Hidden History of Rhode Island delivers the best Ocean State stories you've never heard before. Surprising tales and unexpected anecdotes color Rhode Island's legacy, from the accounts of its three brave Titanic survivors to the whirlwind Revolutionary War romance between a Smithfield girl and a French viscount. Rhode Island historian Glenn Laxton uncovers the exceptional citizens whom history has forgotten, like Robert the Hermit, a man who endured three escapes from slavery before finding liberty and peace in Rumford; the illustrious Lippitt family, who spearheaded advancements in deaf education; and Christiana Bannister, a Narragansett tribe member, nineteenth-century entrepreneur and wife to the most successful African American artist of the time. With moments of tragedy, as in the Lexington steamboat disaster, as well as triumph, as in the case of small-town boy turned baseball hero Joe Connolly, Laxton reveals Rhode Island beneath the surface.

The smallest state to defend the Union and one far from the battlefront, Rhode Island's stories of the Civil War are often overlooked. From Brown University's John M. Hay, later to become Lincoln's assistant secretary, to the city of Newport's role as the temporary headquarters for the U.S. Naval Academy, the Civil War history of the Ocean State is a fascinating if little-known tale. Few know that John Wilkes Booth visited Newport to meet his supposed fiancee just nine days before he assassinated President Lincoln. The state also contributed several high-ranking officers to the Union effort and, more surprisingly, two prominent officers to the Confederacy. Remarkably, Kady Southwell Brownell also openly served as a soldier in a Rhode Island infantry regiment. Join author Frank L. Grzyb as he investigates Rhode Island's rich Civil War history and unearths century-old stories that have since faded into obscurity.

The story of the indigenous people in what would become Rhode Island, their encounters with Europeans, and their return to sovereignty in the twentieth century. Before Roger Williams set foot in the New World, the Narragansett farmed corn and squash, hunted beaver and deer, and harvested clams and oysters throughout what would become Rhode Island. They also obtained wealth in the form of wampum, a carved shell that was used as currency along the eastern coast. As tensions with the English rose, the Narragansett leaders fought to maintain autonomy. While the elder Sachem Canonicus lived long enough to welcome both Verrazzano and Williams, his nephew Miatonomo was executed for his attempts to preserve their way of life and circumvent English control. Historian Robert A. Geake explores the captivating story of these Native Rhode Islanders.

Newport, Rhode Island, is renowned for its stunning cliff-side vistas and the luxurious summer homes of the Gilded Age elite. Yet the opulent facades of the City by the Sea concealed the scintillating scandals, eccentric characters and unsolved mysteries of its wealthiest families. Learn how Cornelius Vanderbilt III was cut out of the family's fortune for his unapproved marriage to Grace Wilson and how John F. Kennedy's marriage to a Newport debutante helped to secure his presidency. Travel to the White Horse Tavern, where a vengeful specter still waits for his supposed murderer to return to the scene, and discover the mysterious voyage of the "Sea Bird" and its missing crew. Historian Larry Stanford searches the dark corners of Newport's past to expose these scandalous tales and more.

A historical tour of the Ocean State’s spookiest sites, with photos included! Rhode Island’s ghostly heritage is as deep and profound as the history of the state itself. From the ghastly moaning bones of Mount Tom to the stately haunt of Judge Potter in a local library, Rhode Island’s apparitions have been causing fear for centuries. Follow M.E. Reilly-McGreen as she reveals the ghoulish stories of the state’s most haunted places. The author delves deep to unearth both little-known tales and those that have helped define the state’s supernatural history. From ghosts to monsters, this book is your guide to all things spooky in Rhode Island.

Surprising tales and unexpected anecdotes color Rhode Island s legacy, from the accounts of its three brave Titanic survivors to the whirlwind Revolutionary War romance between a Smithfield girl and a French viscount. Rhode Island historian Glenn Laxton uncovers the exceptional citizens whom history has forgotten, like Robert the Hermit, a man who endured three escapes from slavery before finding liberty and peace in Rumford; the illustrious Lippitt family, who spearheaded advancements in deaf education; and Christiana Bannister, a Narragansett tribe member, nineteenth-century entrepreneur and wife to the most successful African American artist of the time. With moments of tragedy, as in the Lexington steamboat disaster, as well as triumph, as in the case of small-town boy turned baseball hero Joe Connolly, Hidden History of Rhode Island delivers the best Ocean State stories you ve never heard before."

Think you know about British history and the causes of the First World War? Think again. This fascinating and gripping study of events at the turn of the Twentieth Century is a remarkable insight into how political and social factors that we widely accept to be the causes of The Great War, were really just a construct put together by a very small, but powerful, political elite... 'Thought-provoking . . . Docherty and Macgregor do not mince their words . . . their arguments are powerful' -- Britain at War 'Simply astonishing' -- ***** Reader review 'Very illuminating' -- ***** Reader review 'You simply MUST read this book' -- ***** Reader review 'This is a page-turner' -- ***** Reader review *********************************************************************************** Hidden History uniquely exposes those responsible for the First World War. It reveals how accounts of the war's origins have been deliberately falsified to conceal the guilt of the secret cabal of very rich and powerful men in London responsible for the most heinous crime perpetrated on humanity. For ten years, they plotted the destruction of Germany as the first stage of their plan to take control of the world. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand was no chance happening. It lit a fuse that had been carefully set through a chain of command stretching from Sarajevo through Belgrade and St Petersburg to that cabal in London. Our understanding of these events has been firmly trapped in a web of falsehood and duplicity carefully constructed by the victors at Versailles in 1919 and maintained by compliant historians ever since. The official version is fatally flawed, warped by the volume of evidence they destroyed or concealed from public view. Hidden History poses a tantalising challenge. The authors ask only that you examine the evidence they lay before you . . .