Tennessee Books

Ever wish you lived in the 1800's , the good ol' days, the simple times when life was once not as complicated as it is today. If so or if you are just curious about what life and the world may have been like ,this book is a must. A great book for all readers who love small towns everywhere. Two years of a small town's history from the 1830's lay dormant in the attic of an old historic home for untold years only to be discovered and brought alive over 150 years later by the author, Rita Frost Lynch. The book provides delightful accounts of the way life was both locally and internationally during that era but it also revealed life was not all that uncomplicated as some may think and the good ol' days certainly were not good for all. Slavery is once again refreshed in our minds as we read accounts of sales going on around town and we are reminded it was not all that long ago when all people were not allowed basic freedoms or even simple dignity. A part of history never to be forgotten but also, never to be repeated. I highly recommend this book to all.

Cy & Jeannie Martin give you a crash course in the history and practice of gold mining in the western U.S. (including Alaska), Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia. Sections of the book include: Chronology of Gold in America; How to Pan for Gold; Tales of Gold Rushes; Directory of Old Mining Camps; Glossary; and a Selected Bibliography. Numerous B& W photos and drawings are included. 160 pages.

Bud Phillips has done an excellent job in this history of the first 150 years of Bristol.

For the first time readers are able to read about a serious and complex subject and actually understand what the authors are trying to explain. Government and Politics in Tennessee sounds like a topic created only to cure insomnia, yet the authors (mainly author Billy Stair, former senior policy advisor to Governor Ned McWherter) are able to create a fun atmosphere filled with interesting personal experiences (visiting a high school in rural Tennessee and arriving by helicoptor)and little known yet fascinating facts. This book serves as an exceptional look into the world of Tennesse politics and should be read by anyone with an ounce of intrest in the subject, for it will surely intensify your appetite for all things Tennessee.

Everyone has heard of this trial. However, until I heard this rendition of the trial and play I wasn't as interested. This play sheds new light on it and makes it so much more interesting and actually brought it to life for me.

I am from greeneville,tn, but moved away over 25 years ago. I purchased the book on a whim and was amazed at the memories it brought back. When I first got the book I randomly opened it an there was a picture of my grandmother as a child with her parents and siblings. It is an amazing collection of pictures.The pictures paint a beautiful picture of a simpler time in a small town.

This helpful reprint of Dr. John C. Gunn's original 1830 edition of Domestic Medicine gives a sampling of the state of medical treatment in the 19th Century. Dr. Gunn broke new ground for his time, encouraging non-professional laymen to understand and care for the health of their families and use native medicinal plants of North America rather than exotic drugs. Nonetheless, he does carry forward some of the legacies of the age in recommending bloodletting, vigorous purging, and the use of opium, calomel, and mercury. Though he decries the use of tobacco for recreational purposes, he is happy to recommend the medicinal use of tobacco as a diuretic, emetic, or laxative (for "obstinate constipation").

At a time when the standardization of medical training in the United States was in its infancy, including perhaps a year's apprenticeship under a practicing physician, Gunn's Domestic Medicine helped families cope with the frequent illnesses that plagued frontier life. Along with the family Bible, Gunn's Domestic Medicine (and the later Domestic Physician) graced the parlor tables of many a home in the 1800s. This reprint edition gives modern readers a chance to own a piece of the past.

This book remains one of my all-time favorite books on folk holidays. A series of essays on various fall and harvest celebrations, it centers around Halloween, but branches out to discuss celebrations from Christmas mummers parades of the Ulster Scots and cutting the last sheaf of wheat, to Bonfire night in Newfoundland, to modern day trick-or-treat scare myths.

Beyond merely recounting the history of Halloween, this book does a wonderful job of placing our holiday in a global context and discussing what societal need these holidays or myths fulfilled. A fascinating study of our human history, I recommend this book highly to anyone interested in folk history and the "meaning" of holidays.

In a similar vein, I also recommend, Halloween : An American Holiday, an American History by Lesley Pratt Bannatyne for a more detailed look of the holiday as it unfolded in the US.

Covers a little-known aspect of the Wild Bunch and Harvey Logan in particular. Well illustrated and fun to read

This is a great little book filled with photos of some of the residents of Haywood County, TN. It's a wonderful genealogical resource or nice just to have for your home, since most everyone in Haywood County knows each other anyway!