Empire of the Air tells the story of three American visionaries—Lee de Forest, Edwin Howard Armstrong, and David Sarnoff—whose imagination and dreams turned a hobbyist's toy into radio, launching the modern communications age. Tom Lewis weaves the story of these men and their achievements into a richly detailed and moving narrative that spans the first half of the twentieth century, a time when the American romance with science and technology was at its peak. Empire of the Air is a tale of pioneers on the frontier of a new technology, of American entrepreneurial spirit, and of the tragic collision between inventor and corporation.

Since 1865 African-American architects have been designing and building houses and public buildings, but the architects are virtually unknown. This work brings their lives and work to light for the first time.

The study moves from tradition to modernity, explores a range of topics such as: song life in the traditional village; rural–urban tensions; local min’yo ‘preservation societies’; the effects of national and local min’yo contests; the ‘new folk song’ phenomenon; min’yo and tourism; folk song bars; recruitment of professionals; min’yo’s interaction with enka popular songs and with Western-derived foku songu; the impact of mass mediation; and min’yo’s role in maintaining or creating local identity. The book contains a plate section, musical examples, and a compact disc.

The Guyana StoryFrom Earliest Times to Independence traces the countrys history from thousands of years ago when the first Amerindian groups began to settle on the Guyana territory. It examines the period of early European exploration leading to Dutch colonization, the forcible introduction of African slaves to work on cotton and sugar plantations, the effects of European wars, and the final ceding of the territory to the British who ruled it as their colony until they finally granted it independence in 1966. The book also tells of Indian, Chinese, and Portuguese indentured immigration and shows how the cultural interrelationships among the various ethnic groups introduced newer forms of conflict, but also brought about cooperation in the struggles of the workers for better working and living conditions. The final part describes the roles of the political leaders who arose from among these ethnic groups from the late 1940s and began the political struggle against colonialism and the demand for independence. This struggle led to political turbulence in the 1950s and early 1960s when the country was caught in the crosshairs of the cold war resulting in joint British-American devious actions that undermined a democratically elected pro-socialist government and deliberately delayed independence for the country until a government friendly to their international interests came to power.

Originally published under the auspices of the Swiss-American Historical Society, this book is a collection of essays on topics of interest to persons of Swiss origin, especially those whose ancestors came to America after 1840. The book derives its title from its first and longest chapter, a description of the Swiss-American population in 1930. State by state, Mr. von Grueningen describes the Swiss presence in 1930, accounting for early settlements, occupations, city and county distribution, and changes in Swiss-American demography over time. The remaining chapters feature a potpourri of Swiss historical and genealogical topics. Three chapters treat the Swiss in California. The researcher can read separate accounts of the expeditions of Heinrich Lienhard and Albert Kyburz as they journeyed from Switzerland to join their countryman Johann August Sutter, the central figure in the California gold rush. The fourth chapter concerns the establishment of an Italian-Swiss colony in northern California (San Francisco, Sacramento, etc.) by emigrants from the canton of Tessin (Tecino). In another chapter, genealogists will find many names and dates highlighting the Swiss pioneers of New York and New Jersey. The final chapter discusses the role of Swiss clergy (Catholic, Reformed, etc.), as well as missionary efforts among the Winnebago Indians. In all, this scarce volume refers to nearly 2,500 Swiss or Swiss-Americans.