Explore the historic landscape of the mid-Atlantic with this family-friendly guide. Winner of the Society for American Travel Writers' Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism 2016 Gold Award in the Guidebook Category Few regions of the United States boast as many historically significant sites as the mid-Atlantic. Travels through American History in the Mid-Atlantic brings to life sixteen easily accessible historical destinations in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Washington, D.C., the Potomac Valley, and Virginia. Charles W. Mitchell walked these sites, interviewed historians and rangers, and read the letters and diaries of the men and women who witnessed―and at times made―history. He reveals in vivid prose the ways in which war, terrain, weather, and illness have shaped the American narrative. Each attraction, reenactment, and interactive exhibit in the book is described through the lens of the American experience, beginning in the colonial and revolutionary eras, continuing through the War of 1812, and ending with the Civil War. Mitchell contrasts the ornate decor of Philadelphia's Independence Hall, for example, with the passionate debates that led to the Declaration of Independence, and the tranquil beauty of today's Harpers Ferry with the trauma its citizens endured during the Civil War, when the town six times fell to opposing forces. Excerpts from eyewitness accounts further humanize key moments in the national story. Hand-drawn maps evoke the historical era by depicting the natural features that so often affected the course of events. This engaging blend of history and travel will appeal to visiting tourists, area residents seeking weekend diversions, history buffs, and armchair travelers. An excellent travel companion for the amateur historian . . . Mitchell's book is a helpful and informative alternative to the standard travel guide. ―Lara Westwood, Maryland Historical Society, Maryland Historical Magazine Mitchell combines a regional travel guide with direct quotations, immediate revelations, and stories that illuminate the deeper historical context of each selected site. He has sought out engaging reenactments and the best exhibits, where remarkable artifacts and excellent displays bring history alive. This is more than sightseeing. ―Kathryn Schneider Smith, author of Washington at Home: An Illustrated History of Neighborhoods in the Nation's Capital Mitchell combines a regional travel guide with direct quotations, immediate revelations, and stories that illuminate the deeper historical context of each selected site. He has sought out engaging reenactments and the best exhibits, where remarkable artifacts and excellent displays bring history alive. This is more than sightseeing. -- Kathryn Schneider Smith Explore the historic landscape of the mid-Atlantic with this family-friendly guide. Charles W. Mitchell , a Marylander by birth and by choice, is a writer descended from a congressman, a pirate, and two Confederate officers who appear in the pages of this book. The ancestors of his wife, Betsy, include eleven Union soldiers, Pennsylvanians all. Charley and Betsy, and their two children, Abbie and Alec, live in Lutherville, Maryland. Elizabeth Church Mitchell lives in an eighteenth-century stone farmhouse in Parkton, Maryland with her husband Charles W. Mitchell.