history, local

Traces the reasons for the names of the states and their capitals.

On August 10, 1856, a ferocious hurricane swept across Isle Derniere, a long, sandy barrier island about a hundred miles from New Orleans. It was not an uninhabited island. It was an exclusive summer resort in the Gulf of Mexico where hundreds of affluent planters, merchants, and their families spent the warm, humid summers to escape yellow fever epidemics that ravaged cities like New Orleans. After the hurricane had passed, killing at least two hundred people, Isle Derniere was left barren. The island was greatly reduced in size by the hurricane and what was left was never to be inhabited again.

Part memoir, part meditation, Vowell offers readers a roadmap that illuminates the myriad ways in which political assassinations have altered and shaped our nation's history.

Explores towns, settlements, forts, and other areas that have been completely deserted or brought back to life as tourist attractions.

Tells the stories of seventeen of America's historic trees, from the 1600s to 1971, and provides information about America's Famous & Historic Trees project which has collected seeds and grown saplings from over a thousand different historic trees.

Photographs and simple text introduce young readers to the statues and monuments which reflect the history, diversity, and heritage of America.