Society founded its library. It began a lecture series in 1837 and opened the Mechanics Institute in 1858 to provide free education in the trades. Prominent New York members included Andrew Carnegie, Peter Cooper, Abram S. Hewitt and Duncan Phyfe. The Society's educational programs continu...