Mysteries in History by Wim Coleman and Pat Perrin, for YA readers and teachers

Why did people ever believe that dueling was honorable?

How did the works of a Scottish novelist influence dueling in America?

Why would a U.S. vice president and a former treasury secretary fight to the death?

The Mystery of the Deadly Duel
It is hard to believe that dueling was still widely practiced in the early days of the United States. But on July 11, 1804, one of our most brilliant and honored founding fathers, Alexander Hamilton, was killed in a duel by the nation's vice president, Aaron Burr. In addition to exploring the question of just how and why Hamilton died, this book covers the history of trials by combat and ordeal.

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...Meet the authors

A lively nonfiction series investigating some of history's most fascinating mysteries.
Well-researched, informative, entertaining facts highlighted by fictionalized episodes and excerpts from the works of well-known writers.
For middle school and above, richly illustrated.

The Mystery of the Vanishing Slaves
During the first half of the nineteenth century, American slaves seemed to be disappearing into mid-air. The slaves were escaping to freedom, of course, and the stories of their shrewdness and daring make for gripping reading. Here are the stories of the Underground Railroad, of remarkable disguises and secret signals, and of heroes who helped along the way.

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What secret codes helped slaves know when and how they could escape?

Where was the Underground Railroad?

Who shipped himself to freedom in a wooden box?

Why did many people believe that human giants had once roamed the earth?

What did Mark Twain have to say to the Cardiff Giant?

How did P.T. Barnum carry off a hoax of a hoax?

The Mystery of the Cardiff Giant
In 1869, a gigantic stone man was dug up near Cardiff, New York. Was it a petrified man from some bygone age, or an ancient sculpture? The celebrated thinker Ralph Waldo Emerson believed that the Cardiff Giant was the remains of a human giant. The equally celebrated Oliver Wendell Holmes was convinced that the figure was the work of an artist. Either way, it seemed an extraordinary discovery.

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The Mystery of the Murdered Playwright
When he was murdered in 1593 at the age of 29, Elizabethan playwright Christopher Marlowe was almost exactly the age of another author named William Shakespeare. Indeed, during his short life, Marlowe seemed likely to become England's greatest playwright. According to most accounts, Marlowe died in a tavern brawl over a supper bill. But the truth is much stranger—a tale involving espionage, political intrigue, and assassination.

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Why did a queen provide a young playwright with a written excuse for missing school?

What was considered the worst crime of all in Elizabethan England?

Who killed Marlowe?

Why were English scientists pleased to think that the skull was from their prehistoric ancestor?

Who could have so skillfully constructed the skull? And why?

What was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle doing at the Piltdown dig?

The Mystery of the Piltdown Skull
Between 1910 and 1912, amateur geologist Charles Dawson discovered pieces of what appeared to be the skull of a human ancestor. Found in Piltdown Common in England, the skull became known as Piltdown Man. It seemed the greatest discovery in paleontology—a true evolutionary “missing link” between apes and humans. But as decades passed, Piltdown Man proved to be perhaps the greatest scientific hoax ever perpetrated.

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