This describes my method for finding and choosing which ghost towns to write about.
I do a bit of everything when researching to determine these locations. First, with the appropriate state highway map in hand, I go to the library. Here, I grab books on the state and ghost towns, request books if they are not in house, and then check the Internet. Most states are listed on numerous web sites. Then I start searching for other ghost towns missed by everyone else.
I end up giving 411 a lot of business. I obtain telephone numbers for city hall, the chamber of commerce, museums, parks departments, the post office, tourist businesses, and visitor’s centers for the town in question, or other towns in the same area. Of course, I do not limit myself to 411. Each state has a fair number of government agencies such as tourism, transportation and parks departments that are more than willing to provide mounds of information. The contacts I establish provide not only locations and history but also additional contacts in a domino-like fashion.
After conducting all possible research via books, the Internet, mail, maps and phone, I take the next logical step and visit the sites in person. I am not satisfied about the site until my size 12D boots have personally walked one of the streets of the old town. I take notes, photos, and interview anyone along the way. After the trip to the research area, I conduct follow-up interviews and review all information. Together these notes, tapes, maps and photos, create a mosaic of history, much like a jigsaw puzzle.
That is how these books are created.
I welcome your comments and suggestions.
Happy Hunting!
Bruce A. Raisch, Ghost Town Hunter,
Author, Historian, Photographer,
Adventurer
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Ghost Towns of Wyoming written by Bruce A. Raisch
Book Specifications:
· 8 1/2” x 11”,
· Softcover,
· 160 pages
· 220 Photos
· 42,000 Words of Text
For more information, please contact:
Bruce A. Raisch
Contact Information
5931 Arsenal Street
St. Louis, MO 63139
314/781-5621
bar4916@yahoo.com
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The Donning Company Publishers is pleased to announce the release of a new volume in the history of the American West: Ghost Towns of Wyoming.
This is the first in a series of ghost town books of the American West. When you hear the word “ghost town,” for many a stark Western frontier image usually pops into one’s mind. True enough, there used to be many such locations. Now, most are gone or are mere shadows of even their recent past. Through his personal visits to these locations, author Bruce A. Raisch, brings us the history of the many different types of ghost towns. From mining towns to farm, railroad, timber and tourist towns, to a place that is haunted by spirits, a new adventure waits on every page.
Ghost Towns of Wyoming is a stunning volume featuring a historical and physical biography of 74 sites, with their history dating back to 1812. While many of these towns are a vanishing breed from a bygone era, a sense of history hangs in the air of their empty streets. The only sounds that fill your ears are the wind, creaking boards, and the gravel under your boots. They speak to you in silence and reach out to you without hands. Through the pages of this book, the streets of these deserted towns come back to life. While exploring these towns, you will find adventure, great vistas, wildlife, and occasionally, the story of lost treasure or the alleged spirit. High-quality photographs and in-depth information make this book a wonderful learning tool and lifelong reminder of these fragile towns and the legends that lay in their streets. Ghost Towns of Wyoming can be purchased for $26.00 (retail). Books will be sold at bar4916@yahoo.com and can be shipped directly to you for an additional cost of $4.00. Don’t miss out on the adventure; make this your opportunity to capture history in this limited-edition book.
Ghost Towns of Wyoming is published by The Donning Company Publishers of Virginia Beach, Virginia–the largest specialty pictorial history publisher in the United States–and this publication becomes the newest book in Donning’s “Portrait of America” series.
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Ghost Towns and Other Historical Sites of the Black Hills
written by Bruce A. Raisch
Book Specifications:
· 8 1/2” x 11”,
· Softcover,
· 160 pages
· 220 Photos
· 42,000 Words of Text
For more information, please contact:
Bruce A. Raisch
Contact Information
5931 Arsenal Street
St. Louis, MO 63139
314/781-5621
bar4916@yahoo.com
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The Donning Company Publishers is pleased to announce the release of the second volume in a series of ten ghost town books of the American West. Author, Bruce A. Raisch continues his journey down the road less traveled to numerous ghost towns of the Black Hills. A new adventure awaits on every page as you follow the trail of George Custer, gold prospectors, stagecoaches and the railroads.
This is a book about boom and bust,
Of places past their prime,
People who live now only in spirit,
And of times long gone by.
Ghost Towns and Other Historical Sites of the Black Hills can be purchased for $26.00, plus $4.00 shipping and handling. To purchase your book, please contact Bruce Raisch at bar4916@yahoo.com. Don’t miss out on the adventure; make this your opportunity to capture history in this limited-edition book.
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| Ghost Towns of Idaho - The Search for El Dorado |
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This is the third in a series of ghost town books of the American West. It combines the descriptions and histories of ghost towns from all over Idaho along with Bruce's adventure and travel stories while visiting these sites.
Very often during a mining boom, a fair number of towns would spring up in a small area. When the boom went bust, it left a small cluster of ghost towns. These clusters then divided into their separate mining districts. This is also how the book is set up.
Join Bruce as he explores the road less traveled.
Book Specifications:
· 8 1/2” x 11”
· 160 pages
· 228 Photos
42,500Words of text
soft laminated color cover
PRINTED IN THE USA
Many wonder what makes the rainbow glow,
some even try to find from where it grows.
Hearts of some ache and feel they must know,
even if it means they may lose their soul.
What is it that lies at the end of the rainbow?
The shine of gold or finally, the sight of El Dorado
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And also for your enjoyment: The Boise Song by Jewel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BENdAm8DzQk
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