Born in the Carolina backwoods, Andrew Jackson joined the American Revolutionary War at the age of thirteen. After a reckless youth of gunfights, gambling, and general mischief, he rose to national fame as the general who defeated the British in the Battle of New Orleans. Afterwards, Jackson ran for president as a political outsider, championing the interest of common farmers and frontiersmen. Determined to take down the wealthy, well-educated East...

Located only a short distance from the cacophony and activity of Detroit's metro area, Northville has maintained its unique small-town charm and identity across the passing decades. Even before the town's official incorporation in 1955, Northville's citizens worked tirelessly to preserve their picturesque setting in rural western Wayne County, to maintain the elegant Victorian architecture in their homes and businesses, and to carve out a prosperous...

In the late eighteenth century, waves of intrepid settlers made their way down the Great Wagon Road into the virgin wilderness of Northeast Georgia to find new homes and opportunity for land and wealth. Against a dramatic mountainous backdrop, these pioneers carved out farms and small communities in perilous isolation and created an American experience vastly different from that of the plantation-style society established along Georgia's coast. Battling...

The picturesque images and steadfast spirit of small-town America thrive within Bristol. One need only to look along its tree-lined streets and centuries-old waterfront and into its historic homes and buildings to see the romance of Rhode Island's past mingling with its present. Heritage and tradition, especially its long-running celebrations of the Fourth of July, are essential in understanding the character and identity of this little town on the...

On July 4, 1845, the piercing sound of a steamboat's whistle along the banks of the Coosa River served as an exotic, technological proclamation for the beginning of a new era in Northeast Alabama. The landing of Captain James Lafferty's steamboat, the Coosa, marked the genesis of a new town and the realization of a shared vision of Gabriel Hughes, Joseph Hughes, and John S. Moragne. From that moment on, hundreds upon hundreds of pioneering men and...

Located in the southeastern corner of Oregon, Harney County covers approximately 10,600 square miles and supports a population of just over 7,000 residents. The topography of the land has shaped the identity of the county as well as the character of the people who chose to make their livelihood here. Harney's vast and rugged landscape spans from the snow-swept summit of Steens Mountain to the green-forested slopes of the Ochoco and Malheur National...

Since 1850, Chicago has felt the benefits of a vital Italian presence. These immigrants formed much of the unskilled workforce employed to build up this and many other major U.S. cities. From often meager and humble beginnings, Italians built and congregated in neighborhoods that came to define the Chicago landscape. Post-World War II development threatened this communal lifestyle, and subsequent generations of Italian Americans have been forced to...

On July 24, 1701, Antoine de La Mothe Cadillac stood in the heart of the wilderness on a bluff overlooking the Detroit River and claimed this frontier in the name of Louis XIV; thus began the story of Detroit, a city marked by pioneering spirits, industrial acumen, and uncommon durability. Over the course of its 300-year history, Detroit has been sculpted into a city unique in the American experience by its extraordinary mixture of diverse cultures:...

Farmington, one of Detroit's oldest suburbs, was originally inhabited by the Potawatomi and was ceded to the government for sale to settlers beginning in 1820. Established as Quakertown and incorporated as Farmington, this "Crossroads Community" developed around a literal railroad stop, flourishing from an agricultural center to a thriving business district. A sense of community, family, and home inspired residents to overcome natural and social obstacles...

Frederick has stood as the gateway to western Maryland since the 1740s, when German and English settlers moved into the area seeking fertile farmland. Site of the first official rebellious act of the American colonies, early Frederick Town shared the fortunes of the growing nation as proximity to the new capital in Washington and the port of Baltimore fed industry and culture here along the Monocacy River.