America isn’t old when compared to other countries, but it has its fair share of odd myths and legends. From the myths of Pecos Bill to the Legend of Sleepy Hollow, our history has quirks and stories spanning all 50 states in the union. Readers explore the dark depths of storytelling in this exciting book filled with high-interest tales of American legends. Full-color photographs and freaky graphics help tell the tales that terrified—or just plain weirded out—American children for generations in certain cities or states.

America isn’t old when compared to other countries, but it has its fair share of odd myths and legends. From the myths of Pecos Bill to the Legend of Sleepy Hollow, our history has quirks and stories spanning all 50 states in the union. Readers explore the dark depths of storytelling in this exciting book filled with high-interest tales of American legends. Full-color photographs and freaky graphics help tell the tales that terrified—or just plain weirded out—American children for generations in certain cities or states.

This marvelous collection brings together the great myths and legends of the United States--from the creation stories of the first inhabitants, to the tall tales of the Western frontier, to the legendary outlaws of the 1920s, and beyond. This thoroughly engaging anthology is sweeping in its scope, embracing Big Foot and Windigo, Hiawatha and Uncle Sam, Paul Revere and Billy the Kid, and even the Iroquois Flying Head and Elvis. In the book's section on dogmas and icons, for instance, Leeming and Page discuss the American melting pot, the notion of manifest destiny, and the imposing historical and literary figure of Henry Adams. And under Heroes and Heroines, they have assembled everyone from "Honest Abe" Lincoln and George "I Cannot Tell a Lie" Washington to Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, and Martin Luther King, Jr. For every myth or hero rendered here, the editors include an informative yet readable excerpt, often the definitive account of the story in question. Taken as a whole, Myths, Legends, and Folktales of America reveals how waves of immigrants, encountering this strange land for the first time, adapted their religions, beliefs, and folklore to help make sense of a new and astounding place. Covering Johnny Appleseed and Stagolee as well as Paul Bunyan and Moby Dick, this wonderful anthology illuminates our nation's myth-making, enriching our idea of what it means to be American.

From pre-Columbian legends to modern-day eyewitness accounts, this comprehensive guide covers the history, sightings and lore surrounding the most mysterious monsters in America—including Bigfoot, the Jersey Devil, and more. Bigfoot, the chupacabra, and thunderbirds aren’t just figments of our overactive imaginations—according to thousands of eyewitnesses, they exist, in every corner of the United States. Throughout America’s history, shocked onlookers have seen unbelievable creatures of every stripe—from sea serpents to apelike beings, giant bats to monkeymen—in every region. Author, investigator, and creature expert Linda S. Godfrey brings the same fearless reporting she lent to Real Wolfmen to this essential guide, using historical record, present-day news reports, and eyewitness interviews to examine this hidden menagerie of America’s homegrown beasts.

266 Strange Tales, Myths and Legends that Help Define the American Character. It is said that, compared to Europe, America has no real stockpile of myth and legend. As a nation grows forward, that supply accumulates backward, and America has simply not been around long enough for it to build-up. This book makes that belief itself into a myth, In the late 19th Century, Charles M. Skinner set about on a journey to collect the myths and legends of America before it was too late-before they passed into oblivion. Scouring old records, histories, newspapers, magazines, and oral narratives, he reconstructed 266 tales from all corners of our nation. This priceless record of our cultural heritage is presented in this Fireship Press edition. How many New Englanders are aware that the Hudson River was created by one of the three wise men of Bethlehem fame? If you live near the Great Lakes, did you know that Hiawatha was born on Mackinaw Island? How many Southerners know the story of the Biloxi Indian tribe that marched into the sea and drowned rather than surrender to an army of Choctaws? Somewhere along the Purgatoire River in Colorado a fortune in gold is buried-put there by a Spanish infantry regiment that entered the valley... and simply disappeared. All of these stories and more-from every region of the country-can now be found in: Myths and Legends of America

*Includes pictures *Describes America's most infamous legends, conspiracy theories, mysteries, and more *Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading The states comprising the Northeast have a long history as some of the earliest colonies in the New World. Their rich folklore and colorful history is woven into the national identity, and destinations such as Plymouth Rock, the lighthouses of Maine, and Vermont's autumn leaves are quintessential symbols of the United States. But the Northeast has always had a dark side, a strange side. Monsters and ghosts lurk in its woods and old houses, and strange monuments that may be from a forgotten civilization puzzle local investigators. All the while, the early inhabitants themselves were always superstitious, as evidenced by history's most famous witch trials at Salem. The American South has given birth to many of the nation's great stories and legends. From the earliest Colonial times, it's been a place of mystery, replete with disappearing colonies and strange apparitions in the woods, but the South's long and proud history has always had a darker, and stranger, side to it. In fact, one of America's most famous mysteries was its first. Future settlements in the area would survive and start to flourish, and that would bring more mystery and unexplained phenomena. Tales of monsters and ghosts lurking in its woods and old houses, and strange monuments that may be from a forgotten civilization, puzzle local investigators. The Midwest is rich in history and folklore, and it has more than its fair share of mysteries, too. Strange creatures, Native American legends, haunted houses, and unexplained phenomena are rife in these states, and this book will uncover just a sample of the countless strange tales of America's heartland. The Wild West captured the imagination of people all the way back to the days when it really was wild. Even in the 19th century, its fame spread thanks to dime novels, travelogues, Wild West shows, and theater plays, and people were thrilled by tales of exploration and gunfights. Naturally, in the process of settling the frontier, the adventures contained countless numbers of strange stories, ranging from tales of monsters and lost mines to those about hidden cities and men coming back from the dead. It was a vast, unexplored country, and many mysteries could hide in the unmapped mountain ranges and seemingly endless plains. For its part, the West Coast of the United States has always been a center of mystery. Native American legends, tantalizing traces of Chinese visits in the Middle Ages, lost gold mines, and supernatural visitations are only some of the phenomena in a region rich with stories of the unknown. The Weird and Mysterious United States: Mysteries, Legends, and Unexplained Phenomena across America offers a sampling of strange, unexplained, and just plain odd stories across America's various regions. Along with pictures of important people, places, and events, you will learn about the weird and mysterious side of the United States like never before.