The Rugby colony opened amid great fanfare in 1880 on East Tennessees sparsely settled and rugged Cumberland Plateau. Famous British author and social reformer Thomas Hughes was the most involved and dedicated of Rugbys Anglo-American founders. He intended Rugby to be a class-free, agrarian community based on cooperative enterprise, culture, and religious freedom. During its first decade, hundreds immigrated to Rugby from the British Isles; hundreds more came from other parts of America. Some stayed briefly, some for years, some for life. More than 60 cottages, villas, and commercial and institutional buildings of distinctive Victorian styles were built during Rugbys early years. Though Rugby was briefly the most thriving community on the northern plateau, many factors prevented realization of Hughess utopian goals. Rugby today is a rare surviving example of 19th-century utopian community building. The historic town plan, surrounding woodland and rivers, and key original buildings survive, unspoiled by modern development, through committed restoration and preservation. Heritage tourism is bringing new life.

Visionaries of all ages and places have pursued Utopias, dreaming impossible dreams of starting over in new communities fashioned more closely to their ideals. In Visions of Utopia, John Egerton traces the fascinating history of the experimental communities founded by such groups in Tennessee. He focuses in particular on three extraordinary colonies of the 19th century, each of them widely known in its time: Nashoba, and interracial settlement near Memphis in 1825; Rugby, an English cooperative community on the Cumberland Plateau in 1880; and Ruskin, a socialist community in Dickson County in 1894. John Egerton is a native Southerner - A Georgian by birth, a Kentuckian in his childhood and youth, a Floridian during the early 1960's, and a Tennessean since 1965. He is a grandson of one of the English colonists who started the Rugby settlement in 1880. As a journalist and author, he has written articles on a variety of subjects for more than twenty magazines, and has published two books about the South: A Mind to Stay Here (1970) and The Americanization of Dixie (1974).

This collection uncovers the fascinating past of Tennessee’s legendary Music City from true tall tales to larger than life characters and much more. Perched on the banks of the Cumberland River, Nashville is best known for its role in the civil rights movement, world-class education and, of course, country music. In this unique collection of columns written for The Tennessean, journalist and longtime Tennessee native George Zepp illuminates a less familiar side of the city’s history. Here, readers will learn the secrets of Timothy Demonbreun, one of the city's first residents, who lived with his family in a cliff-top cave; Cortelia Clark, the blind bluesman who continued to perform on street corners after winning a Grammy award; and Nashville's own Cinderella story, which involved legendary radio personality Edgar Bergen and his ventriloquist protegee. Based on questions from readers across the nation, these little-known tales abound with Music City mystery and charm.

Seventeen original essays by prominent scholars uncover fascinating stories and personalities from the Upper Cumberland region of Kentucky and Tennessee, often regarded as isolated and out of pace with the rest of the country, but seen here as having a far richer history and culture than previously thought.

Ireland may be a powerhouse in international rugby in 2015, with its club teams of Leinster, Munster and Ulster perennially performing brilliantly in Europe, but to many people of a certain age the late 1970s and early 1980s were a golden period, too. Even though the sport was thrillingly amateurish in spirit as well as organisation, their most famous club win, arguably, was a thrilling performance from a Munster team led by Tony Ward who defeated the mighty All Blacks in 1979 at Thormond Park - ranked as a classic and still the only time an Irish team have beaten the Kiwis. Ireland would then enjoy their first Triple Crown success for thirty-three years in 1982 with Ward jostling with the other great Irish fly-half, Ollie Campbell, to lead the team. Ward was a mercurial talent. Much like the maligned Danny Cipriani today, his self-belief and unique way of playing the game he wanted his team to, marked him out as a rare talent. In the days of limited internationals, and few far-flung tours, he would only amass nineteen caps for his country, as well as single a tour of South Africa with the British and Irish Lions in 1980. Although the Lions lost the series 1-4, Ward would set the record for a Lion, scoring 18 points in a Test, which still stands today. He will now tell his story, of the triumphs and disappointments, as well as the great friendships he made, and greatest matches he played in. He will equally be forthright in what he thinks of the game today, and how Ireland will fair in the Rugby World Cup and beyond to the Six Nations in 2016. For any fan of Irish rugby, at whatever level you play, this is an elegiac memoir to cherish.

In March 1871 the first international match took place between England and Scotland at Raeburn Place in Edinburgh. Donned in all white the fledgling England team lost that day 0-1 but it was the start of remarkable history. This Rugby Football Union (RFU) product is written by the curator of the World Rugby Museum, Phil McGowan, and recounts the story of how the England team (and rugby itself) grew from an amateur collection of public schoolboys playing in a 'Home Nations Championship' into the globally recognised team they are today, watched by 80,000 at Twickenham and millions on television.

Describes over 2,000 sites of supernatural occurances in the United States, including places visited by ghosts, UFOs, and unusual creatures.

Combining historical narrative with the specifics of a guidebook, The Historic Cumberland Plateau is an indispensable aid for visiting and experiencing an area rich in natural wonders and scenic beauty. First published in 1992, the book has now been extensively revised to include the latest information about points of interest and cultural events on the Cumberland Plateau. A land known for its great caves, cascading waterfalls, natural arches, and isolated river canyons, the Plateau stretches from northeast to southwest, encompassing parts of Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia. Within its geographic boundaries are many protected areas, including the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, and the Obed National Wild and Scenic River. The Plateau also possesses a unique history and cultural heritage. Inhabited first by Native Americans, then by pioneers migrating westward, the Plateau contains many sites that attest to its rich history. As different groups passed through, some chose to settle permanently, resulting in a diverse cultural heritage celebrated today in many regional events. Each chapter of this book, focusing on a specific area on the Plateau, is filled with fascinating historical facts and anecdotes, as well as practical information about services and accommodations, events, and directions to natural wonders, hiking trails, and historic sites. The Author: Russ Manning is an award-winning freelance writer and author of several outdoor guidebooks. His articles on the outdoors and conservation have been published in Outside, Blue Ridge Country, Walking Magazine, Appalachia, Environment, Sierra, Environmental Ethics, and The Tennessee Conservationist.