Our colonial ancestors knew how to build houses as well as constitutions. It may even be that they built the one as enduringly as the other, for many of their mansions still stand, firm in joist and beam, having required in nearly two centuries no more serious repairs than shingles and paint. As the Constitution did not spring, a magic structure, fresh from the minds of its builders, but was a welding together of ideas as old as the Magna Carta, so the style of architecture known as Colonial was not a new creation but an adaptation of the Georgian to new material and new social conditions. While there were no architects among our early ancestors, there were master builders who had served apprenticeship to the creators of the manor houses of Georgian England or of the small chateaux of France. Accustomed to work lavishly in stone and brick, these master builders adapted their methods to wood and unconsciously developed the style we know as Colonial. They kept the type pure whether they applied it to the mansion of the East Indian merchants of New England or to the hospitable home of the owners of the plantations of Virginia and the Carolinas, but in detail they yielded to climate and personality. In this volume, Imogen Oakley meticulously examines the historical climate and the personalities that influenced the construction of six examples of colonial architecture—three in New England and one each in New York, Pennsylvania, and Maryland: The Moffatt-Ladd House, Portsmouth, New Hampshire The Quincy Mansion, Quincy, Massachusetts The Webb House, Wethersfield, Connecticut The Jumel House, New York, New York Stenton, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Mount Clare, Baltimore, Maryland By relating the character of the homesteads as they stand today to the circumstances under which they were built and the personalities who built and occupied them, the author illuminates these monuments of our American past and demonstrates the relationship of their design to their function. In addition, she traces the history of these homes and shows how it happened that they still stand today, their interior decor completely preserved in every detail. With the aid of over twenty photographs, the reader is able to gain an intimate view of many of the magnificent rooms that grace these famous old mansions. This volume represents a valuable and entertaining contribution to American colonial history and the study of an architectural style that has withstood the vicissitudes of time and taste. It will also prove of great interest to the antique enthusiast, who will be able to see many of the finest examples of colonial interior design in their original setting and thus gain a picture of a style of living that reflects the unique personality of a hardy and practical society and which compares favorably with so much of what has grown up around and threatened to displace it.

Q. What is the most-watched TV format in history, seen by about 100 million people weekly around the world? A. Wheel of Fortune, a game show. Without putdowns or pandering, the author looks at 260 such shows, concluding that culture has triumphed over technology. For despite our capacity to transmit the same content world-wide, McLuhan's global village has not come to pass. Technology has, however, encouraged already-existing "cultural continents" to coalesce. About one-third of the world's game shows have been licensed or adapted from another country, especially from the United States. Conversely, a single program can cross borders unchanged, such as Sabado Gigante, which appeals to Spanish speakers in 18 countries. The first truly global study of TV entertainment, this book includes interviews with producers, contestants, and licensers. With its tables, illustrations and appendices, the text provides details on content and audiences, as well as explanatory overviews.

Detailed, accurate illustrations of 43 homes in wide range of styles: Mark Twain House, House of the Seven Gables, Nathan Hale Homestead, Robert Frost Place, The Breakers, many more. Informative captions.

"The history of New England -- indeed, the history of the United States -- can be experienced first-hand by visiting the homes and estates of the region's most notable residents. From presidents and war heroes to icons of American literature and the arts, the grace and grandeur of these homes offer a glimpse into the lives of the men and women who shaped our nation. [The author and photographer] breathe life into the history of the region's thirty-six most important, influential, and picturesque homes, from the earliest homesteads of the 1600s through the Gilded Age mansions of the early twentieth century." --P. [4] of cover.

In this book Tiya Miles explores the popular yet troubling phenomenon of "ghost tours," frequently promoted and experienced at plantations, urban manor homes, and cemeteries throughout the South. As a staple of the tours, guides entertain paying customers by routinely relying on stories of enslaved black specters. But who are these ghosts? Examining popular sites and stories from these tours, Miles shows that haunted tales routinely appropriate and skew African American history to produce representations of slavery for commercial gain. "Dark tourism" often highlights the most sensationalist and macabre aspects of slavery, from salacious sexual ties between white masters and black women slaves to the physical abuse and torture of black bodies to the supposedly exotic nature of African spiritual practices. Because the realities of slavery are largely absent from these tours, Miles reveals how they continue to feed problematic "Old South" narratives and erase the hard truths of the Civil War era. In an incisive and engaging work, Miles uses these troubling cases to shine light on how we feel about the Civil War and race, and how the ghosts of the past are still with us.

Home to Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in the New World, Virginia is in many ways the birthplace of America and the home of U.S. history. It is also literally the birthplace of eight presidents and numerous Revolutionary and Civil War heroes. Virginia was among the wealthiest southern states in the antebellum period, resulting in a long tradition of stately homes on luxuriant plantations. In addition to their elegant architecture and classic southern styling, these homes feature some of the most extravagant and noteworthy gardens on the eastern seaboard. From the James River Plantations to the Shenandoah foothills, Virginia's Historic Homes and Gardens celebrates the legendary houses and landscapes of Old Dominion. Virginia natives, the authors travel throughout the state to highlight the best of the famous and lesser-known homes. Including such national landmarks as George Washington's Mount Vernon and Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, the book brilliantly illustrates the homes exteriors and interiors as well as their gardens and landscaping. Historical details accompany the exquisite color photographs, along with useful information on each site's location.

Southern plantations are an endless source of fascination. That’s no surprise since these palatial homes are rich in history, representing a pivotal time in U.S. history that truly is “gone with the wind.” With the Civil War literally exploding all around, many of these homes were occupied either by Confederate or Union troops. Nowhere else in the south were plantations so affected by the nation’s bloodiest war than in Virginia. At times, families fled, leaving behind slaves to manage the property. There are still more than 60 plantations in Virginia today, most of them open to the public. Some have been restored, others undergoing that process. If only the walls could talk, the stories we might hear! That’s what we hope to bring into this book on The Plantations of Virginia. We’ll take the tours and talk to the guides and dig even further if there is more to discover. We hope that travelers will be enlightened before they travel to Virginia, their visits will thus be enriched, and that residents will equally love exploring this deep history of Virginia. Accompanying the text will be photographs, taken by one of the authors, showing, in all their splendor, the exteriors of these plantations, as well as areas of interest inside the buildings.