The history of Fort Wayne is deeply rooted in its connection to the three rivers that converge at its center: the Maumee, St. Mary's, and St. Joseph Rivers. This abundance of waterways provided great access and trading opportunities for the Fort Wayne area. However, their meeting place, the point at which the St. Mary's and the St. Joseph join to form the headwaters of the Maumee, served as a frequent flood plain and constantly evolving landscape. While humans declined to set up permanent ...

Geoff Paddock's book takes a contemporary look at female public servants who occupied public office or were influential in public life in Indiana. Paddock profiles such distinguished Democratic and Republican leaders as Marvella Bayh, Virginia Blankenbaker, Susan Brooks, Pamela Carter, Julia Carson, Virginia McCarty, Judy O'Bannon, Margaret Prickett, Suellen Reed, Earline Rogers, Jill Ruckelshaus, Becky Skillman, Jill Long Thompson, Sarah Evans Barker, and Vi Simpson. His devotion and love...

A New York Times Notable BookOn Devil’s Night, the night before Halloween, some citizens of Detroit try to burn down their neighborhoods for an international audience of fire buffs. This gripping and often heartbreaking tour of the “Murder Capital of America” often seems lit by those same fires. But as a native Detroiter, Ze’ev Chafets also shows us the city beneath the crime statistics—its ecstatic storefront churches; its fearful and embittered white sub...

An acclaimed historian's "compellingly told" year-by-year account of the pioneering efforts to conquer the American West in the mid-nineteenth century ( The Guardian).In all the sagas of human migration, few can top the drama of the journey by Midwestern farmers to Oregon and California from 1840 to 1849—between the era of the fur trappers and the beginning of the gold rush. Even with mountain men as guides, these pioneers literally plunged into the unknow...

Winner, ISHS Annual Award for a Scholarly Publication, 2017Fort de Chartres, built in 1719-1720 in the heart of what would become the American Midwest, embodied French colonial power for half a century. Lives of Fort de Chartres, by David MacDonald, details the French colonial experience in Illinois from 1720 to 1770 through vivid depictions of the places, people, and events around the fort and its neighboring villages.In the first section, MacDonald explores the f...

Elgin was named by a city founder, James T. Gifford, after his favorite hymn. The city shares its name with 20 cities in 15 states and 8 countries. Elgin is situated on the banks of the Fox River, 35 milesnorthwest of Chicago, the city with which Elgin had thriving business exchanges in agricultural and industrial goods. The city�s world-wide fame, for the most part, has come from its watch factory and Mr. Gail Borden�s milk company. Pianos, shoes, books, and even chewing gum were also man...

Love and Sacrifice is the true story of the Reed family traveling across the U.S. and around the globe through the first half of the 20th century in military service. The book culminates in unimaginable tragedy overcome by inner strength and spirit. Their stories are told through letters among family members, personal diaries, and the vivid recollections of wife and mother, Mildred Reed. Their experiences are illuminated by more than 300 images interwoven into the text.

KU alumnus and Jayhawk enthusiast Kenn Johnson is back with even more legends and firsts. Notable coaches like Danny Manning, who won the national championship as a player in 1988 and again as part of the coaching staff in 2008, have shaped and molded the team throughout the decades. Players like Raef LaFrentz, who became the first Jayhawks player in twenty-seven years to average a double-double over an entire season, keep the fans coming back for more. From the history of the famous Allen...

In the twenty-first century, the word vigilante usually conjures up images of cinematic heroes like Batman, Zorro, the Lone Ranger, or Clint Eastwood in just about any film he’s ever been in. But in the nineteenth century, vigilantes roamed the country long before they ever made their way onto the silver screen. In Faces Like Devils, Matthew J. Hernando closely examines one of the most famous of these vigilante groups—the Bald Knobbers.Hernando si...

As the home to Native American encounters, rugged pioneers, governors, state legislators, founders of political parties, landmark legal decisions, multimillionaires, scandals, patents, and the largest international business of its kind, Plymouth has certainly received its 15 minutes of fame. Yet most citizens of Plymouth today only know it as a wonderful community full of parks, subdivisions, and a quaint Norman Rockwell'like downtown.

This lecture about the early days of Chicago was delivered before the Sunday Lecture Society at McCormick Hall on Sunday, May 7th, 1876. Hon. John Wentworth was the editor, publisher and proprietor of the "Chicago Democrat", the first corporation newspaper, and member of Congress for twelve years.

The author of The Haunted Boonslick proves the Show Me State isn't shy about its ghostly heritage—especially in the beautiful college town at its center.According to Columbia ghost lore, the city's dead only dabble with departure. The specter of Broadway legend Maude Adams checks in on classes at Stephens College, while ragtime pioneer John William Boone returns to trail invisible fingers along his grand piano. Some linger from love, like the spirit of the...