Delaware Before the Railroads: A Diamond Among the States by Dave Tabler Book Tour, Guest Post, & Giveaway! {Ends 12/17/22}
“Beautifully illustrated and presented in a unique format, ‘Delaware Before the Railroads’ is an easy and informative read-sure to appeal to Early American and Delaware history buffs.” –Amelia E. Miller, Tennessee author and historian
Book Details:
Delaware Before the Railroads: A Diamond Among the States by Dave Tabler
Category: Adult Non-Fiction, 100 pages
Genre: American History, Colonial
Publisher: Dave Tabler
Publication Date: Nov 2022
Tour dates: Nov 25 to Dec 16
Content Rating: G. None needed. Works for all audiences.
Book Description:
Delaware before the railroads arrived in 1832 was hotly contested real estate. Circle back to 1610 for a ride that takes you through culture clashes, colonization, revolution and beyond.
Add to Goodreads ~ Buy the Book: Amazon ~ B&N ~ Indiebound ~ BookShop

BOOK PRAISE:

“Tabler debuts with a visual feast introducing readers to the First State before the golden age of the railroad. Drawing on photographs of locations, reconstructions, and historical objects, together with brief captions and rigorous notes, Tabler weaves a rich tapestry of industry, politics, and faith. He organizes the photographs roughly chronologically, tracking Delaware’s development from Swedish settlers to American independence, and dedicates space to images that reflect Delaware’s Native American history, as well as tracing the impact that enslaved people had on the state’s historical development.” – Booklife
“If you think you know Delaware, think again. Pirates? Quakers fighting with Pennsylvania? Towns so ugly no one would settle there? With stunning pictures and straightforward storytelling, Dave Tabler opens hidden passages and describes defining moments in this founding American colony. Telling this small state’s story gives you a sense of the big picture in American history. Enjoy this fresh look at Delaware through Dave Tabler’s eyes.” — Wendy Welch, author The Little Bookstore of Big Stone Gap
“Whether discussing the colored spear tips that showed the community if a person had been found guilty or not, to the stones that identified the Mason-Dixon Line, Dave Tabler’s book on colonial Delaware offers the reader a smorgasbord of interesting stories and photos of its early years. This is another book to add to collections about the beginnings of our country.” — Sheila Ingle, winner, South Carolina Daughters of the American Revolution Historical Preservation Award for four of her young reader novels about South Carolina heroines during the Revolutionary War
“Thoroughly researched and well-written, Delaware before the Railroads offers a glimpse into the past through a present lens. Respected historian Dave Tabler utilizes colorful and intriguing photographs to tell Delaware’s foundational stories.” — Jan Loveday Dickens, Tennessee author and educator
“Dave Tabler’s impeccable research and clearly written descriptives tell a truthful and provocative story for anyone interested in the subject or doing research for other works covering the same period. The colorful and informative photographs tell the story of not only Colonial Delaware residents from 1638-1832 but our American forefathers in general. We learn about every aspect of their way of life during the most critical time of our country’s history.” — Lisa Soland, author, and senior editor of Climbing Angel Publishing
“Dave Tabler has crafted a concise and fascinating photographic account of early Delaware. “Delaware Before The Railroads” is definitely a book that should be in the collection of anyone interested not only in the history of Delaware but also in the history of colonial America.” –– Steve Gilly, “Stories, A History of Appalachia” podcast
“Tabler’s purpose, indeed, his mission, is to create a tribute to the culture and history of Delaware before the coming of the railroad. Consequently, he not only rediscovers the past, he also preserves and celebrates it with a montage of vivid images and an insightful narrative.” — Gary Carden, author, storyteller, playwright

Guest Post :

No writer works in a vacuum. There are always influences. Fathers, for example. My dad Ken, now 96, started keeping a daily journal in his early 50s. Twenty years into that he decided to pull it all together into a memoir. He grew up dirt poor in the Depression. Later, he was one of the first people to work with the Univac, a new-fangled thing called a ‘computer,’ in 1947, and that opportunity gave him the opening to hoist himself into the middle class. No more cardboard liners in shoes with holes in the soles.
Writing, done right, is hard work. Ken published his memoir, “The Day is Far Spent,” after ten years of polishing, sanding, cutting, re-writing, adding new additions, rearranging sections, tearing up whole chapters, and starting over. I thought he’d never finish.
But he did. He blocked out time every day to chip away at his project. Some days crowded that time; some days he was able to devote more than the usual effort. But every day, something.
I absorbed that influence when I started “Delaware Before the Railroads”. Lots of people have said to me when I mentioned my new book project “Oh, I should write a book someday.”
“Someday” will never happen unless you discipline yourself on a schedule. I’m relieved that my Delaware book did not take ten years to complete, but when I began it I was prepared to take the long view. Just like my dad with his memoir project, I ran into snags, delays, setbacks, roadblocks, and nasty surprises.
West Virginians say folks who are able to keep on course no matter what have “stick-to-it-ive-ness”. If there’s one thing I want more than anything to inherit from my old hillbilly father, it’s that.
Meet the Author:
Ten year old Dave Tabler decided he was going to read the ‘R’ volume from the family’s World Book Encyclopedia set over summer vacation. He never made it from beginning to end. He did, however, become interested in Norman Rockwell, rare-earth elements, and Run for the Roses.
Tabler’s father encouraged him to try his hand at taking pictures with the family camera. With visions of Rockwell dancing in his head, Tabler press-ganged his younger brother into wearing a straw hat and sitting next to a stream barefoot with a homemade fishing pole in his hand. The resulting image was terrible.
Dave Tabler went on to earn degrees in art history and photojournalism despite being told he needed a ‘Plan B.’
Fresh out of college, Tabler contributed the photography for “The Illustrated History of American Civil War Relics,” which taught him how to work with museum curators, collectors, and white cotton gloves. He met a man in the Shenandoah Valley who played the musical saw, a Knoxville fellow who specialized in collecting barbed wire, and Tom Dickey, brother of the man who wrote ‘Deliverance.’
In 2006 Tabler circled back to these earlier encounters with Appalachian culture as an idea for a blog. AppalachianHistory.net today reaches 375,000 readers a year.
Dave Tabler moved to Delaware in 2010 and became smitten with its rich past. He no longer copies Norman Rockwell, but his experience working with curators and collectors came in handy when he got the urge to photograph a love letter to Delaware’s early heritage.
connect with the author: website ~ twitter ~ facebook ~ pinterest ~ instagram ~ goodreads
The Tour Schedule :
Nov 25 – Splashes of Joy – book spotlight / giveaway
Nov 28 – Locks, Hooks and Books – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
Nov 29 – Book Corner News and Reviews – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
Dec 1 – fundinmental– book spotlight / giveaway
Dec 2 – Rockin’ Book Reviews – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
Dec 5 – Jazzy Book Reviews – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
Dec 6 – Cover Lover Book Review – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
Dec 7 – Stephanie Jane – book spotlight / author interview / giveaway
Dec 8 – Celticlady’s Reviews – book spotlight / giveaway
Dec 12 – Liese’s Blog – book spotlight
Dec 14 – The Adventures of a Traveler’s Wife – book spotlight / author interview / guest post / giveaway
Dec 16 – Lisa’s Reading – book spotlight / giveaway
Giveaway Details:
Win paperback copy of Delaware Before the Railroads: A Diamond Among the States (one winner) (USA only) (ends Dec 17)
To Enter the Giveaway click on the Rafflecopter link below:
DELAWARE BEFORE THE RAILROADS Spotlight Book Tour Giveaway

Sounds fascinating
A fascinating and wonderful book that would be ideal for my grandchildren to enjoy and treasure. I loved reading about the author, his life and his father. A beautiful story which touches my heart.