Joseph David Cress Knihy

With Wicked Carlisle, author Joe Cress revisits the criminal history of Cumberland County. Taking a more focused and less bloody approach, Cress will largely bring new stories of mischief to the table, though he will revisit the lighter side of two or three crimes from Murder and Mayhem in Cumberland County. From stories of college pranks gone wrong, Carlisle's own Robin Hood and the robbing and subsequent torching of a beloved local theater (the Strand where the local HS now sits ) to abuses at the Carlisle Indian School and the town's connection to the raid on Harper's Ferry, Cress scours the underbelly of the borough for mischief and misdeeds.

The rolling fields and quiet towns of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, belie its dynamic history. From slaves who escaped to freedom through Underground Railroad stations in Shippensburg and Boiling Springs to a telephone-like invention created by Lower Allen's Daniel Drawbaugh a full decade before the patent of Alexander Graham Bell, the pages of Cumberland County's history conceal long-forgotten but true tales. There are numerous but often-overlooked contributions from county residents--from 1920 to 1923, Newville hosted the first state police academy in the nation, and during World War II, a humble bandage invented in Carlisle saved countless lives. With an engaging collection of vignettes, author Joseph David Cress explores these and other hidden tales from the history of Cumberland County.