George Washington and the Dangerous Two Years After Yorktown, 1781–1783
William M. Fowler, Jr.
Walker & Co.; 6 x 9, hardcover, 592 pp., illus.;
$28
American Crisis chronicles the rarely documented two tumultuous years after the British surrender at Yorktown. Fowler reveals Washington’s internal and personal tensions that paralyzed the British government and Congress, antagonized loyalists, unnerved the army, and nearly lost what was gained in the American Revolution. 2011
Genealogical Artifacts in New England
D. Brenton Simons and Peter Benes, eds.,
with an introduction by John Demos
NEHGS; 8½ x 10½ hardcover, xiv + 336 pp., illus.
reg. $75, member price $67.50
An indispensable resource illuminating the world of decorative arts and its relationship to family history, this book features 15 chapters by leading authorities, including Jeremy Bangs, Abbott Lowell Cummings, Wendell Garrett, Maureen Taylor, Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, and others. The book contains more than 200 black and white illustrations and 16 color plates. 2002
Antique Town and Country Views
D. Brenton Simons
University Press of New England and NEHGS;
11 x 9 hardcover, x + 148 pp., 64 full-color illus.
reg. $35, member price $31.50
This volume of full-color period images of the 18th and 19th centuries reveals sweeping vistas, lively street scenes, and elegant edifices that show Boston as a youthful and vibrant town. Selected from public and private collections and ranging from fine art to folk art, these works capture the multifaceted character of a sometimes quaint place that has given way to a modern metropolis. 2008
Roger Thompson
NEHGS; 6 x 9 softcover, xix + 355 pp.
reg. $19.95, member price $17.96
Drawing on his vast knowledge of Middlesex County's families and town and court records, Roger Thompson has composed 44 delightful vignettes of early residents of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Based on thousands of original documents, these sketches provide a rare opportunity to experience 17th-century life through the eyes of its people. Perfect for early New England enthusiasts. 2005
Charlestown, Massachusetts, 1629–1692
Roger Thompson
NEHGS; 6 x 9, 650 pp., illus.
softcover: reg. $27.95, member price $25.16
hardcover: reg. $44.95, member price $40.46
This book recreates the lost world of 17th-century Charlestown and the lives and work of the first three generations of its townspeople. By using a variety of surviving records, Thompson presents a colorful history of the town’s settlement and governance, its relationship with the land and sea, the church, local crime and violence, the role of women, and ultimately its involvement in the Glorious Revolution. 2011
A History of the Oldest Timber-Frame Building in New England, 2nd Edition
Abbott Lowell Cummings
NEHGS; 6 x 9 softcover, 128 pp.
reg. $14.95, member price $13.45
The Fairbanks House, built in 1636, is the oldest surviving timber frame house in New England—the best example of 17th-century architecture still standing. This book offers a fascinating detailed architectural history written by a highly respected authority in the field. 2002
Hairstyles 1840–1900
Maureen A. Taylor
Picture Perfect Press; 6 x 9 softcover, 125 pp., illus.
$19.95
Gain valuable tips for “reading” the clues of clothing and hairstyles, to help you discover when family photos were taken, how old the subjects were at the time, how wealthy they were—and even what kinds of personalities they had. Maureen Taylor shares the mysteries of topknots and buns, braids and curls, burnsides and sideburns, to bring old portraits to life. 2009
From Its Settlement in 1630, to the Year 1770
Samuel G. Drake, Foreword by D. Brenton Simons
NEHGS; 6 x 9 softcover, 890 pp., illus.
reg. $29.95, member price $26.96
Originally published in 1856, Drake's history of pre-revolutionary Boston has long been a key resource for historians.From the city's founding to its first churches; natural disasters to outbreaks; witchcraft to Freemasonry, this volume provides detailed historical context for anyone with early Boston ancestors. 1856, 2012
The History and Legacy of America's Forgotten Conflict
Eric B. Schultz and Michael J. Tougias
The Countryman Press; 6 x 9, softcover, 430 pp., illus.
$19.95
King Philip's War (1675-1676) was one of America's first and costliest wars, and it engulfed all of southern New England.This book, co-authored by NEHGS trustee Eric Schultz, provides both an in-depth history of the war as well as a guide to historical sites where ambushes, raids, and battles occurred.Historians, colonial war buffs, and those interested in Native American history will gain insight into one of the most seminal events to shape the American mind and continent. 1999
Images of the Revolutionary War Generation
Maureen A. Taylor with David Allen Lambert
Foreword by Joan Severa
Kent State University Press;
9¼ x 7¼ hardcover, xii + 177 pp., illus.
$45
A collection of rare 19th-century photographic images of the Revolutionary War generation. Taylor assigns faces to an unillustrated war and tells the stories of our nation’s founding fathers and mothers, updating and supplementing research last collected and published over a century ago. 2010
by Hannah Mather Crocker
Edited by Eileen Hunt Botting and Sarah L. Houser
Foreword by Conrad Edick Wright
NEHGS; 6 x 9, hardcover, 592 pp., illus.
reg. $39.95, member price $35.96
Published for the first time, Hannah Mather Crocker’s early 19th-century Reminiscences offers a unique history of Boston and its environs from the 1620s to the 1820s. A leading women’s rights advocate and the granddaughter of Cotton Mather, Crocker provides a significant resource for anyone interested in Boston and early American history. Transcribed and annotated from the original manuscript at NEHGS. 2011
Peggy Shippen, the Woman Behind Benedict Arnold's Plot to Betray America
Mark Jacob and Stephen H. Case
Lyons Press; 6 x 9, hardcover, 288 pp.
$24.95
Histories of the Revolutionary War have long honored heroines such as Betsy Ross, Abigail Adams, and Molly Pitcher.Now, more than two centuries later, comes the first biography of one of the war's most remarkable woman: Peggy Shippen, Mrs.Benedict Arnold.She brought together a British officer and a revolutionary general in a treasonous plot that nearly imprisoned George Washington and changed the course of the war.Here, Jacob and Case tell the true story of Peggy Shippen, a driving force in a conspiracy that came within an eyelash of dooming the American democracy.2012
True Stories of Scam, Scandal, Murder, and Mayhem in Boston, 1630–1775
D. Brenton Simons
Commonwealth Editions; 6 x 9, 260 pp., illus.
$24.95 hardcover, $14.95 softcover
This award-winning book demonstrates convincingly that the narrow, twisting streets of colonial Boston were crawling with murderers, con men, and other blackguards. Bostonians may have been prayerful, but they were also prurient. Added to this remarkable rogue’s gallery are several women who were tried and executed as witches. Simons also uncovers the truth about Boston’s first documented serial murder. 2005