NARROWSBURG, NY — Four books chronicling Upper Delaware history are available for purchase at the Upper Delaware Scenic Byway, Inc. (UDSB), three of them at substantially reduced prices. They make great gifts, and at the same time benefit the non-profit organization’s mission to enhance and promote Route 97 as a New York State Scenic Byway. The books can be ordered online at www.upperdelawarescenicbyway.org/udsbstore/store.php or picked up at the Upper Delaware Council office located at 211 Bridge St.

“The Rebellion of Miss Lucy Ann Lobdell”

“The Rebellion of Miss Lucy Ann Lobdell,” by William Klaber of Long Eddy, NY. Greenleaf Book Group, LLC. Hardcover UDSB price $20. Full price $24.95. Soft cover $10.
The book tells the story of Lucy Ann/Joseph Lobdell, who lived 160 years ago and left behind a memoir of her courageous adventures and the risky consequences of dressing in male attire to provide for her family, gain equality of wages and experience the freedom to love whom she wanted. She grew up as a “Modern Diana” hunting in the Basket Creek backwoods, traveling through Wayne County, PA, and out to the western frontier of Minnesota, before being the subject of a remarkable 1,500-word obituary in The New York Times in 1879. 

“Hawk’s Nest: Newspaper History of the Road”

“Hawk’s Nest: Newspaper History of the Road,” by Norma Schadt, assistant historian for the Town of Deerpark, The 1863 Schoolhouse Press. $10 UDSB price; $15 full price.
The book includes a compilation of newspaper articles dating back to the mid-1800s that tell the story of this 1.5-mile stretch of Route 97 from its time as a single-lane dirt track between Sparrowbush and Mongaup to its 2002 dedication as an important feature of the Upper Delaware Scenic Byway. The Hawk’s Nest, renowned for the thrilling ride and sweeping vistas offered by its twisting curves situated between a rock cliff and the Delaware River, has been featured on film and in print, most recently in the movie “Dr. Strange.” Many of the photos accompanying the articles have never before appeared in print.

“So Many Brave Men: A History of the Battle at Minisink Ford” 

“So Many Brave Men: A History of the Battle at Minisink Ford,” by Mark Hendrickson, Jon Inners, and Peter Osborne. Pienpack Publishing. UDSB price $35. Full price $42.99.
The 828-page, soft-cover tome tells the complete story of one of the Revolutionary War’s bloodiest battles, documented by 43 authenticated pension records of participants with five maps and 15 period illustrations. The battle took place on a hill above Minisink Ford, NY along the Upper Delaware River. It was a disaster for the American militia units in which more than one-third of their men perished.

“Perseverance & Vigilance: The History of the Old Decker Stone House”

“Perseverance & Vigilance: The History of the Old Decker Stone House,” by Peter Osborne, former executive director of the Minisink Valley Historical Society. Minisink Press. Soft cover $19.95.
The story traces the history of the 1793 Fort Decker building from early in the Revolutionary War, to the raids of the infamous Mohawk warrior-statesman Joseph Brant, to the era of the Delaware and Hudson Canal, when the stone structure served as a hotel for the canal’s founders and engineers.