This image is the cover for the book Hidden History of Roanoke, Hidden History

Hidden History of Roanoke, Hidden History

Author Nelson Harris delves into the annals of history to uncover these marvelous and mostly unknown stories of the Star City of the South.


How did a Roanoke neighbor's secret upend North Carolina politics and why did a weeding scandal in Big Lick make front-page headlines in New York? These questions and many more are answered in this exciting volume of hidden stories and forgotten tales from the Star City. Discover why a Roanoker was found frozen in the North Atlantic and what Mother's Day crime and trial shocked the city in 1949. Meet the Black Cardinals, a semi-pro African American baseball team that played in the 1930s and '40s, and find out how a fistfight at Shenandoah Life helped save the company.

Nelson Harris

Nelson Harris is a minister and teacher in Roanoke, Virginia. He has been published in numerous journals and has authored several local history books. He was the Mayor of Roanoke from 2004 to 2008 and has served on many local boards, including Roanoke City Council.

The History Press