South Carolina Books

A must-read for anyone interested in the history of the South.

The work at hand is the sequel to Mr. Landrum's Colonial and Revolutionary History of Upper South Carolina, which treated the pre-Revolutionary War history of the territory that became Spartanburg County. The author deftly captures the key political developments in Spartanburg County for the century following the Revolution. Special chapters are also devoted to the issues of religion, temperance, education, and, of course, secession. Landrum's real concern, however, is with the people of Spartanburg County; indeed the final 500 pages of the book are devoted to biographical and genealogical sketches of its families and luminaries. The essays are frequently accompanied by photographs of the principals and references to the individuals' participation, if any, in the Confederate cause. Also included is a list of Spartanburg County legislators and other officials and Spartanburg's heroes of the Civil War.

The following is a list of the main families discussed in the sketches: Allen, Amos, Anderson, Archer, Ballenger, Barry, Benson, Berwick, Bishop, Blake, Blassingame, Bomar, Bowden, Brockman, Brown, Burke, Burnett, Caldwell, Calvert, Camp, Cannon, Carlisle, Carpenter, Chapman, Choice, Clarke, Cleveland, Cofield, Compton, Crocker, Dean, Douglass, Drummond, Duncan, Earle, Edwards, Elford, Evins, Ezell, Farley, Farrow, Fielder, Fleming, Foster, Griffith, Hampton, Harris, Henneman, High, James, Jordan, Judd, Kennedy, Kilgore, Lake, Lanford, Landrum, Lee, Legg, Lipscomb, Martin, Mason, McCullough, McDowell, McMillen, Monk, Montgomery, Moore, Nesbitt, Nicholls, Oeland, Pendleton, Petty, Poole, Reid, Richardson, Rowland, Rudisail, Russell, Sloan, Smith, Snoddy, Switzer, Thomas, Thompson, Trimmier, Tucker, Turner, Vernon, Walker, Westmoreland, Wilkins, Wilmot, Wilson, Wingo, Winsmith, Wofford, Wood, Woodruff, and Zimmerman.

We all know it is here. Now, how did it get here? Book goes down memory lane to the early days. Enough pictures of the old players who would have certainly been playing in a 30 team NHL, but not quite good enough to play in a 6 / 12 team NHL. Plus the book got here supper fast!

Hi, I have an old edition,published by the Ten Speed Press of Berkeley,CA of this book. I was curious to see if it was still in print and was happy to see that it has been re-published by UNC.
It is a great book about my favorite food additive,the one,the only,
McIlhenny Co. Tabasco Sauce. I don't know how I could eat food without Tab'! That plus even hotter sauces like Blair's Jersey Death Sauce and the other standby Tapatio.(Trappey's is also featured in this book.)
Yum!
The book also has lots of info about New Iberia and S. Louisiana/Acadiana and the Cajun culture that I never knew about.
Up here in the Pacific NW,about the only Cajun we get is Zydeco music and Cajun-styled food. I did not know hardly any of the history of Acadiana and it's people. After reading the book,Acadiana is on my list to visit.
Even though it has changed a lot from the good ol' days of genuine Cajun living. I hope there are still echoes of that detectable to a visitor.
Anyone who loves chilis and their history and Capsicum Frutescens (Tabasco pepper) in particular and want to learn about the Cajun way of life would be happy with this book.

When you pick up this little book, be prepared to keep turning the pages until you're finished. This is the fourth one of Smith's books that I've read cover to cover. I've enjoyed them all [especially STONO], but this one resonates and relates to today's world. The creation of racial stereotypes by white Americans in the late 19th and early 20th centuries has echoes in the racial profiling of suspected terrorists today. The amount of research that went into this book is incredible, but it is not "weighty" or dull. Smith's writing is engaging and thoughtful. There can be little doubt that this fine young scholar is THE rising star [some would say he's already THE star] of Southern historians.

Fisher explicates the power and subtlety of narration as the basis for communication. This book should be of interest to those in the fields of communication, rhetoric, and journalism in particular, and those more broadly who have an interest in the workings of language.

Reading "Hungry for Home" is a delightful experience - like visiting the Carolinas without paying for airfare and hotels, meeting many new people (the contributors of the recipes), and pleasing the taste buds without putting on the extra weight. I don't live in the Carolinas and I don't even eat shellfish, but this book has me looking for an opportunity to get there asap and experience some of the touching dimensions of this land. Not to mention get a bite of some of these dishes. The book offers a surprising global sampling from Vietnamese to Creole, West Afrian and Jewish. Author Amy Rogers has made a noble effort to address the urgency of hunger as a tragic reality of American life without robbing the reader of the joy she obviously takes in preparing and exploring foods of the region. Her dedication to representing the poignant and often funny voices and traditions of the truly diverse people of the Carolinas is also commendable -- from descendants of slaves to recent Asian immigrants, you'd be surprised! Of course, there are the expected down-home offerings like ham and fried chicken. But with this book, the food is just one-third the story. The other two-thirds come with the imaginative evocation of region and the individuals you meet in essays provided (by contributors) along with their recipes. The reader really feels the social connections offered by sharing selected dishes with others. After reading this book, I feel I have met a whole crowd of Carolinians. Next time I visit my sister in Charlotte, I will feel right at home.

An excellent insight into the heart of the sportsman and the South's transition to the 20th century. If you are a hunter, you will appreciate how Mr. Ruthledge brings the excitement of the hunt to the reader. If you are a Southerner, you will better understand the critical time when the South shook off the long-standing burdens of the Reconstruction and joined America's march into the 20th century. Today's reader may be shocked by the way that Mr. Ruthledge describes the interactions between whites and blacks during the early part of the 20th century. It is certainly politically incorrect by today's standards. But it does reveal a much deeper and respectful interaction between the races, despite the caste system of the day. All in all an excellent book about hunting in the South.

Edmund Lee Drago does a good job in his use of primary sources to create what is essentiually a docmuentary history of the Black Red Shirts.

To novices-The "Red Shirts" of South Carolina formed after the KKK was outlawed as the terrorist schock troops desgined to get the (mostly Black) Republicans out of power during the Reconstruction era. Sadly, it worked. Dr. Drago disscusses the littel-known fact that a number of these men were actually Black! He explains why this has not been publicized over the years (and not JUST for the obvious reasons) and provides us with transcripts of trial testimonies of the political violence of Reconstruction-era South Carolina as well as WPA Slave Narrative interviews with ex-slaves in the 1930s who rode with the Red Shirts in their youth. Since the latter two come from the own words of the participants, it adds to the value as I am personally quite fond of books that use documentary histories and books of obscure history.

As is the case of Larry Koger's "Black Slaveowners" and a book I once read (whose title I forget) about men of remote Jewish ancestry who served as Nazis, this goes to show that history does not always follow nice neat lines of logic.

This is an excellant book for those with an interest in how the Fugitive law of 1850 was applied. The book is based on the trial of a slave named Jane Jackson who took advantage of Pennsylvania's freedom law, that states that once a slave sets foot on Pennsylvanis's soil they are free.

The main character in the story though is not Ms. Jackson but a white abolitionist named Passmore Williamson who "aided" Ms. Jackson and here two children in their escape for there owner" a Col. John Hill Wheeler an U.S. diplomat on his way to Central American and was passing through Philadelphia when Williamson with the help of some black dock workers and ships crew made the snatch and relese of the Jackson family.

The story has no real clear cut conclusion and is a telling tale of how often U.S. courts can be less the conclusive in there findings. If you are a Civil War bluff who is interested in the war beyond the battles and personalities this makes a good read.