Westport

A New York Times Best Seller A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice Betty Weissmann has just been dumped by her husband of forty-eight years. Exiled from her elegant New York apartment by her husband's mistress, she and her two middle-aged daughters, Miranda and Annie, regroup in a run-down Westport, Connecticut, beach cottage. In Schine's playful and devoted homage to Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility, the impulsive sister is Miranda, a literary agent entangled in a series of scandals, and the more pragmatic sister is Annie, a library director, who feels compelled to move in and watch over her capricious mother and sister. Schine's witty, wonderful novel The Three Weissmanns of Westport "is simply full of pleasure: the pleasure of reading, the pleasure of Austen, and the pleasure that the characters so rightly and humorously pursue....An absolute triumph" (The Cleveland Plain Dealer).

This well-documented journey into the past illuminates the special character and sense of place that is Westport, Connecticut. It offers the reader a keen insight into the unusual tapestry of life in this town, woven by a combination of colonial farmers, immigrants who built Westport, and celebrities from the arts, the professions, politics, and corporate America who have made this widely acclaimed town their home."--BOOK JACKET.

The town of Westport has long been tied to the sea. Its abundant rivers provided waterpower for cotton and iron manufacturing, and its protected harbor served as a base for the whaling and fishing industry. Since it was first settled in the 1670s, generations of farmers have worked Westports soil, and agriculture remains an important part of this coastal community. Water continues to define this community, there is still an active commercial fishing fleet, waterfront cottages fill with summer residents, and day-trippers flock to the long sandy crescent of Horseneck Beach. Westports beauty is not simply in its past but exists today in the well-preserved 18th- and 19th-century homes, the pristine landscape, and the rich community life of its villages.

Westport, Connecticut, started as a 17th-century colonial English settlement. Nestled on the shores of Long Island Sound and at the mouth of the Saugatuck River, the area was ideally placed for farming, fishing, and commerce. Westport was formally incorporated as a distinct municipality in 1835 and would evolve into a factory town, a bucolic retreat for both the wealthy and the common man, an enclave for artists and performers, and finally, a bedroom community for New York City. Notable townsfolk have included E.T. Bedford, a Standard Oil executive and philanthropist; inventor Benjamin Toquet; and William Phelps Eno, the "father of traffic safety." F. Scott Fitzgerald penned The Great Gatsby while summering in Westport in 1920. Silent film star W.S. Hart called the town home, as did Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, Bette Davis, and many more. Artists George Hand Wright, Robert Lamdin, Tracy Sugarman, and others were part of a vibrant art community that spanned nearly 100 years. The town retains its cultural flair with several institutions, such as the Westport Country Playhouse and Museum of Contemporary Art.

The story of the largest Civil War battle west of the Mississippi, in what would one day become Kansas City, and the role it played in American history. The Battle of Westport, Missouri—today part of Kansas City—was fought by troops from as far away as New Jersey and Pennsylvania, as well as Texas, Arkansas, Colorado and Iowa. It was the climax of a desperate Confederate raid led by General Sterling Price proceeding from Arkansas across the State of Missouri to the Kansas border. The Union victory at Westport marked the end of major military operations in Missouri and secured Kansas and the trails, rails, and communication lines to the western states. Participants included future governors of both Kansas and Missouri, notorious postwar outlaws, and many notable characters who would shape the growth and image of the western states. This book tells the story of the place, the engagement, the people, and the importance of the Missouri/Kansas border war’s greatest battle. In addition, the aftermath and legacy of the Battle of Westport is presented in the broader context of westward expansion, giving readers a greater appreciation of how far-reaching the effects were of those few days in October, 1864.

From the 1890s through the 1920s, the postcard was an extraordinarily popular means of communication, and many of the postcards produced during this "golden age" can today be considered works of art. Westport, Connecticut, a tourist mecca with an artistic reputation, has been captured on numerous postcards featuring scenes of the New England town's shore, its restaurants and inns, and its stately homes and gardens. The neighboring town of Weston, where the beauty of the surroundings is paramount, featured captivating nature scenes. These images, printed as postcards and sold in general stores across the country, survive as telling reminders of an important era in America's history. This fascinating new history of Westport and Weston, Connecticut, showcases more than two hundred of the bestvintage postcards dating from the late 1800s to the 1950s.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD “A beautifully crafted memoir, rich with humor and wisdom.” —Will Schwalbe, author of The End of Your Life Book Club “The idea of a cultured gay man leaving New York City to care for his aging mother in Paris, Missouri, is already funny, and George Hodgman reaps that humor with great charm. But then he plunges deep, examining the warm yet fraught relationship between mother and son with profound insight and understanding.” —Alison Bechdel, author of Fun Home When George Hodgman leaves Manhattan for his hometown of Paris, Missouri, he finds himself—an unlikely caretaker and near-lethal cook—in a head-on collision with his aging mother, Betty, a woman of wit and will. Will George lure her into assisted living? When hell freezes over. He can’t bring himself to force her from the home both treasure—the place where his father’s voice lingers, the scene of shared jokes, skirmishes, and, behind the dusty antiques, a rarely acknowledged conflict: Betty, who speaks her mind but cannot quite reveal her heart, has never really accepted the fact that her son is gay. As these two unforgettable characters try to bring their different worlds together, Hodgman reveals the challenges of Betty’s life and his own struggle for self-respect, moving readers from their small town—crumbling but still colorful—to the star-studded corridors of Vanity Fair. Evocative of The End of Your Life Book Club and The Tender Bar, Hodgman’s New York Times bestselling debut is both an indelible portrait of a family and an exquisitely told tale of a prodigal son’s return.

Situated within Westport Township's expansive prairies along Six Mile Creek, the village known as Waunakee began as a country road with only a school and blacksmith shop. Established in 1871, the village of Waunakee sprang up almost immediately and continued to grow and thrive for the subsequent 140 years.