Away Off Shore: Nantucket Island and Its People, 1602-1890

by Nathaniel Philbrick

Overview

A book about a tiny island with a huge history, from the New York Times bestselling author of Valiant Ambition and In the Hurricane's Eye.

“For everyone who loves Nantucket Island this is the indispensable book.” —Russell Baker

In his first book of history, Nathaniel Philbrick reveals the people and the stories behind what was once the whaling capital of the world. Beyond its charm, quaint local traditions, and whaling yarns, Philbrick explores the origins of Nantucket in this comprehensive history. From the English settlers who thought they were purchasing a “Native American ghost town” but actually found a fully realized society, through the rise and fall of the then thriving whaling industry, the story of Nantucket is a truly unique chapter of American history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780143120124
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	04/26/2011
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	188,462
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Nathaniel Philbrick is the author of In the Heart of the Sea, winner of the National Book Award; Mayflower, finalist for the Pulitzer Prize; Bunker Hill, winner of the New England Book Award; Sea of Glory; The Last Stand; Why Read Moby Dick?; and Away Off Shore. He lives in Nantucket. His new book, Valiant Ambition: George Washington, Benedict Arnold, and the Fate of the American Revolution, will be published in May 2016.

Hometown:

Nantucket, Massachusetts

Date of Birth:

June 11, 1956

Place of Birth:

Boston, Massachusetts

Education:

B.A., Brown University, 1978; M.A., Duke University

Website:

http://www.nathanielphilbrick.com

Table of Contents

	Preface	ix
I	An Island and Its Altar	1
II	Native Origins: Mashop, Roqua, Wonoma and Autopscot	13
III	Thomas Macy's Great Escape	21
IV	Tristram Coffin, Country Squire	29
V	"An Island Full of Indians": King Philip, John Gibbs, and Peter Folger	39
VI	Gardner versus Coffin: The Revolt	53
VII	The Whaling Legacy of Ichabod Paddock	65
VIII	Mary Starbuck, High Priestess of the Company Store	77
IX	Richard Macy, the Master Builder	89
X	Of God, Indians, and Getting By: The Hireling, Timothy White	99
XI	Peleg Folger, the Poet Whaleman	111
XII	Kezia Coffin's Revolutionary Rise and Fall	123
XIII	The "Removals": From Jethro Coffin to William Rotch	135
XIV	A "Nest of Love" No Longer: William Coffin and the Bank, Commons, and School Wars	145
XV	The Golden Boy and the Dark Man: Obed Starbuck and George Pollard	161
XVI	Absalom Boston and Abram Quary: "Of Color" on the Grey Lady	177
XVII	Maria Mitchell, the Provincial Cosmopolitan	189
XVIII	F. C. Sanford, the Mythmaker	203
	Epilogue	215
	Notes	219
	Acknowledgments	263
	Index	265

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“Nathaniel Philbrick has written a gem of a book. Away Off Shore is meticulously detailed, filled with fine anecdotes, and a fascinating look at a fascinating place.” —H. G. Bissinger, author of Friday Night Lights

“Away Off Shore doesn’t recount more of the same heroic stories we’ve all heard about early Nantucketers . . . Instead the author gives us—finally—a human story of real Nantucketers whose actions reflect the times and the hardships they endured trying to make a life on this island centuries ago.” —Nantucket Inquirer and Mirror

Editorial Reviews

Nathaniel Philbrick has written a gem of a book. Away Off Shore is meticulously detailed, filled with fine anecdotes, and a fascinating look at a fascinating place.” —H. G. Bissinger, author of Friday Night Lights

“Away Off Shore doesn’t recount more of the same heroic stories we’ve all heard about early Nantucketers . . . Instead the author gives us—finally—a human story of real Nantucketers whose actions reflect the times and the hardships they endured trying to make a life on this island centuries ago.” —Nantucket Inquirer and Mirror

From the Publisher