Overview

Winner of the Clinton Jackson Coley Book Award from the Alabama Historical Association In the first-ever narrative history of this important American watercourse, John S. Sledge weaves chronological and thematic elements together with personal experiences for a rich and rewarding read. Illustrated with more than sixty color and black-and-white images, The Mobile River beautifully communicates a strong sense of place. Beginning at Nannahubba, where the Alabama and Tombigbee Rivers meet, the Mobile River serves as the outlet for the sixth largest river basin in the United States and the largest one emptying into the Gulf of Mexico east of the Mississippi. Sledge takes readers on a journey through history framed and sometimes directed by this expansive watershed. A tale spanning colonial forts, international treaties, and thundering naval battles, and populated by characters, including Indian warriors, European diplomats, cartographers, enslaved Africans, Civil War generals, hydraulic engineers, and ""Rosie the Riveter"" women workers, The Mobile River presents a pageant of conflict, struggle, and endless opportunity. In a new preface, Sledge addresses the 2018 discovery of the wreck of the Clotilda, the last slave ship to arrive in America.

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9781643365275

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Reviews

"[An] exciting narrative told by a master of the material and the moment."" - Alabama Review ""The book is military history, maritime history, a history of commerce, immigration and race relations, even agriculture. [One] comes away with a hugely enlarged appreciation for the dangers the river presents and with a new awareness of the complexity in the history of Alabama's Port City."" - Alabama Public Radio ""An eye-opening introduction to the waterways and people that have written the history of this underappreciated region of the United States."" - Lincoln Paine, author of The Sea and Civilization: A Maritime History of the World ""A fine, fascinating book. John S. Sledge introduces us to four centuries worth of heroes and rogues on one incredible American river."" - Winston Groom ""This book is a must for those thirsty for knowledge."" - Idgie"

[An] exciting narrative told by a master of the material and the moment."" - Alabama Review ""The book is military history, maritime history, a history of commerce, immigration and race relations, even agriculture. [One] comes away with a hugely enlarged appreciation for the dangers the river presents and with a new awareness of the complexity in the history of Alabama's Port City."" - Alabama Public Radio ""An eye-opening introduction to the waterways and people that have written the history of this underappreciated region of the United States."" - Lincoln Paine, author of The Sea and Civilization: A Maritime History of the World ""A fine, fascinating book. John S. Sledge introduces us to four centuries worth of heroes and rogues on one incredible American river."" - Winston Groom ""This book is a must for those thirsty for knowledge."" - Idgie

"""[An] exciting narrative told by a master of the material and the moment."" -- ""Alabama Review"" ""An eye-opening introduction to the waterways and people that have written the history of this underappreciated region of the United States."" --Lincoln Paine, author of The Sea and Civilization: A Maritime History of the World ""The book is military history, maritime history, a history of commerce, immigration and race relations, even agriculture. [One] comes away with a hugely enlarged appreciation for the dangers the river presents and with a new awareness of the complexity in the history of Alabama's Port City."" -- ""Alabama Public Radio"" A fine, fascinating book. John S. Sledge introduces us to four centuries worth of heroes and rogues on one incredible American river. --Winston Groom This book is a must for those thirsty for knowledge. --Idgie"

Author Information

John S. Sledge is maritime historian in residence for the National Maritime Museum of the Gulf of Mexico. He is the author of eight books, including The Gulf of Mexico: A Maritime History.

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