Alabama History

Alabama endured warfare, slave trading, squatting, and speculating on its path to becoming America’s 22nd state, and Daniel S. Dupre brings its captivating frontier history to life in Alabama's Frontiers and the Rise of the Old South. Dupre’s vivid narrative begins when Hernando de Soto first led hundreds of armed Europeans into the region during the fall of 1540. Although this early invasion was defeated, Spain, France, and England would each vie for control over the area’s natural resources.

Alabama: The History of a Deep South State, Bicentennial Edition is a comprehensive narrative account of the state from its earliest days to the present. This edition, updated to celebrate the state's bicentennial year, offers a detailed survey of the colorful, dramatic, and often controversial turns in Alabama's evolution.

United States of True Crime is an anthology series with books devoted to the most disturbing cases in each of the 50 states. This book focuses on 10 of the most chilling crimes in Alabama history. True crime junkies may recognize some of the highly publicized cases, but I’ve made sure to include lesser-known, equally unsettling crimes. If you’re a true crime enthusiast who enjoys hearing about some of the most depraved monsters in our country, you will love United States of True Crime.

Picking up where his previous memoir leaves off, Sledge, a young marine in the First Division, traces his company's movements and charts his own difficult passage to peace following his horrific experiences in the Pacific. He reflects on his duty in the ancient city of Peiping (now Beijing) and recounts the difficulty of returning to his hometown of Mobile, Alabama, and resuming civilian life haunted by the shadows of close combat.

April 27, 2011, marked the climax of a superstorm that saw a record 358 tornadoes rip through 21 states in 3 days, 7 hours, and 18 minutes. It was the deadliest day of the biggest tornado outbreak in recorded history, which saw 348 people killed, entire neighborhoods erased, and $11 billion in damage. But from the terrible destruction emerged everyday heroes, neighbors, and strangers who rescued each other from hell on earth.

The Rise and Decline of the Redneck Riviera focuses on the stretch of coast from Mobile Bay and Gulf Shores, Alabama, east to Panama City, Florida—an area known as the "Redneck Riviera." Jackson explores the rise of this area as a vacation destination for the lower South's middle- and working-class families following World War II, the building boom of the 1950s and 1960s, and the emergence of the Spring Break "season." While his major focus is on the social, cultural, and economic development, he also documents the impacts of natural disasters and politics of beach access.

The forgotten story of a criminal trial that brought national attention to a young defendant named Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. as told by Fred D. Gray, Dr. King’s lawyer and friend, along with New York Times bestselling authors Dan Abrams and David Fisher. The audiobook concludes with an exclusive conversation between Fred Gray and Dan Abrams.

A Tell-All Memoir Exposes a Hidden Life and Hard-learned Lessons Southern. Black. Gay. Fatherless. Air Force Veteran. Ordained Methodist Minister. Master of hiding in plain sight. Cedrick Bridgeforth knows what it means to hold, hide, and wrestle with all of these identities. For years Cedrick had taken great pains to shield his full truth from the world. Then one day, at the height of his career, his entire universe came crashing down. Equal parts preacher, poet, confessor, and consummate storyteller, Alabama Grandson chronicles Cedrick’s hard-fought journey to come to terms with the ...

A Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist reveals the little-known story of the Union soldiers from Alabama who played a decisive role in the Civil War, and how they were scrubbed from the history books.

***A novel that can be read as a STAND ALONE. Dive into the heartwarming tale of 'Stepping Forward Into The Past,' where Willie Jr. King and his spirited grandbaby, lil Gert, beckon you to join them on a nostalgic journey to their Alabama roots that's filled with love, laughter, and a heapin' helpin' of Southern charm. After forty years gallivantin' round England, Willie's heartstrings are pullin' him back to Mobile, Alabama, stronger than ever, so he's fixin' ta make the trip across that big ol' pond. He isn't goin' alone, though; his lifelong best mate of over seventy years, Simon Bentley...

"Bloody Sunday" - March 7, 1965 - was a pivotal moment in the civil rights struggle. The national outrage generated by scenes of Alabama state troopers attacking peaceful demonstrators fueled the drive toward the passage of the Voting Rights Acts later that year. But why were hundreds of activists marching from Selma to Montgomery that afternoon?

In July 1862, Confederate Captain Raphael Semmes took command of a secret new warship. At the helm of the Alabama, he became the most hated and feared man along the Union coast, as well as a Confederate legend. Now, with unparalleled authority, depth, and a vivid sense of the excitement and danger of the time, Stephen Fox describes Captain Semmes's remarkable wartime exploits.

For more than a century, Dr. J. Marion Sims was hailed as the “father of modern gynecology.” He founded a hospital in New York City and had a profitable career treating gentry and royalty in Europe, becoming one of the world’s first celebrity surgeons. Statues were built in his honor, but he wasn’t the hero he had made himself appear to be. Sims’s greatest medical claim was the result of several years of experimental surgeries—without anesthesia—on a young enslaved woman known as Anarcha; his so-called cure for obstetric fistula forever altered the path of women’s health.

Take a trip through the Heart of Dixie! Learn about Alabama's geography, weather, history, people, and more in this book that's all about our 22nd state.

Stories from and about Alabama. The South. And a different generation. The tales ain't meant to irritate, aggravate or otherwise make hostile. Hopefully you can get some amusement and mayhap a little information about a place and time that don't exactly exist no more and ain't likely to return.

On a nameless train somewhere between here and nowhere, a woman and a man sit facing each other. She is a journalist there to interview him. He is the world's greatest seducer. Thus begins The Alabaster Girl, the sensational new novel by Zan Perrion.

Very few institutions in American sports can match the enduring excellence of the University of Alabama football program. Across a wide swath of the last century, the tradition-rich Crimson Tide has claimed twelve national championships, captured 25 conference titles, finished 34 times among the country's top ten, and played in 53 bowl games.

Welcome to the journey of a lifetime through the Discovering the Southern Riches eBook! Explore the vibrant and storied history of America's beloved South, from the origins of Southern cuisine to the colorful world of Southern festivals and traditions. This truly comprehensive guide offers a unique perspective on the rich and diverse culture of the Southern United States. With 32 captivating chapters, Discovering the Southern Riches provides a deep dive into the history, traditions, and culture of this unique region. Take a step back in time to Antebellum society and the birth of Southern ...

"The South is not quite a nation within a nation. But it is the next best thing," writes F. B. Simkins in this celebrated history, the most complete account of Southern history ever attempted. It is a masterpiece of scholarship combined with elegant style. Within its searing pages are some of the most dramatic episodes of American history.

In Volume 2: The Kingdom of Cotton, the economic and social forces that doomed the South are fully explored. As the textile factories of New England and Europe spring up, they create an insatiable demand for cotton. When Eli Whitney's invention appears, it unleashes the equivalent of a gold rush in the South. In spite of the heroic efforts of Northern and Southern statesmen over a period of 40 years, the regions have moved too far apart. And when war comes, the South is totally unprepared.