| Item | Non-member price | Member price (dues paying) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
The Eastland Disaster (WTTW-11 documentary on VHS) written and produced by WTTW producer Harvey Moshman and WGN reporter Chuck Coppola. |
$19.95 | $14.95 |  |
| This installment of Chicago Stories features underwater reenactment footage, graphic pictures taken moments after the ship rolled over, and interviews with Libby Hruby of Cicero, one of the last remaining survivors. | ||||
| Item | Non-member price | Member price (dues paying) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Chicago Haunts (softcover) by Ursula Bielski |
$14.95 | $10.95 | |
| From ruthless gangsters to restless mail order kings, from the Fort Dearborn Massacre to the St. Valentine's Day Massacre to the Eastland Disaster, the phantom remains of the passionate people and volatile events of Chicago history have made the Second City second to none in the annals of American ghostlore. Author Ursula Bielski captures 160 years of Chicago's haunted history in the first volume ever devoted to this intriguing subject. Combining lively storytelling with in-depth historical research, exclusive interviews, and insights from parapsychology, Bielski pens a unique and fascinating exploration of the region's supernatural folklore. |
||||
 |
The Chicago River From Your Window (softcover) by Paul Frisbie |
$9.95 | $7.95 | |
| The Chicago River is a commercial route, a recreational waterway and a home for dozens of bird, fish and animal species. There's a lot of activity on the River and there's a lot to see along its banks. This book will help you identify the boats, bridges, birds, fish and animals that make the Chicago River so unique. You'll also find a short history of the River, along with useful information about things like Chicago River boat rentals, Chicago River environmental organizations and Chicago River parks. The River is one of Chicago's finest features. Make it your friend. |
||||
 |
Cicero: The First Suburb West (softcover) by Betty Carlson Kay *** Book is currently out of print through the publisher. *** |
$18.95 | $14.95 | |
| If you or your family originated in Cicero, Illinois and its vicinity, you will be enthralled by the volumes of historical photographs in and around Cicero. The memories will flow back as thick as Czech houska from the bakery. Of particular note are the chapters on the Western Electric Hawthorne Works and the Eastland Disaster. | ||||
 |
The Eastland Disaster (softcover) |
$19.95 | $14.95 | |
| Author Ted Wachholz is the Executive Director of the Eastland Disaster Historical Society. Through his work with the society and in conjunction with the Chicago Historical Society, the author combines captivating images with compelling narrative taken from firsthand histories of families, survivors, victims, and others directly affected by the Eastland Disaster. These personal accounts are contained throughout the book, describing the tragedy through the eyes of those who experienced it. Wachholz's passion and interest was sparked by his personal connection to the Eastland Disaster - his wife's grandmother, Borghild "Bobbie" Aanstad, survived the tragedy as a young teenager. | ||||
 |
Eastland: Legacy of the Titanic (softcover) by George W. Hilton |
$29.95 | $22.95 | |
|
Eastland: Legacy of the Titanic (hardcover, signed) by George W. Hilton |
$74.95 | $58.95 | |
| Irony and tragedy combine in this account of one of America's worst marine disasters. The subtitle of this book is particularly telling, since following the loss of the Titanic a nationwide "boats for all" movement occurred. In anticipation of legislation mandating such changes, the Eastland added lifeboats. The additional weight contributed to the vessel's top-heaviness, causing the disaster. The author constructs a careful account of the events leading up to the calamity. The disaster itself is recounted minute by minute, based on the court transcripts following the accident. The fate of the vessel after it was raised and recommissioned as a Coast Guard training vessel is also recounted. The numerous illustrations and period photographs as well as numerous appendixes make this a definitive account. The style is also accessible for non-nautical readers. Recommended for general collections. | ||||
 |
Ghost Stories of Illinois (softcover) by Jo-Anne Christensen |
$10.95 | $7.95 | |
| Jo-Anne Christensen is the popular author of numerous ghost house books. Raised in small-town Western Canada, Jo-Anne says the somewhat limited local entertainment options - mostly curling and hockey - led to an early love of reading, particularly anything with a paranormal flavor. Over the years, she became an avid collector of tales about haunted places, ghosts and other unexplained mysteries. In recent years, she has taken to sharing from her considerable library of paranormal folklore by writing books of ghost stories. Enjoy 75 accounts of ghostly visitations--among them spirits from the Great Chicago Fire, the curse of the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, a spectral steamboat on Fulton County's Spoon River, the Eastland Disaster, and the wandering ghost of Abe Lincoln. | ||||
 |
Graveyards of Chicago (softcover) by Ursula Bielski, Matt Hucke |
$14.95 | $10.95 | |
| Discover a Chicago that exists just beneath the surface -- about six feet under. Ever wonder where Al Capone is buried? How about Clarence Darrow? Muddy Waters? Harry Caray? Or maybe Brady Bunch patriarch Robert Reed? And what really lies beneath home plate at Wrigley Field? Graveyards of Chicago answers these and other cryptic questions as it charts the lore and lure of Chicago's ubiquitous burial grounds. Like the livelier neighborhoods that surround them, Chicago's cemeteries are often crowded, sometimes weary, ever-sophisticated, and full of secrets. They are home not only to thousands of individuals who fashioned the citys singular culture and character, but also to impressive displays of art and architecture, landscaping and limestone, egoism and ethnic pride, and the constant reminder that although physical life must end for us all, personal note--and notoriety--last forever. Grab a shovel and tag along as Ursula Bielski, local historian and author of Chicago Haunts, and Matt Hucke, photographer and creator of www.graveyards.com, unearth the legends and legacies that mark Chicago's silent citizens -- from larger-than-lifers and local heroes, to clerics and comedians, machine mayors and machine-gunners. |
||||
 |
Journey: A Novel of America (softcover) by James M. Vesely |
$19.95 | $14.95 | |
| The sprawling fictional story of a Czech-American family's determined struggle and unforgettable odyssey - from the hunger and hardship of Eastern Europe, across the cold and gray Atlantic in steerage, and on into America's growing cities and isolated farms. The Novaks survive and grow through love and loss, peace and war, epidemic and Depression, in a strange and wondrous new land far from home - a young and raw America immersed in the restless throes of change. JOURNEY is a great, new family saga of turmoil, heartbreak, and humor - with characters as vivid and colorful as the rich American landscape of the last hundred years. |
||||
 |
Manufacturing the Future: A History of Western Electric (hardcover) by Stephen B. Adams, Orville R. Butler |
$39.95 | $29.95 | |
| Presents the first full-length history of the Western Electric Company, which was founded in 1869 and served for more than 100 years as the manufacturing and supply unit of the Bell System until it disappeared as a separate entity with the 1984 breakup of the Bell System. As a manufacturer in the communications revolutions in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Western Electric made new products such as telegraphs, telephones, an early computing machine, radios, radar, and transistors. The book demonstrates, through Western's 1882 acquisition by Bell Telephone, that vertical integration was a lengthy process rather than a single event. It also shows the coming of age of industrial psychology and describes the advent of civil rights in corporate America. | ||||
 |
Maritime Chicago (softcover) by Theodore J. Karamanski and Deane Tank Sr. |
$18.95 | $14.95 | |
| Strategically placed on the southern shores of Lake Michigan, Chicago has always been an important transportation and trading hub. Early Native American settlers discovered Chicago's rich resources. French missionaries and trappers found the Chicago River an excellent portage to the Des Plaines, Illinois, and Mississippi Rivers. And merchants used it to ship lumber and grain to the rest of the world. The book tells the story of this city situated on a great "inland sea." From the thrill of two lakefront World's Fairs, to the unbelievable sorrow of the Eastland, Chicago's maritime past bears witness to much triumph and tragedy, victory and defeat. Today, the 29 miles of lakefront and the revived riverfront are vital parts of the economy and recreation of Chicago. |
||||
 |
The Sinking of the Eastland: America's Forgotten Tragedy (hardcover) by Jay Bonansinga |
$21.95 | $16.95 | |
|
The Sinking of the Eastland: America's Forgotten Tragedy (softcover) by Jay Bonansinga |
$14.95 | $10.95 | |
|
The Sinking of the Eastland: America's Forgotten Tragedy (large print) by Jay Bonansinga |
$27.95 | $20.95 | |
| At once riveting and poignant, this book brings to life a bygone era that yielded one of the most significant American disasters of the 20th century. The book is an epic historical narrative on the tragic 1915 excursion of the steamship Eastland. Unlike the wealthy and celebrated victims of the Titanic, the 844 men, women, and children who lost their lives on the Eastland were working-class people, and their story has largely been forgotten - until now. Using eyewitness narratives, rare archival materials, and touching, first-hand accounts from those who escaped with their lives, Jay Bonansinga pieces together the untold story of The Sinking of the Eastland in the only book ever devoted to the human drama of the subject. Bringing to life all the sights and sounds of 1915 Chicago, Jay recounts minute by minute the extraordinary events of that fateful day. Readers will meet the master of the Eastland, Captain Harry Pedersen, whose behavior before, during, and after the wreck would be scrutinized for years; the Eastland's crew, some of whom became helpless victims of the wreck; ordinary passengers, including a thirteen-year-old girl faced with the fight of her life; and a young mechanic who became one of the day's unsung heroes. |
||||
 |
So Weird: Family Reunion (softcover) by Cathy East Dubowski |
$4.95 | $3.95 | |
| Fi is contacted by the ghost of a young boy who seems to be haunting the building in which Molly's Chicago gig is taking place. After investigation, Fi discovers that the boy drowned when the Eastland, a passenger ship, capsized in the harbor nearby. Hi body was unidentified, and so was never reunited with the bodies of his parents...until Fi experiences a recreation of the disaster, and finds the young boy's coat, with his name inside. | ||||
 |
Wrigley Field: The Unauthorized Biography (hardcover) by Stuart Shea |
$26.95 | $19.95 | |
| Wrigley Field is a baseball shrine today, but how did it achieve that status? What's the history of the park, its teams, the fans, and the adjoining community that is so interwoven that it's commonly referred to as "Wrigleyville?" What's the deal with the lights? The rooftop crowds? The Bleacher Bums? The Curse? When did Wrigley Field see the Bears as tenants, not to mention women's baseball, pro soccer, and even professional wrestling?
Stuart Shea explains all that and more in this entertaining, thoughtful, and all-encompassing biography of the Friendly Confines. Shea takes you from the park's inception in 1914 - with no bleachers, no ivy, no scoreboard, no upper deck, no lights, and even no Wrigley and no Cubs - through its entire history up until today. Shea even devotes a small portion of the book to touch on the connection that Wrigley Field has to the Eastland Disaster. |
||||
Please direct questions and comments to the Eastland Disaster Historical Society at info@eastlanddisaster.org.
Copyright © 1998-2008 Eastland Disaster Historical Society. All rights reserved.