Non-fiction books with a strong sense of place and lots of interesting background research?

I just read A Walk In The Woods by Bill Bryson and loved how he transports you to the places he visits, as well as explaining some interesting history and other relevant background research. I also love Michael Finkel's books (The Stranger In The Woods and The Art Thief), which immerse you in the settings and teach you a lot about various topics. The suggested reading/bibliographies at the end were also nice for digging further into the subjects. Any recommendations of other books are much appreciated. (If it helps, I like reading about the history of anything)