|
Crosscurrents of Change Now Available
Crosscurrents of Change: Concord, N.H. in the 20th Century was published on May 2, 2011, and has met with an excellent reception by the public. The 418-page book is available for sale through the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce by calling (603) 224-2508, or by sending full payment by check to: Concord Historical Society/Crosscurrents, P.O. Box 1027, Concord, New Hampshire 03302-1027. Currently, orders may be placed for immediate fulfillment for a leather-bound hard cover Keepsake edition with color photos are available at $99.95 and a hard cover black & white edition at $59.95. If you need the book mailed to you, add $7.95 for shipping and handling. Otherwise, pick your copy up at the Chamber of Commerce office in the Grappone Conference Center (adjacent to the Marriott Courtyard Hotel).
From the dust jacket of Crosscurrents of Change:
Concord, New Hampshire, is a remarkable community. It is one of those places that have contributed to American society far out of proportion to its size.
Crosscurrents of Change: Concord, N.H. in the Twentieth Century chronicles one hundred years of events, institutions and people whose notoriety went beyond New Hampshire’s borders, along with the smaller everyday occurrences and larger trends that made the Capital City what it is today.
Ride the Boston & Maine Railroad early in the century, when railroads were the only serious form of transportation and, with 1,300 workers, became Concord’s largest employer. The B&M’s domination extended to state government, where railroad lobbyists made governors and unmade U.S. senators.
Meet Concord’s most influential citizens, such as James McLellan Langley, editor of the Concord Monitor for 45 years, who wrote in his own obituary, “I was convinced an editor could and should do more than merely criticize or advocate. If his advice to his community was as sound as he believed it to be, he had an obligation to prove it by his own actions.”
Sit with Richard F. Upton as the Concord lawyer wrote on a napkin the law that created the modern New Hampshire presidential primary, perhaps the most critical early test for the men and women who would be president.
Recall the hey-day of the insurance business, including the meteoric rise of the HMO, Healthsource, founded with the modest investments of a group of Concord doctors in 1985, and, eleven years later, was worth $1.7 billion.
Gain an appreciation for those Concord residents who came to their nation’s defense in time of war, such as Captain Edward H. Brooks, who in October 1918 near Montfaucon, France, “ignoring the threat of a cataclysmic explosion” drove his loaded ammunition truck to safety as German artillery shells exploded around him. In World War II, then-Major General Brooks led the Sixth Corps and, accepted the surrender of the German Nineteenth and Twenty-fourth Armies on May 5, 1945.
Through the carefully researched and documented work of 15 dedicated writers, Crosscurrents of Change is intended to provide hours of enjoyable reading as well as an accurate record of a remarkable community for future generations of historians.
Producing a twentieth century history of the city became the first major project of the Concord Historical Society upon its formation in 2003. Nearly eight years later, Crosscurrents of Change: Concord, N.H. in the Twentieth Century, is the result. It is the first comprehensive history of Concord since 1903, when James O. Lyford edited and published History of Concord, New Hampshire From the Original Grant in Seventeen Hundred and Twenty-Five to the Opening of the Twentieth Century. Unlike Lyford, Crosscurrents received no public funding and was made possible by the generous contributions of many businesses and individuals.
The trustees of the Concord Historical Society engaged three professional journalists to edit and oversee the work – John Milne as Editor, Geoff Forester as Art Director and Richard Osborne as Project Manager. In turn, this team recruited a baker’s dozen of writers, all of whom met critical tests: they have a deep appreciation for Concord and the subjects on which they wrote, and they were committed to producing an engaging story backed by solid research. The team was given complete editorial freedom by the trustees of the Society.
As the Concord Historical Society moves through the 21st century, it will offer new initiatives that will bring old-timers, newcomers and visitors a unique perspective and an appreciation of the city’s heritage.
| ![Concord [New Hampshire] Historical Society](images/masthead.jpg)
