How do you build a town from scratch? The first ingredient is a dream. W.W. Duson served as the chef with a vision for a new town. With the railroad completed through southwestern Louisiana in 1881, Duson, general manager of the Southwestern Louisiana Land Company, orchestrated the purchase of land along the railroad. Railroader Patrick Crowley moved his �Crowley Switch� house depot to the new townsite as Duson stirred interest through advertisements in Midwestern newspapers. Duson blended...

Apopka, Florida, started out as a place once dubbed "Big Potato" by the Native Americans of the area and was formerly known as the "Fern City," but it is now most notably considered the "Indoor Foliage Capitol of the World." Once-thriving fragrant citrus groves have been replaced by climate-controlled greenhouses and fields of landscaped nurseries and subdivisions. The second largest city in Orange County, Apopka is located in the northwest region of the county. It functions today as a bed...

Discover the stories behind historic Columbus neighborhoods and their engaging landmarks. The community centers that locals call home aren't just points of interest but places that have shaped history beyond their communities and even Ohio. This encyclopedia of Columbus neighborhoods gives voice to the rich heritage residing in the bell towers, parks and streetscapes of Franklinton, German Village, King-Lincoln, Olde Town East, Short North and the University District. Along with WOSU's awa...

New Britain Township, founded in 1723, was a rural farming community originally settled by Welsh Baptists and German Mennonites. This changed dramatically in 1856 when the North Pennsylvania Railroad was built. Two train stations were built in the township and were named Chalfont and New Britain. The villages next to these stations attracted numerous new residents and businesses. The local picnic grove was even converted into an amusement park, which became known as Forest Park. The villag...

Limited Edition, Iosco County, Michigan, some Early History of the area, with some family histories and including those of some local businesses and facilities.

Woodbury possesses a rich heritage that reads like the story of America. Established in 1683 by Quakers seeking religious freedom, the community was occupied for three days by British troops under Gen. Charles Cornwallis during the Revolutionary War. In 1787, Woodbury became the county seat of Gloucester County, and it remains so to this day. It was home to Capt. James Lawrence, who coined the phrase "Don't give up the ship" during the War of 1812. Woodbury features views of the lavish hom...

An entertaining guidebook to the city's many communities with maps, landmarks, history, and fun facts.With over two hundred neighborhoods divided into seventy-seven community areas, Chicago offers a dazzling and daunting challenge to ambitious tourists and lifelong citizens. This blend of history and travel guide introduces you to them.Anyone who's never been to Chicago will be shocked to learn how big it really is. Did you know that Humboldt Park isn't eve...

For almost 200 years, Jackson County has been a typical farming community in the Mississippi Delta. Based on timber, cotton, and freshwater pearls, its early economy produced great wealth for a small group of landowners. In the 1920s, Jackson County was the 10th-largest cotton producer in the country. However, with the arrival of the tractor in the 1950s and the departure of the laboring classes, the county's economy spiraled downward. The tensions in this social mix led to a creative ferm...

Covering 64 square miles, New Milford is the largest municipality in Connecticut and the southernmost town in Litchfield County. Earliest residents settled around the present-day Village Green, making it the epicenter of town. In the early 1900s, a great fire obliterated a good portion of the downtown buildings, but businesses were quickly resurrected. Establishments such as the Robertson Bleachery, Eastern Lounge, and New Milford Foundry & Machine helped the town rise from the ashes. The ...

Shades Valley was primarily used as a hunting ground by Native Americans until the arrival of the first white settlers in the 1830s. During Birmingham's industrial boom in the 1870s, "Out of the Smoke Zone, Into the Ozone" became the promoters' cry to move "Over the Mountain" into what was then called Clifton. By 1926, Rosedale, Edgewood, and Grove Park were established neighborhoods, and under the leadership of Charles Rice they incorporated to form the city of Homewood. The new community...

On April 7, 1870, an act of the state legislature created Lincoln County, named for Pres. Abraham Lincoln, from Lawrence, Franklin, Copiah, Pike, and Amite Counties. Settlement began more than 50 years earlier with Samuel Jayne's small trading post on St. Stephens Road. Extensive timber resources, the arrival of the railroad in 1857, and the 1859 founding of Whitworth Female College put the county on the map. Logging, lumber mills, and other industries brought scores of people to the regio...

Fulton is one of the oldest cities in northern Mississippi. Established on May 11, 1837, by an act of the Mississippi legislature, the city is the northernmost town on the Tombigbee River, located less than 10 miles south of that river's headwaters. Fulton was settled by hardy pioneers seeking new opportunities in the newly available lands of Mississippi's Chickasaw Cession. From its first days, Fulton was the center of commercial activity in Itawamba County, as well as the home to county ...