Synopses & Reviews
Winner, The New York Public Library, Best of Reference Award, 2002
If any city deserves a complete chronology, it is surely New York. New York, Year by Year is a cornucopia of the familiar and the forgotten, the historic and the ephemeral, the heroic and the banal. In this handy reference work, Jeffrey A. Kroessler takes us from Verrazano's arrival in 1524 into the new millennium, highlighting the strikes and strikeouts, tunnels and towers, personalities and parades which not only made history in New York, but also proved to be defining moments for the nation.
New York, Year by Year features events such as Mark Twain's first lecture at Cooper Union, and the letter he later wrote when the Brooklyn Public Library tried to restrict access to Huckleberry Finn. In contrast, we are reminded of the publication in the 1950s of Eloise, A Book for Precocious Grown-Ups, Kay Thompson's fanciful tale of a little girl's adventures in the Plaza Hotel, the appearance of the Beat Generation, and the flight (literally) of the Dodgers and Giants to California. New York, Year by Year chronicles the opening of Shea Stadium in April 1964 and the performance by the Beatles there that August. The Sixties also saw the opening of The Fantastiks, which is still running on Sullivan Street, and the closing of Steeplechase, the last of the great amusement parks at Coney Island. And this chronology makes sure we don't forget when Kitty Genovese was murdered in Kew Gardens and her cries for help were left unanswered because her neighbors "didn't want to get involved." Kroessler leads us on a tour of the city from its first settlers until the November 2001 election of a new mayor for the new millennium.
From the colonial era and the Revolution through the Gilded Age and the Roaring Twenties, Kroessler has compiled a record of cultural, economic, political, and social events. Some are of transient importance, others of lasting significance, but all illuminate the city's fascinating history.
Review
"The entries are well written and cover a broad range of topics, including political, social, and cultural, and the reader often cannot help but utter, 'I didn't know that.'"-ARBA online,
Review
“For those who care about New York City and its history—and who doesn't these days?—New York, Year by Year is a rare treat. . . . a richly detailed, scrupulously researched reference book that is accessible, informative, accurate, and a great deal of fun.”-David Nasaw,author of The Chief: The Life of William Randolph Hearst
Review
"[Kroessler] does a fine job of chronicling the city's past, incorporating both little-known, flash-in-the-pan nuggest as well as far-reaching, recurring themes."-Queens Chronicle,
Review
“A fresh, endlessly fascinating perspective on the history of New York. The scholarship is serious, but the chronology is as fun as it is informative. Covering all boroughs, entries enrich the experience of the city for all who will explore its pages. One can thumb it forever.”
“For those who care about New York City and its history—and who doesn't these days?—New York, Year by Year is a rare treat. . . . a richly detailed, scrupulously researched reference book that is accessible, informative, accurate, and a great deal of fun.”
"Here is a fascinating chronological history of New York City from 1524-2001, looking at the people, building, institutions, political events, music and businesses that helped shape the city."
"The entries are well written and cover a broad range of topics, including political, social, and cultural, and the reader often cannot help but utter, 'I didn't know that.'"
"[Kroessler] does a fine job of chronicling the city's past, incorporating both little-known, flash-in-the-pan nuggest as well as far-reaching, recurring themes."
Review
“Children and Youth during the Civil War Era brings together thirteen excellent essays by both established and emerging scholars of children and the Civil War. Offering both breadth and depth and considering both images of childhood and children¹s own experiences, the essays address slavery, sectionalism, war, emancipation, reconstruction, and memory from multiple vantage points. A selection of documents further enrich this anthology, which represents the burgeoning field of childhood and youth in the Civil War era.” -Anya Jabour,author of Topsy-Turvy: How the Civil War Turned the World Upside Down for Southern Children
Review
"Here is a fascinating chronological history of New York City from 1524-2001, looking at the people, building, institutions, political events, music and businesses that helped shape the city."-Booklist,
Synopsis
Winner, The New York Public Library, Best of Reference Award, 2002
A year by year reference work painting the colorful history of New York City
If any city deserves a complete chronology, it is surely New York. New York, Year by Year is a cornucopia of the familiar and the forgotten, the historic and the ephemeral, the heroic and the banal. In this handy reference work, Jeffrey A. Kroessler takes us from Verrazano's arrival in 1524 into the new millennium, highlighting the strikes and strikeouts, tunnels and towers, personalities and parades which not only made history in New York, but also proved to be defining moments for the nation.
New York, Year by Year features events such as Mark Twain's first lecture at Cooper Union, and the letter he later wrote when the Brooklyn Public Library tried to restrict access to Huckleberry Finn. In contrast, we are reminded of the publication in the 1950s of Eloise, A Book for Precocious Grown-Ups, Kay Thompson's fanciful tale of a little girl's adventures in the Plaza Hotel, the appearance of the Beat Generation, and the flight (literally) of the Dodgers and Giants to California. New York, Year by Year chronicles the opening of Shea Stadium in April 1964 and the performance by the Beatles there that August. The Sixties also saw the opening of The Fantastiks, which is still running on Sullivan Street, and the closing of Steeplechase, the last of the great amusement parks at Coney Island. And this chronology makes sure we don't forget when Kitty Genovese was murdered in Kew Gardens and her cries for help were left unanswered because her neighbors didn't want to get involved. Kroessler leads us on a tour of the city from its first settlers until the November 2001 election of a new mayor for the new millennium.
From the colonial era and the Revolution through the Gilded Age and the Roaring Twenties, Kroessler has compiled a record of cultural, economic, political, and social events. Some are of transient importance, others of lasting significance, but all illuminate the city's fascinating history.
Synopsis
A cornucopia of the familiar and the forgotten, the historic and the ephemeral, the heroic and the banal. This handy reference work takes us from Verrazano's arrival in 1524 into the November 2001 election of a new mayor for the new millennium.
Synopsis
The Civil War is a much plumbed area of scholarship, so much so that at times it seems there is no further work to be done in the field. However, the experience of children and youth during that tumultuous time remains a relatively unexplored facet of the conflict. Children and Youth during the Civil War Era seeks a deeper investigation into the historical record by and giving voice and context to their struggles and victories during this critical period in American history.
Prominent historians and rising scholars explore issues important to both the Civil War era and to the history of children and youth, including the experience of orphans, drummer boys, and young soldiers on the front lines, and even the impact of the war on the games children played in this collection. Each essay places the history of children and youth in the context of the sectional conflict, while in turn shedding new light on the sectional conflict by viewing it through the lens of children and youth. A much needed, multi-faceted historical account, Children and Youth during the Civil War Era touches on some of the most important historiographical issues with which historians of children and youth and of the Civil War home front have grappled over the last few years.
About the Author
Jeffrey A. Kroessler is a contributor to The Encyclopedia of New York City, and the author of Lighting the Way: The Queens Borough Public Library, 1896-1996. He received his Ph.D. from the CUNY Graduate is currently the historian at the Archives and Special Collections in the Library of the College of Staten Island.