Murphys is a bustling little town in the foothills�a town so popular that it won�t be little for long. It�s a favorite for weekend jaunts, and home to an eclectic group of people attracted by the natural surroundings, laid-back lifestyle, and, increasingly, world-class wineries. Originally named for the trading camp of John and Daniel Murphy, the area became a boomtown during the Gold Rush, and later hosted such notables as Mark Twain, Black Bart, Ulysses S. Grant, and Horatio Alger. Nearb...

Northern Calaveras County stretches eastward from the valley towns of Wallace and Jenny Lind, through the Campo Seco and Mokelumne Hill gold country, to the county seat in San Andreas and finally extends to the upcountry mining camps and logging settlements of West Point and Railroad Flat. Historically water and trails connected these diverse regions. The Mokelumne River and its tributaries�diverted into flumes and ditches�brought water to the river bars, mines, ranches, settlements, and t...

The Angels Camp and Copperopolis regions offer a fascinating chapter in the history of the Mother Lode. Calaveras County�s southwest corner has many tales to tell, including one of the earliest settlements of the Native American in California; two of the most famous names in Americana, Mark Twain and Black Bart; and two major events in national history, the Gold Rush and the Civil War. An important Gold Rush town, Angels Camp gained even greater fame through Twain�s �The Celebrated Jumping...

The hamlet of Jamestown dates to the early Gold Rush. Discovered in August 1848, the Woods Creek placers at Jamestown eventually yielded millions of dollars in gold. When the easily mined placer gold gave out, the town remained a trade and supply depot for mining higher in the foothills, with a prime location on the roads from the Central Valley. From the 1890s to 1910s, the hard-rock mining era, known as the second Gold Rush, granted new life to the town, surrounded as it is by the Mother...

Join Uncle John as he treks through every one of America’s National Parks!If you like the great outdoors, you’re going to love this book. We’re plunging into every national park, monument, site, and trail (more than 150 in all!) in true Uncle John fashion and uncovering some unique stories behind all of them. You’re sure to find hidden facets of each national park that you never imagined. Read about...* Yosemite’s firefall and why it came to a sudden end

The Pine Barrens of New Jersey contain more ghost towns, some say, than the entire American west. In Ghost Towns and Other Quirky Places in the New Jersey Pine Barrens author Barbara Solem-Stull tells the story of the towns that rose up around the iron furnaces, glass factories, paper mills, cranberry farms, and brick making establishments of the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries. A popular Pinelands speaker and tour guide, Solem-Stull has written much more than an armchair guide to the...

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...

The Rocky Mountain and Great Basin states are the heart of ghost-town country. Once-bustling pioneer outposts, mining camps, lumber towns, and railroad villages stand today as reminders of the glory days of gold rushes, industrial progress, and that pioneering spirit of the Old West. This book guides readers to the fascinating and scenic ghost towns of Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, Montana, Utah, and Nevada. Varney highlights popular tourist destinations as well as out-of-the-way spots unfamil...

Mastodons roamed the plains of Sequim and Dungeness in the years following the recession of the Cordilleran ice sheets. Millennia later, the villages of S'Klallam were home to those who saw settlers disembarking on the periphery of coastal wilderness. Ancient stands of spruce, cedar, and fir fell in the 1800s, clearing the land for agriculture. By the 1900s, the region exported wheat, potatoes, hay, and oats and became prime dairy land. This compilation of historic photographs illustrates ...

Start your engines and follow the backroads, the historical paths, and the scenic landscape that were fashioned by geologic Ice Ages and traveled by Big Thicket explorers as well as contemporary park advocatesall as diverse as the Big Thicket itself. From Spanish missionaries to Jayhawkers, and from timber barons to public officials, you will meet some unusual characters who inhabited an exceptional region. The Big Thicket and its National Preserve contain plants and animals from deserts a...

A garnd tour to a grand country. All the facts, the flags, the symbols and much more - in one book.

This travel guide with historic and modern photos offers maps as well as notable and picturesque route suggestions, perfect for American history buffs.With its ancient pueblos and dinosaur bones, its gold mines and railroads, and its pioneering place in the westward push of the American frontier, Colorado is a state alive with history. This illustrated adventure through historical Colorado takes readers by scenic backroads from the towering Rocky Mountains to the va...