The history of North Carolina's Outer Banks is as ancient and mesmerizing as its beaches. Much has been documented, but many stories were lost--until now. Join local author and historian Sarah Downing as she reveals a past of the Outer Banks eroded by time and tides. Revel in the nostalgic days of the Carolina Beach Pavilion, stand in the shadows of windmills that once lined the coast and learn how native islanders honor those aviation giants, the Wright brothers. Downing's vignettes adventure through windswept dunes, dive deep in search of the lost ironclad the "Monitor" and lament the...

Garments and accessories are prominent in almost all of William Shakespeare's plays, from Hamlet and Othello to A Midsummer Night's Dream and Twelfth Night. The statement 'the apparel oft proclaims the man' was one that would have resonated with their audiences: the rise of England's merchant class had made issues of rank central to Elizabethan debate, and a rigid table of sumptuary laws carefully regulated the sorts of fabric and garment worn by the different classes. From the etiquette of courtly dress to the evolution of the Elizabethan ruff, in this vibrant introduction Sarah Jane Downing...

Established in 1680 near the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, Norfolk is a maritime jewel of the East Coast. During the American Revolution, British ships shelled the city on New Year's Day 1776. The first battle of the ironclads--Monitor versus Merrimack--took place off Norfolk's shore in 1862. Walter P. Chrysler moved his art collection to the city in 1971 and catapulted the former Norfolk Museum of Arts and Sciences into the renowned Chrysler Museum. Author, historian and Norfolk native Sarah Downing offers a daily look at the fascinating and sometimes offbeat history of the city's storied...