True Stories of the Perilous Straits
True Stories of the Perilous Straits

Author: John Viele

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2013-05-01

Total Pages: 184

ISBN-13: 1561646458

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The Straits of Florida is a 110-mile sea passage between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean bordered on the northern side by the Florida Keys and the Florida Reef. In its waters, along the reef, and on desolate keys, thousands of men and women have died in shipwrecks, attacks by natives, sea battles, and pirate boardings. Few of their stories have survived, but those that have tell gripping tales of their struggles against the perils of the sea and the onslaughts of men. This book presents a selection of such stories during the age of sail from the time Spanish navigators discovered the Straits to the end of the Second Seminole War in 1842. Excerpted from ships' logs, captains' diaries, court-martial transcripts, and newspaper accounts, the stories in this volume—a companion to The Florida Keys, Volume 1: A History of the Pioneers—will make you glad you live in a modern world. Read harrowing tales of the cruelty and torture inflicted on mariners at the hands of bloodthirsty pirates; of pistol and cannon battles between merchant ships and wayward privateers; and of the hardships endured by some of Florida's earliest settlers. Sprinkled with hand-drawn illustrations, photographs, and maps depicting the lay of the land during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, this book presents a scholarly, historically accurate account of life on the Keys and in the perilous Straits of Florida during the age of sail. An index and extensive bibliography are included. Next in series > > See all of the books in this series

The Streets of Key West
The Streets of Key West

Author: J Wills Burke

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2015-10-17

Total Pages: 193

ISBN-13: 1561646431

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Simonton, Duval, Eaton, Whitehead, Southard, Truman—if you discover how these Key West streets, and all the others, came by their names, you will know much of the history of this little island at the nethermost end of the continental United States. You will learn of the rise and fall and rise again of the fortunes of this island town, which has played such a rich role in the history of the country as a whole. The author starts each section with an engaging history of the person for whom the street is named. Then he takes us along the street, pointing out the buildings and sites of historic interest along the way. This method builds and reinforces our grasp of Key West's history as the island is crisscrossed with sites that evoke nearly every aspect of its past. What emerges is a unique and quirky history of Key West, as well as a fascinating guide to wandering its streets, boulevards, alleys, and lanes.

The Florida Keys
The Florida Keys

Author: John Viele

Publisher: Pineapple Press Inc

Published: 1996

Total Pages: 195

ISBN-13: 1561641790

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Today, on the Keys between Key West and the mainland, some forty thousand residents and thousands of visitors fish, swim, sail and dive int he crystal clear waters off a tropical reef; relax in the sun adn cooling trade wind breezes; and sleep in the air-conditioned comfort of their homes and hotel rooms. On these same islands, as short a time as eighty years ago, fewer than three hundred inhabitants tried to eke out a living without benefit of electricity, running water, radios, or telephones. The stories of these hard pioneers and their predecessors, as far back as the Native Americans who lived on the Keys at least one thousand years ago, are told, many for the first time, in this book.

Hemingway's Cats
Hemingway's Cats

Author: Carlene Fredericka Brennen

Publisher: Pineapple Press Inc

Published: 2005

Total Pages: 202

ISBN-13: 1561643424

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"In 1943 Ernest Hemingway, living in Cuba with his third wife and eleven cats, wrote to his first wife: One cat just leads to another ... The place is so damned big it doesn't really seem as though there were many cats until you see them all moving like a mass migration at feeding time ... He always too great pleasure in writing to his family about his cats and how they were getting along. Family and pets played an important role in Hemingway's life, revealing a softer side to his character than is usually portrayed by the macho image of the hunter and fisherman. His pets were mostly cats--the number at Finca Vigia, his Cuban home, at one time swelling to fifty-seven. He called the cats "purr factories" and "love sponges" who soaked up love in return for comfort and companionship"--Dust jacket cover.

Touched by the Sun
Touched by the Sun

Author: Stuart B. McIver

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2016-07-28

Total Pages: 324

ISBN-13: 1561647772

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Florida has long been a mecca for those looking for a change of scenery, pace, or fortune. One way or another, all who enter Florida are "Touched by the Sun." Its powerful rays leave them with a sense of well-being, better health, or maybe just a sunburn. Come meet some of the glorious sun-drenched characters. In this third volume of the Florida Chronicles, a continuing series on the states history, author Stuart B. McIver tells his tales of Florida through the often tangled lives of people who could never be brushed aside as ordinary. These players in that great theatrical production called Florida include presidents, cowboys, gangsters, baseball players, writers, politicians, captains of industry, inventors, movie stars, and even a fire chief. See all of the books in this series

Florida's Past
Florida's Past

Author: Gene Burnett

Publisher: Pineapple Press Inc

Published: 1996-06

Total Pages: 298

ISBN-13: 9781561641178

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Virtually every month for fourteen years, Gene Burnett wrote a history piece under the title "Florida's Past" for Florida Trend, Florida's respected magazine of business and finance. The first volume of collected essays from that series proved so popular among book readers that two more volumes have been published. Pineapple Press is now proud to make them available in paperback. Burnett's easygoing style and his sometimes surprising choice of topics make history good reading. Each volume divides Florida's people and events into Achievers and Pioneers, Villains and Characters, Heroes and Heroines, War and Peace, and Calamities and Social Turbulence. Read a chapter and you'll find you've gone on to read more. Read this volume and you'll find yourself looking for the next two. Next in series > > See all of the books in this series

The Pirate (Adventure Novel Based on True Story)
The Pirate (Adventure Novel Based on True Story)

Author: Walter Scott

Publisher: e-artnow

Published: 2017-04-20

Total Pages: 599

ISBN-13: 8075830393

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This novel is based on the life of pirate John Gow who features as Captain Cleveland. The setting is the southern tip of the main island of Shetland (which Scott visited in 1814), around 1700. The arrival of the shipwrecked captain, Cleveland, spoils young Mordaunt's relationship with the Troil girls, and soon a bitter rivalry grows between the two men. Minna falls in love with Cleveland, not knowing his true profession. Brenda, however, is in love with Mordaunt. The pirates capture the Troils, but after an encounter with the frigate HMS Halcyon, they are freed… Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832) was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright and poet. He was the first modern English-language author to have a truly international career in his lifetime, with many contemporary readers in Europe, Australia, and North America. His novels and poetry are still read, and many of his works remain classics of both English-language literature and of Scottish literature. Famous titles include Ivanhoe, Rob Roy, The Lady of the Lake, Waverley, The Heart of Midlothian and The Bride of Lammermoor.

True Secrets of Key West Revealed!
True Secrets of Key West Revealed!

Author: Marcus Varner

Publisher: Lulu.com

Published: 2011-05

Total Pages: 89

ISBN-13: 1458350932

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Key West is a tropical island at the end of the Florida Keys. Quiet, quaint and completely bizarre. The authors of True Secrets of Key West Revealed! went to great lengths to research the hidden truths about this island paradise. In a lively question and answer format you will learn what restaurant has a graveyard in it, what has protected Key West from hurricanes since 1918 and about the crazy count who lived and slept with his dead "wife's" body...for seven years! Indexed for easy reference. You won't find a funnier or more accurate place for information about the odder side of Key West.

More Tellable Cracker Tales
More Tellable Cracker Tales

Author: Annette J. Bruce

Publisher: Pineapple Press Inc

Published: 2002

Total Pages: 116

ISBN-13: 9781561642533

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A collection of stories drawn from Florida history, folklore, and fiction.

Sandspun
Sandspun

Author: Annette J. Bruce

Publisher: Pineapple Press Inc

Published: 2001

Total Pages: 174

ISBN-13: 1561642428

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Folktales teach, inform, and heal. Most of all, they entertain. Here's a collection of tales rich with homespun humor, charm, and wisdom--all told with flair by some of Florida's best and most sought-after storytellers. Their stories will make you feel part of the great "family" that is Florida. If it's spooky ghost stories you crave, let "The Silent Customer," "Kissimmee Bound," and "The Ghost Dog of the Biltmore" chill your spine. Heed the Cracker wisdom handed down in "Seek the Higher Ground," cow-hunter poetry with a message. Chuckle over the misadventures of Flossie, Bubba, and Flo in "Three Little Cracker Pigs," a tongue-in-cheek version of the classic children's tale. Test your wits against the little troll in "Angelina and Cigam." Will he have you running in circles, growing smaller with each snap of his fingers? Take "Cousin Cassie's Cookin" with a grain of salt. It's not true, of course. Then again, if Cassie asks you to dinner, say you have other plans. Many Indian legends attempt to explain why the world exists as it is. In this tradition, several tales target specific flukes of nature--the rabbit's short tail, the flamingo's long neck, the woodpecker's lack of song--and offer entertaining reasons for their existence. Discover these legends too: "The Devil's Millhopper," "The Legend of Lake Okeechobee," "Monkey, the Trickster," "Why Florida Key Deer Are So Small." A few history lessons never hurt anyone, and these are entertaining as well. Jonathan Dickinson, Mary McLeod Bethune, and Jake Summerlin have a thing or two to teach you about overcoming adversity and being resourceful. Settle back into your easy chair and let these tales entertain you.