In this sweeping interpretive history of mid-nineteenth-century Chicago, historians John B. Jentz and Richard Schneirov boldly trace the evolution of a modern social order. Combining a mastery of historical and political detail with a sophisticated theoretical frame, Jentz and Schneirov examine...

Cover -- Title Page -- Copyright -- Contents -- Illustrations -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- Chapter 1. A Rural Place and a Rural People -- Chapter 2. Building Factories in the Country -- Chapter 3. Rise of the Rural-Industrial Workers -- Chapter 4. Prosperous, Independent...