The American History Shelf

Our Flag Was Still There
Tom McMillan
Knox Press
c/o Permuted Press
https://permutedpress.com
9781637587331, $30.00, HC, 336pp

https://www.amazon.com/Our-Flag-Was-Still-There/dp/1637587333

Synopsis: Francis Scott Key saw the original Star-Spangled Banner flying ov=
er Baltimore's Fort McHenry on September 14, 1814, following a twenty-five-= hour bombardment by the British Navy, inspiring him to write the words to o=
ur national anthem. Torn and tattered over the years, reduced in size to ap= pease souvenir-hunters, stuffed away in a New York City vault for the last = two decades of the nineteenth century, the flag's mere existence after two = hundred years is an improbable story of dedication, perseverance, patriotis=
m, angst, inner-family squabbles, and, yes, more than a little luck.

For this unlikely feat, we have the Armistead family to thank -- led by Lie= utenant Colonel George Armistead, commander of Fort McHenry, who took it ho=
me after the battle in clear defiance of U.S. Army regulations. It is only = because of that quiet indiscretion that the flag survives to this day. Armi= stead's descendants kept and protected their family heirloom for ninety yea= rs. The flag's first photo was not taken until 1873, almost sixty years aft=
er Key saw it waving, and most Americans did not even know of its existence=
until Armistead's grandson loaned it to the Smithsonian in 1907.

With the publication of "Our Flag Was Still There: The Star Spangled Banner=
that Survived the British and 200 Years - And the Armistead Family Who Sav=
ed It", Tom McMillan tells a story as no one has before. Digging deep into = the archives of Fort McHenry and the Smithsonian, accessing never-before-pu= blished letters and documents, and presenting rare photos from the private = collections of Armistead descendants and other sources, McMillan follows th=
e flag on an often-perilous journey through three centuries. "Our Flag Was = Still There" provides new insight into an intriguing period of U.S. history=
, offering a "story behind the story" account of one of the country's most = treasured relics.

Critique: The story of one of America's most iconic symbols, "Our Flag Was = Still There: The Star Spangled Banner that Survived the British and 200 Yea=
rs - And the Armistead Family Who Saved It" will hold a very special intere=
st for readers concerned with the American Revolution and our founding hist= ory. While especially and unreservedly recommended for community, college, = and university library American History collections, it should be noted for=
personal reading lists that "Our Flag Was Still There: The Star Spangled B= anner that Survived the British and 200 Years - And the Armistead Family Wh=
o Saved It" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99) and=
as a complete and unabridged audio book (Blackstone Audio, 9798212341844, = $31.95, CD).

Editorial Note: Tom McMillan (http://www.authortommcmillan.com) is a lifelo=
ng student of history, and has served on the board of trustees of Pittsburg= h's Heinz History Center, the board of directors of the Friends of Flight 9=
3 National Memorial, and the marketing committee of the Gettysburg Foundati= on. He has written three previous books, including Flight 93: The Story, Th=
e Aftermath, and the Legacy of American Courage on 9/11. McMillan recently = retired after a forty-three-year career in sports communications, which inc= luded twenty-five years as VP/Communications for the NHL's Pittsburgh Pengu= ins. He has a journalism degree from Point Park University.

Faces, Places, and Days Gone By
Mikel B. Classen
Modern History Press
https://www.modernhistorypress.com
9781615997251, $34.95, HC, 138pp

https://www.amazon.com/Faces-Places-Days-Gone-Pictorial/dp/1615997253

Synopsis: With the publication of "Faces, Places, and Days Gone By - Volume=
1: A Pictorial History of Michigan's Upper Peninsula", Mikel Classen's pic= torial history is the next best thing to a time machine, as we get a front-= row seat in the worlds of shipping and shipwrecks, iron and copper mining, = timber cutting, hunting and fishing and the everyday lives of ordinary folk=
s of Michigan's Upper Peninsula across more than 100 years.

"Faces, Places and Days Gone By" peers into our past through the lenses of = those that lived and explored it. See what they saw as time passed and how = the U.P. evolved into the wondrous place we know today.

Drawn from the Classen's unique collection, "Faces, Places and Days Gone By=
" is comprised of newly restored images from long lost stereoviews, cabinet=
cards, postcards and lithograph engravings. It takes the armchair traveler=
on a visual journey to relive some of those moments, and discover a unique=
heritage through those faces and places from the Soo to Ironwood, from Cop= per Harbor to Mackinaw Island.

Critique: A unique and exceptional pictorial history of Michigan's Upper Pe= ninsula, each fully captioned black/white historical photo is a treasure, w= ith the entire "Faces Places and Days Gone By" collection being an especial=
ly and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, communi= ty, college, and university library American History collection. It should =
be noted that "Faces Places and Days Gone By" is also readily available in =
a paperback edition (9781615997244, $19.95) and in a digital book format (K= indle, $5.95).

Editorial Note: Mikel B. Classen (www.mikelbclassen.com) has been writing a=
nd photographing northern Michigan in news-papers and magazines for over th= irty-five years, creating feature articles about the life and culture of Mi= chigan's north country. Currently he is managing editor of the U.P. Reader = and is a member of the Board of Directors for the Upper Peninsula Publisher=
s and Authors Association.

Pilgrims and Puritans in Colonial America
Lievin Kambamba Mboma
Lievin K. Mboma Press
9780998971698, $39.25, HC, 196pp

https://www.amazon.com/Pilgrims-Puritans-Colonial-America-Regulatory/dp/099= 8971693

Synopsis: With the publication of "Pilgrims and Puritans in Colonial Americ=
a: Regulatory Laws in the New England Colonies, 1630-1686", Lievin Mboma gi= ves a detailed history and account of the regulatory laws promulgated in th=
e New England colonies by the general courts for the organization of school=
s, price control, military training, employment, and wage control.

In addition, Mboma recounts the duties of lawmakers and the methods utilize=
d for the promulgation of these many laws. Examples of these include examin= ations of colonial laws such as the Massachusetts Body of Liberties, the Co= nnecticut Code of 1650, and the Rhode Island code law of 1663. Furthermore,=
this work investigates the demographic history of the founders of the New = England colonies like John Winthrop, John Cotton, Roger Williams, Rev. John=
White, Roger Ludlow, Thomas Hooker, John Haynes, Rev. John Davenport, and = Theophilus Eaton. The data regarding the founders of New England is signifi= cant because it correlates with the laws they enacted for the regulation of=
the economy, religions, courts, employment, and schools.

Moreover, data pertaining to New England colonists reveal pertinent informa= tion on their governing styles, as well as the maintenance of law and order=
.. In this book, the academic institutions that the colonists attended in En= gland and Scotland are attentively examined. Historically, many New England=
colonists were alumni from Cambridge and Oxford. With those academic degre= es, they established civilized colonies in accordance with Christian values=
they acquired from universities in England. This largely shared culture ha=
s been subsequently observed by Anglo-Americans.

"Pilgrims and Puritans In Colonial America" also covers the discovery missi= ons conducted by English subjects in North America. The work of explorers s= uch as Captain John Smith, Sebastian Cabot, and his children is pieced toge= ther. In a like manner, the impacts made by English explorers such as Sir F= rancis Drake, Sir John Hawkins, and Plymouth and Bristol merchants are note=
d. This work also points out the contributions made by the crowns of Englan=
d for the completion of discovery missions in the same region. The impacts = made by King Henry VII, King Henry VIII, Queen Elizabeth, King Edward VI, K= ing James I, and King Charles I were investigated. Equally, the formation o=
f the Plymouth Company and the Council for New England, which served as cat= alysts for the founding of the New England colonies, are analyzed. Similarl=
y, the incorporation of the same organizations is elucidated. The Council o=
f New England was a body that had the legal power to sell land to the archi= tects of the planting of colonies in New England.

School regulations in the New England colonies are also examined and the es= tablishment of domestic, dame, elementary, grammar, and private schools is = detailed in this history. The schools in the colonies followed the same mod=
el as the English schools. The contributions of monks and religious leaders=
in the building of schools in England are stated. Additionally, "Pilgrims = and Puritans In Colonial America" explores the history of Harvard Universit=
y, pointing out the duties of the overseers of the college, the corporation=
of the institution, and the assistance of poor scholars. Moreover, the jud= iciary jurisdiction of Harvard College is briefly detailed.

Critique: A seminal and detailed history of Colonial America, "Pilgrims and=
Puritans in Colonial America: Regulatory Laws in the New England Colonies,=
1630-1686" is exceptionally well researched, written, organized and presen= ted. An impressive informative work of original scholarship, "Pilgrims and = Puritans in Colonial America" is especially and unreservedly recommended fo=
r personal, professional, community, college, and university library 17th C= entury American History collections and will have a special value for stude= nts, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in Colon= ial Legal/Governmental History curriculum studies lists.

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