Wednesday, February 19, 2014

THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE: A SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

INTRODUCTION

The Saint Valentine's Day Massacre is the name given to the 1929 murders in Chicago of seven mob associates of North side gang leader Bugs Moran. The men were all gunned down on February 14th of that year--hence the popular name of this infamous event.

The horrific bloodbath was the result of a struggle between Moran and South sider Al Capone to take control of organized crime in Chicago. It is widely assumed that the Massacre was an attempt orchestrated by Capone to kill Moran. One of Moran’s associates, however, was similar in height and body shape to his boss, and was even dressed much like Moran normally dressed that morning. Capone’s “spotter” for the crime is believed to have mistook the associate (Albert Weinshank) for Moran, who was a late arrival to the meeting that brought his associates together. Moran and three gang members who also arrived late thus narrowly avoided being gunned down that morning.

There is a St. Louis connection to this infamous event. Several former members of the Egan's Rats gang were also suspected of having played significant roles in the Massacre while working for Capone.

Wikipedia article—Saint Valentine’s Day Massacre:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Valentine's_Day_Massacre

LIBRARY LOCATIONS

HG: History, Geography, & Travel Room (Central Library)
ELB: Entertainment, Literature, & Biography Room (Central Library)
SS: Social Sciences Room (Central Library ST: Stacks (Central Library)

BA: Baden Branch
BU: Buder Branch
CB: Cabanne Branch
CO: Carondelet Branch
CP: Carpenter Branch
DA: Julia Davis Branch
DI: Divoll Branch
KI: Kingshighway Branch
SC: Schlafly Branch
WA: Walnut Park Branch

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Title: Barbarians in our midst; a history of Chicago crime and politics. Foreword by Estes Kefauver.
Author/Compiler: Peterson, Virgil Wallace.
Local Call Number: ST--364.977
Publication Date: 1952.
Format: Books.

Title: Chicago's unsolved crimes & mysteries.
Author/Compiler: Alaspa, Bryan.
Local Call Number: WA--364.109773
Publication Date: 2013.
Format: Books.

Title: Deadly valentines: the story of Capone's henchman "Machine Gun" Jack McGurn and Louise Rolfe, his blonde alibi.
Author/Compiler: Gusfield, Jeffrey.
Local Call Number: SS,BU,CP,DA--364.10922
Publication Date: 2012.
Format: Books.

Title: The dry and lawless years.
Author/Compiler: Lyle, John H.
Local Call Number: ST--364
Publication Date: 1960.
Format: Books.

Title: Encyclopedia of organized crime in the United States: from Capone's Chicago to the new urban underworld.
Author/Compiler: Kelly, Robert J.
Local Call Number: SS,BA,BU,CB,CP,DA,SC--364.1060973
Publication Date: 2000.
Format: Books.

Title: Get Capone: the secret plot that captured America's most wanted gangster.
Author/Compiler: Eig, Jonathan.
Local Call Number: BU,CP,DI--B CAPONE AL
Publication Date: 2010.
Format: Books.

Title: The man who got away: the Bugs Moran story.
Author/Compiler: Keefe, Rose.
Local Call Number: SS--364.1066092
Publication Date: 2005.
Format: Books.

Title: The St. Valentine's Day massacre: the untold story of the gangland bloodbath that brought down Al Capone.
Author/Compiler: Helmer, William J., & Arthur J. Bilek.
Local Call Number: CO--364.1523
Publication Date: 2004.
Format: Books.

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

FRANK JAMES: A SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

INTRODUCTION

Outlaw and folk hero Frank James was born Alexander Franklin James in Kearney, Missouri, to Baptist minister Reverend Robert Sallee James and his wife Zerelda (Cole) James on January 10, 1843. The family originally resided in Kentucky.

James was the oldest of the couple’s four children: Robert (died young); Jesse; and Susan. Frank was 18 when the Civil War began, and became a member of the pro-Confederate militia, the Missouri State Guard. After some time spent as a prisoner of the Union Army, he returned home. By early 1863, he was riding with local guerrillas: first Fernando Scott, then William Clarke Quantrill. He was with Quantrill during the raid on Lawrence, Kansas (August 21, 1863) during which approximately 200 men and boys were killed, many in cold blood.

After the war, Frank and younger brother Jesse operated as bandits in various states, robbing banks and trains as the opportunity arose. After Jesse was assassinated in 1882, James surrendered to Missouri’s then governor, Thomas Crittenden. He was tried twice for robbery/murder, and acquitted both times.

James later worked as shoe salesman, ticket taker in a burlesque house, and also performed on the lecture circuit. He returned home in later years, and gave tours of the family homestead for a quarter. He died on February 18, 1915, leaving behind wife Annie and one son.

Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_James

LIBRARY LOCATIONS

HG: History, Geography, & Travel Room (Central Library)
SS: Social Sciences (Central Library)
ST: Stacks (Central Library)

BU: Buder Branch
CE: Central Express
CP: Carpenter Branch
DA: Julia Davis Branch
KI: Kingshighway Branch
MA: Machacek Branch
SC: Schlafly Branch

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Title: The escapades of Frank and Jesse James.
Author/Compiler: Breihan, Carl W.
Local Call Number: ST—364.155
Publication Date: 1974.
Format: Books.

Title: Frank and Jesse James: the story behind the legend.
Author/Compiler: Yeatman, Ted P.
Local Call Number: STL, KI—364.1552092
Publication Date: 2000.
Format: Books.

Title: The James boys rode south; a thrilling and authentic new episode in the fabulous lives of the most daring desperadoes of modern times, Frank and Jesse James and their comrades in crime.
Author/Compiler: Hoole, William Stanley.
Local Call Number: ST—923.41
Publication Date: 1955.
Format: Books.

Title: Jesse and Frank James: the family history.
Author/Compiler: Steele, Phillip W.
Local Call Number: ST—B JAMES
Publication Date: 1994.
Format: Books.

Title: Jesse James was his name; or, Fact and fiction concerning the careers of the notorious James brothers of Missouri.
Author/Compiler: Settle, William A.
Local Call Number: HG, DA, MA, SC—923.41
Publication Date: 1966.
Format: Books.

Title: The last ride of the James-Younger Gang: Jesse James and the Northfield Raid 1876.
Author/Compiler: McLachlan, Sean.
Local Call Number: SS, MA—364.1552092
Publication Date: 2012.
Format: Books.

Title: Lives and exploits of the daring Frank and Jesse James.
Author/Compiler: Thorndike, Thaddeus.
Local Call Number: ST—923.41
Publication Date: 1909.
Format: Books.

Title: The lost cause: the trials of Frank and Jesse James.
Author/Compiler: Muehlberger, James P.
Local Call Number: SS—364.1552092
Publication Date: 2013.
Format: Books.

Title: Shot all to hell: Jesse James, the Northfield Raid, and the Wild West's greatest escape.
Author/Compiler: Gardner, Mark L.
Local Call Number: SS, BU, CE, DA, SC—364.1552092
Publication Date: 2013.
Format: Books.

Title: The trial of Frank James for murder: with confessions of Dick Liddil and Clarence Hite, and history of the "James gang" / with an introd. by James D. Horan.
Author/Compiler: James, Frank; Liddil, James Andrew; and Clarence B. Hite.
Local Call Number: ST—345.73
Publication Date: 1977.
Format: Books.

Monday, February 3, 2014

THE BATTLE OF IWO JIMA: A SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

INTRODUCTION

The Battle of Iwo Jima (aka Operation Detachment) was a major battle in which the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps made an amphibious landing on the island of Iwo Jima and captured it from the Japanese. The intent of the American invasion was to gain control of the island's three airfields that (it was hoped) could be used to provide a staging area for attacks on the Japanese homeland. This five-week battle (19 February–26 March 1945) included some of the fiercest and bloodiest fighting in the Pacific Theater during World War II.

Wikipedia article—Battle of Iwo Jima:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Iwo_Jima

LIBRARY LOCATIONS

HG: History, Geography, & Travel Room (Central Library)
ELB: Entertainment, Literature, & Biography Room (Central Library)
SS: Social Sciences (Central Library)
ST: Stacks (Central Library)

BU: Buder Branch
CP: Carpenter Branch
DA: Julia Davis Branch
KI: Kingshighway Branch
MA: Machacek Branch
SC: Schlafly Branch

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Title: American Spartans: the U.S. Marines: a combat history from Iwo Jima to Iraq.
Author/Compiler: Warren, James A.
Local Call Number: SS [359.960973]
Publication Date: 2005.
Format: Books.

Title: Finding my father: the lifelong quest by an Iwo Jima Marine's son to know the man who was his father.
Author/Compiler: Pace, Robert Sidney.
Local Call Number: CP [306.8]
Publication Date 2009.
Format: Books.

Title: Indestructible: the unforgettable story of a marine hero at Iwo Jima.
Author/Compiler: Lucas, Jack; and D. K. Drum.
Local Call Number: ELB [B LUCAS JACK]
Publication Date: 2006.
Format: Books.

Title: Island of terror: Battle of Iwo Jima.
Author/Compiler: Hama, Larry; Erksine, Gary; and Anthony Williams.
Local Call Number: BU [940.5425213]
Publication Date: 2006.
Format: Books.

Title: Iwo Jima. Foreword by Harry Schmidt.
Author/Compiler: Newcomb, Richard F.
Local Call Number: ST [940.92]
Publication Date: 1965.
Format: Books.

Title: Iwo Jima: legacy of valor.
Author/Compiler: Ross, Bill D.
Local Call Number: ST [940.5426]
Publication Date: 1985.
Format: Books.

Title: Iwo Jima: monuments, memories, and the American hero.
Author/Compiler: Marling, Karal Ann. Wetenhall, John.
Local Call Number: ST [940.5426]
Publication Date: 1991.
Format: Books.

Title: Iwo Jima, springboard to final victory.
Author/Compiler: Henri, Raymond.
Local Call Number: ST [940.92]
Publication Date: 1945.
Format: Books.

Title: Iwo Jima: World War II veterans remember the greatest battle of the Pacific.
Author/Compiler: Smith, Larry Earl.
Local Call Number: HG, MA [940.542528]
Publication Date: 2008.
Format: Books.

Title: Iwo Jima: the young heroes.
Author/Compiler: Muscarella, Tony.
Local Call Number: ST [940.5426]
Publication Date: 1989.
Format: Books.

Title: Never in doubt: remembering Iwo Jima.
Author/Compiler: Kessler, Lynn. Bart, Edmond B.
Local Call Number: ST [940.5426]
Publication Date: 1999.
Format: Books.

Title: The quiet hero: the untold medal of honor story of George E. Wahlen at the battle for Iwo Jima.
Author/Compiler: Toyn, Gary W.
Local Call Number: HG [940.542528]
Publication Date 2006.
Format: Books.

Title: Red blood, black sand: fighting alongside John Basilone from boot camp to Iwo Jima.
Author/Compiler: Tatum, Charles W.
Local Call Number: HG [940.542528]
Publication Date: 2012.
Format: Books.

Title: Shadow of Suribachi : raising the flags on Iwo Jima.
Author/Compiler: Albee, Parker Bishop; and Keller Cushing Freeman.
Local Call Number: ST [940.5426]
Publication Date 1995.
Format: Books.