The Great Fire of May 3, 1901 marked at once the end and the beginning of the City of Jacksonville. A thriving port and a center for business and tourism until that point, Jacksonville was devastated by the conflagration, and yet, even before the ashes had cooled, a building boom began. Prominent and aspiring architects flocked to the area and the opportunities it afforded them to create a "twentieth century city." Jacksonville's ensuing era of reconstruction and growth, which would continue until the United States entered World War I in 1917, helped to define the city's present personality and appearance.

Jacksonville's Consolidation of 1967 marked the end of individual towns in Duval County, but it established Jacksonville, all 840 square miles of it, as the largest city in the continental United States. Jacksonville Revisited is a visual and written documentation of how the city has grown and developed since the introduction of postcard communication. The changes in commerce and landscape are illustrated and preserved through postcards.

The perfume of the orange blossoms . . . the beauty of every scene, combine to make me wonder whether I am not in Paradise, wrote one visitor to Winter Park, Florida, in 1918. Just five miles north of Orlando, Winter Parks oak-lined brick streets and its quiet lakes have been attracting visitors since the late 19th century, when U.S. president Chester A. Arthur declared, This is the prettiest spot I have seen in Florida. The New Englandlike city in the heart of the subtropics was once home to the Seminole Hotel, the largest resort south of Jacksonville. In 1885, prestigious Rollins College was founded here, the first institution of higher learning in Florida.

Clarksville, Tennessee, has undergone a colossal metamorphosis since the 1700s, when men like Sevier, Montgomery, and Renfroe fought Native Americans along the Cumberland and Red Rivers. Though these founding fathers would not recognize the present rivers, nor the hills upon which Clarksville has grown, Clarksvillians have kept an awareness of their rich past, bridging their lives with those of the early frontiersmen. Today, Clarksville eclectically blends both metropolitan and rural settings to offer residents the best of both worlds.

Although he was a native of Bullock County, Alabama, Wade Hall -- teacher, writer, poet, critic, interviewer, folklorist, and documentarian -- spent most of his fifty-year career in Kentucky. But he was never emotionally far from his home as evidenced by his passion for collecting vintage Alabama postcards. In his lifetime he amassed 10,000, which he then graciously gave to the University of Alabama Libraries and Troy University in a large joint bequest that also included rare books, quilts, folk art, letters and more. These postcards date from the late 1800s to the mid-20th century and offer a fascinating and diverse picture of the state. The meaning of postcards that could be purchased as a travel souvenir is largely forgotten today when cameras are commonplace. But the value of Hall's stunning collection cannot be missed. The some 400 cards featured in Greetings from Alabama are revealing of scenes familiar and rare. From Birmingham's Vulcan to Mobile's Bellingrath Gardens, from Enterprise's boll weevil monument to Huntsville's rockets, from Helen Keller's home to William Rufus King's resting place, the scenes offer captivating glimpses of Alabama history.

Once little more than a steamy, tropical jungle, Palm Beach was transformed in the early twentieth century by industrialist Henry Flagler and a handful of architects into a playground for the famous, wealthy, and powerful. There, in the garden of earthly delights, celebrities and capitalists enjoyed a variety of leisure and recreational activities--from parties and tennis to sunbathing and dining--and stayed in the most opulent accommodations ever conceived and constructed. Many who loved this lifestyle became part-time residents and built palatial homes for the winter months. To this day, Palm Beach remains one of America's toniest and most exclusive resorts.

Located in the heart of Mississippis piney woods, Hattiesburg was named by William H. Hardy in honor of his second wife, Hattie Lott Hardy. Incorporated in 1884, the town quickly established itself as a regional center of the yellow pine lumber industry, and by 1910 it was the fifth largest city in the state. During the 20th century higher education became an important part of the citys persona, with the establishment of William Carey College and The University of Southern Mississippi. Camp Shelby, established in 1917 to train soldiers for World War I, also trained soldiers for World War II, the Vietnam Conflict, the Persian Gulf War, and the War on Terror. Today, Hattiesburg is the center of a metropolitan area of over 110,000 people that encompasses Forrest and Lamar Counties.

In the brief 100 years since its inception, Miami, which began its life on the shores of the Miami River, has been transformed into an international city that continues to blossom under the warm South Florida sun. Home to just 30,000 pioneering souls in 1920, the greater Miami area has grown to be 2.1 million residents strong and boasts a unique heritage made up of grand hotels and skyscrapers, aviation and marine history, as well as famous people and places.

St. Augustine was more than three centuries old when tourism awakened the sleepy Spanish village. Soon after Standard Oil partner Henry Flagler brought the railroad to town in the 1880s, well-heeled visitors began flocking to Flagler's luxury hotels as St. Augustine became known as the "American Riviera." Tourists walked the quaint, narrow streets and visited the city gate, the old Spanish fort, the alligator farm, the Fountain of Youth, and the four houses all claiming to be the oldest in the country. Postcard History Series: St. Augustine in the Gilded Age depicts the oldest city in the United States from the beginning of the picture postcard era to 1914, when a fire destroyed several downtown blocks. The volume presents more than 200 images from the archives of the St. Augustine Historical Society and the author's personal collection.

When Somerset County, named in honor of Lord Baltimore's sister Lady Mary Somerset, was first established by the Colony of Maryland in 1666, it encompassed more than 16,000 square miles on the Eastern Shore, including what are today's Worcester and Wicomico Counties and part of lower Delaware. By the end of the 18th century, the county, much smaller in geography by then, had become home to more than 15,000 residents. Communities such as Crisfield, Deal Island, Princess Anne, Smith Island, and others have thrived since that time, with the industries of agriculture, seafood, and tourism sustaining the hardworking and spirited residents who have made their home in this county by the Chesapeake Bay.