“Well-written . . . analysis and insight into what role the crisp, clean Black Hills air may have had in the culmination of a successful political career” (The Washington Times). On August 2, 1927, President Calvin Coolidge shocked the nation by announcing he would not seek reelection. The declaration came from the Black Hills of South Dakota, where Coolidge was vacationing to escape the oppressive Washington summer and to win over politically rebellious farmers. He passed his time at rodeos, fishing, meeting Native American dignitaries and kick-starting the stagnant carving of Mount Rushmore. But scandal was never far away as Coolidge dismissed a Secret Service man in a fit of anger. Was it this internal conflict that led Coolidge to make his famous announcement or the magic of the Black Hills? Veteran South Dakota journalist Seth Tupper chronicles Coolidge’s Black Hills adventure and explores the lasting legacy of the presidential summer on the region. Includes photos “The book sets out to examine such questions as why the president chose to travel west and why he used the trip to make the announcement that he would not run for president again in 1928 . . . well documented and filled with fascinating details.” —The Washington Free Beacon

Once vital to fire prevention and detection, most of the Black Hills National Forest historic lookout towers now serve primarily as hiking destinations. The first crude lookout structures were built at Custer Peak and Harney Peak in 1911. Since that time, more than 20 towers have been constructed in the area. The first lookout towers were built of wood, most replaced by steel or stone. The Civilian Conservation Corps was instrumental in constructing fire towers during the 1930s and 1940s. One of the most famous and architecturally and aesthetically valued towers is the Harney Peak Fire Lookout--situated on the highest point east of the Rocky Mountains. Harney Peak is among a number of Black Hills towers listed on the National Historic Lookout Register. Over 200 vintage images tell the story of not only the historic fire towers but those who manned them. Perched atop high peaks in remote locations, fire lookout personnel spent countless hours scanning the forest, pinpointing dangers, often experiencing the powerful wrath of lightning strong enough to jolt them off their lightning stools.

The first study focused on the history of the Black Hills National Forest, its centrality to life in the region, and its preeminence within the National Forest System, Black Hills Forestry is a cultural history of the most commercialized national forest in the nation. One of the first forests actively managed by the federal government and the site of the first sale of federally owned timber to a private party, the Black Hills National Forest has served as a management model for all national forests. Its many uses, activities, and issues—recreation, timber, mining, grazing, tourism, First American cultural usage, and the intermingling of public and private lands—expose the ongoing tensions between private landowners and public land managers. Freeman shows how forest management in the Black Hills encapsulates the Forest Service's failures to keep up with changes in the public's view of forest values until compelled to do so by federal legislation and the courts. In addition, he explores how more recent events in the region like catastrophic wildfires and mountain pine beetle epidemics have provided forest managers with the chance to realign their efforts to create and maintain a biologically diverse forest that can better resist natural and human disturbances. This study of the Black Hills offers an excellent prism through which to view the history of the US Forest Service's land management policies. Foresters, land managers, and regional historians will find Black Hills Forestry a valuable resource.

Whether you want to marvel at Mount Rushmore, stroll the historic Wild West town of Deadwood, or explore Badlands National Park, the local Fodor‘s travel experts in South Dakota are here to help! Fodor‘s Black Hills of South Dakotaguidebook is packed with maps, carefully curated recommendations, and everything else you need to simplify your trip-planning process and make the most of your time. This brand new edition has an easy-to-read layout, fresh information, and beautiful color photos. Fodor‘sBlack Hills of South Dakota travel guide includes: AN ILLUSTRATED ULTIMATE EXPERIENCES GUIDE to the top things to see and do MULTIPLE ITINERARIES to effectively organize your days and maximize your time MORE THAN 11 DETAILED MAPS to help you navigate confidently COLOR PHOTOS throughout to spark your wanderlust! HONEST RECOMMENDATIONS FROM LOCALS on the best sights, restaurants, hotels, historic towns, outdoor activities, scenic drives, nightlife, shopping, and more PHOTO-FILLED “BEST OF” FEATURES on “Best Things to Eat and Drink” and “Best Things to Buy” and more TRIP-PLANNING TOOLS AND PRACTICAL TIPS including when to go, getting around, beating the crowds, and saving time and money HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL INSIGHTS providing rich context on the local cuisine, national parks, and more SPECIAL FEATURES on “Mount Rushmore,” The Black Hills with Kids,” and “Black Hills Driving Itinerary” LOCAL WRITERS to help you find the under-the-radar gems UP-TO-DATE COVERAGE ON: Deadwood, Rapid City, Custer, Keystone, Hill City, Spearfish, Wall, Badlands National Park, Wind Cave National Park, Crazy Horse Memorial, and more Planning on visiting more national parks? Check out Fodor‘s National Parks of the West, The Complete Guide to the National Parks of the USA, In Focus Montana & Wyoming. *Important note for digital editions: The digital edition of this guide does not contain all the images or text included in the physical edition. ABOUT FODOR'S AUTHORS: Each Fodor's Travel Guide is researched and written by local experts. Fodor‘s has been offering expert advice for all tastes and budgets for over 80 years. For more travel inspiration, you can sign up for our travel newsletter at fodors.com/newsletter/signup, or follow us @FodorsTravel on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. We invite you to join our friendly community of travel experts at fodors.com/community to ask any other questions and share your experience with us!

Looks at the mining towns that once flourished in the Black Hills, which had long been the destination for prospectors during the 1874 to 1879 rush, when an unknown numbers of mines were worked and more than 400 mining camps and towns sprang up in the gulches overnight. Original.

This vintage book contains a detailed biography of Calvin Coolidge. John Calvin Coolidge Jr. (1872–1933) served as the President of the United States between 1923 and 1929. Originally a Republican lawyer from Vermont, he worked his way up the political ladder before becoming the governor of Massachusetts. He was elected as the vice president of the United States after his decisive response to the Boston Police Strike of 1919, and succeeded president Warren G. Harding upon his death in 1923. Contents include: “Yankee Ancestry and Vermont Environment”, “Birth and Boyhood”, “Preparing for College”, “Early Days in Northampton”, “The Horizon Widens”, “Up The Political Ladder”, “A Friend Appears”, “Lieutenant Governor”, “Governor of Massachusetts”, “The Boston Police Strike of 1919”, “In National Politics”, etc. Many vintage books such as this are becoming increasingly scarce and expensive. We are republishing this volume now in an affordable, high-quality edition complete with a specially commissioned new introduction. “Calvin Coolidge - The Man From Vermont” was first published in 1939.

Your Travel Destination. Your Home. Your Home-To-Be. South Dakota’s Black Hills & Badlands Ghost towns and modern towns. Trendy eateries and rustic bars. Cowboys and artists. Rodeos, skiing, hiking, and biking. Breathtaking landscapes in a place of welcoming smiles. • A personal, practical perspective for travelers and residents alike • Comprehensive listings of attractions, restaurants, and accommodations • How to live & thrive in the area—from recreation to relocation • Countless details on shopping, arts & entertainment, and children’s activities

"It was my hope to produce a book that would not only have some historical interest, but would be useful for those in public life, in educational work, in preparation for citizen­ship, and would be especially a book that parents would wish their children to read." —President Calvin Coolidge on his autobiography Today Americans of all backgrounds are on the hunt for a different politi­cal model. In fact, such a model awaits them, if only they turn their eyes to their own past . . . to America's thirtieth president, Calvin Coolidge. Coolidge's masterful autobiography offers urgent lessons for our age of exploding debt, increasingly centralized power, and fierce partisan division. This expanded and annotated volume, edited by Coolidge biographer Amity Shlaes and authorized by the Coolidge family, is the definitive edition of the text that presidential historian Craig Fehrman calls "the forgotten classic of presidential writing." To read this volume is to understand the tragic extent to which historians underrate President Coolidge. The Coolidge who emerges in these pages is a model of character, principle, and humility—rare qualities in Washington, then as now. A man of great faith, Coolidge told Americans: "Men do not make laws. They do but discover them." Although he emphasized economics, Coolidge insisted on the importance of "things of the spirit." At the height of his popularity, he chose not to run again when his reelection was all but assured. In this autobiography, Coolidge explains his mindset: "It is a great advantage to a President, and a major source of safety to the country, for him to know that he is not a great man." For all his modesty, Coolidge left an expansive legacy—one we would do well to study today. Shlaes and ­coeditor ­Matthew Denhart draw out the lessons from Coolidge's life and career in an enlightening introduction and annotations to Coolidge's text. To aid Coolidge scholars young and old, the editors have also assembled nearly three dozen photographs, several of Coolidge's greatest speeches, a timeline of Coolidge's life, and afterwords by former Vermont governor James H. Douglas and two of Coolidge's great-grandchildren, Jennifer Coolidge Harville and Christopher Coolidge Jeter. This autobiography combats the myths about one of our most misunderstood presidents. It also shows us how much we still have to learn from Calvin Coolidge.

The austere president who presided over the Roaring Twenties and whose conservatism masked an innovative approach to national leadership He was known as "Silent Cal." Buttoned up and tight-lipped, Calvin Coolidge seemed out of place as the leader of a nation plunging headlong into the modern era. His six years in office were a time of flappers, speakeasies, and a stock market boom, but his focus was on cutting taxes, balancing the federal budget, and promoting corporate productivity. "The chief business of the American people is business," he famously said. But there is more to Coolidge than the stern capitalist scold. He was the progenitor of a conservatism that would flourish later in the century and a true innovator in the use of public relations and media. Coolidge worked with the top PR men of his day and seized on the rising technologies of newsreels and radio to bring the presidency into the lives of ordinary Americans—a path that led directly to FDR's "fireside chats" and the expert use of television by Kennedy and Reagan. At a time of great upheaval, Coolidge embodied the ambivalence that many of his countrymen felt. America kept "cool with Coolidge," and he returned the favor.

Though not recognized as one of the United States' most politically accomplished presidents, Calvin Coolidge holds the honor of preserving honesty and integrity in the White House. Calvin Coolidge explores the times in which he served the nation, as well as his rise in the field of politics. Book jacket.