A classic early example of "muck-racking" journalism, or reporting by reform-minded American journalists who attacked established institutions and leaders as corrupt, "How the Other Half Lives" is a chronicle of the conditions of abject poverty that the residents of the slums of New York endured at the end of the 19th century. Danish immigrant Jacob A. Riis saw first-hand the horrible conditions of the Lower East Side of Manhattan following his immigration...

The North Baltimore neighborhood of Remington has a proud and industrious history. Stone from its quarries built the foundations of homes in the city, and the Jones Falls turned its mills to feed hungry immigrants who found a home in the neighborhood. By the end of World War II, the population of the area began to decline, yet through floods, depressions and even a mosquito plague, generations of residents remained in the neighborhood to help build...

Nestled in Upstate New York along the banks of the Mohawk River are the many communities of the Mohawk Valley. These villages, towns and cities have unique histories but are inextricably tied together by the waterways that run through them. The mills, railroads and the Erie Canal sustained early growth; the Painted Rocks beautified the landscape; and tales from the local Mohawk Nation still enrich the folklore. Many remarkable individuals have called...

The village of Rockville Centre is a suburban haven on Long Island. Beginning in the eighteenth century with families like the DeMotts, this small farming community quickly grew. Ship captains left their families here while they sailed, and the arrival of the South Shore Railroad brought the wealthy from New York City. Residents established churches, schools, restaurants, newspapers, hotels and shops. Some of these, like the English Evangelical Lutheran...

A bustling suburb that hosts a wide array of businesses and retail shops, a top-rated school system, and a largely affluent, ethnically diverse population, Syosset has become one of Long Island's most desirable places to live. Yet, as the years have passed, much of the community's early history has been lost. Syosset uses rare photographs, diaries, historical documents, and interviews to uncover fascinating information about the Syosset-Woodbury area's...

When Dorothy Burnett joined the library staff at Howard University in 1928, she was given a mandate to administer a library of Negro life and history. The school purchased the Arthur B. Spingarn Collection in 1946, along with other collections, and Burnett, who would later become Dorothy Porter Wesley, helped create a world-class archive known as the Moorland-Spingarn Research Center and cemented her place as an immensely important figure in the preservation...

When the first electric trolley car entered service in Erie in 1889, it revolutionized public transportation in the region. Within a few years, Erie became a major trolley hub linking the eastern and central United States. With the exception of a 15-mile gap at Little Falls, one could travel from New York City to Chicago via Erie. Greater Erie Trolleys covers the network of trolley lines that operated between Erie, Conneaut, Buffalo, and Meadville....

From unsolved murders and ghastly disasters to medicinal water and sports legends, Northwestern Pennsylvania has a rich and diverse history. Titusville native John Heisman shaped football into the recognizable sport that it is today, and his namesake is honored on the Heisman Trophy. Girard's Charlotte and Libbie Battles broke glass ceilings by becoming early female titans of business and banking in the region. Marx Toys in Erie County found success...

As one of the five boroughs of New York City, Staten Island has a rich and colorful past, and it is full of places where people have shaped the city, state and nation. To commemorate its 350th anniversary, local community leaders and educators have gathered together this unprecedented collection. Walk in the footsteps of Benjamin Franklin, Susan B. Anthony, Langston Hughes, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and the Dalai Lama; visit Revolutionary War sites;...

Nestled between old Newtown (today's Elmhurst) and the village of Flushing in the borough of Queens lies Corona. Blessed with an enchanting landscape, the area attracted development as early as 1854, when the West Flushing Land Company sought to create a suburban residential neighborhood in its midst. For Corona's cherished way of life, represented by Colonial-era farms, dirt roads, and gaslight streetlamps, this marked a distinct break from the past....