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Discover the maufacturing plant that typifies the era when American industrial giants dominated the global economy and generations of blue-collar workers strived for a fair share of the ""American Dream.""

A burgeoning town on the fringes of Chicago rose and fell with the successes of the Western Electric Company. For almost 90 years, the Hawthorne Works plant employed, educated, entertained, and defined the township of Cicero. As the manufacturing arm of Western Electric, Hawthorne contributed greatly to the prosperity and national defense of the United States. As the site of the controversial Hawthorne Studies of workplace motivation and behavior, the plant reconfigured business and social science models. A community within a community, Hawthorne had its own sports teams, social clubs, hospital, railroad yards, and savings and loan. At its peak, the works was the largest single-site employer in Illinois and one of the biggest manufacturing establishments in the country, second only to the Ford plant in Detroit.

Abraham Lincoln and Chicago both generate countless books, but this is the first in-depth examination of the actual relationship between the Prairie State's biggest city and its most famous citizen.

The Illinois Rail Splitter's influence can be felt across the Land of Lincoln, but his relationship with Chicago was pivotal in his journey to the national stage. Lincoln first came to Chicago in 1847, a year before the Illinois-Michigan Canal opened and brought spectacular wealth to the region. The Midwestern metropolis is where Lincoln would meet the backers that ultimately propelled him into the White House. Tens of thousands of Chicagoans viewed his coffin at its last stop before its final destination in Springfield. John Toman and Michael Frutig explore how the people of Chicago managed to get their man into power on the eve of the greatest crisis the nation had ever faced.

Before the rise of automobiles, where new trolley car lines were built, people, businesses, and neighborhoods followed, and trolleys quickly helped Chicago become a world-class city.

Chicago's extensive transit system first started in 1859, when horsecars ran on rails in city streets, cable cars and electric streetcars following soon after, but once trolleys appeared on the scene, Chicago metaphorically exploded. At its peak, Chicago had over 3,000 streetcars and 1,000 miles of track--the largest such system in the world. By the 1930s, there were also streamlined trolleys and trolley buses on rubber tires. Some parts of Chicago's famous "L" system also used trolley wire instead of a third rail. Trolley cars once took people from the Loop to such faraway places as Aurora, Elgin, Milwaukee, and South Bend. Though seemingly-outdated in the 21st century, there are still a few trolleys running today for anyone who prefers to take the scenic route.

In vivid historical images and rare archival documents, see for yourself how Joliet became a quintessential American City.

Joliet once was a lush prairie bordered with scenic bluffs along the Des Plaines River. In the late 19th century, settlers and a large influx of Eastern European immigrants arrived, transforming the area into a bustling industrial community of steel, limestone, manufacturing, and transportation. In the 20th century, Joliet transformed itself from an industrial hub to a destination of entertainment and tourism. Tourism thrives as people visit the National Hot Rod Association drag strip, NASCAR track, two casinos, the JackHammers minor-league baseball team and baseball stadium, a water park, the historical museum, and library. Joliet depicts the rich cultural heritage impressed on the city and shows how the people lived and worked together, earning Joliet the title of All-American City in 1955 by the National Municipal League and Look magazine.

With a collection of nearly 240 vintage postcards, Rockford: 1920 and Beyond captures this dynamic, ever-changing era.

Rockford's economic boom of the early twentieth century continued into the Roaring Twenties, when Rockford's newly-erected skyscrapers symbolized the city's sky's the limit ambitions. But the good times came to a crashing halt with the arrival of the Great Depression in October 1929. With its longstanding blue collar industrial roots, Rockford would enjoy renewed and even greater prosperity as it readily capitalized on the World War II war effort and the post-war economic boom years. With a collection of nearly 240 vintage postcards, Rockford: 1920 and Beyond captures this dynamic, ever-changing era as Rockford transformed into Illinois' Second City. Inside, see now-familiar skyscrapers like the Rockford News Tower, Talcott Building, and Faust Hotel enliven Rockford's downtown skyline. Take a nostalgic trip to the Blackhawk Park Zoo and the Central Park and Kiddieland amusement parks. Watch post-war car culture change the face of the city with its drive-ins, shopping centers, and expressways. Witness the World War II revival of Rockford's storied Camp Grant. See the famed Wagon Wheel Resort in its high-flying, star-studded Hollywood heydays. Marvel at the destructive power of Rockford's deadly Cyclone of '28.

A fascinating history of Park Ridge, Illinois, detailing its diverse community and past.

In 1835, immigrants began to arrive from New York and New England to the area first called Pennyville, later renamed Brickton to reflect its leading industry, then finally incorporated as the Village of Park Ridge in 1873. The name originates from the village's park-like setting and an erroneous belief that the ridge at Johnston's Circle--today the three-way intersection of Touhy, Prospect, and Northwest Highway--was the highest point in Cook County. Notable names associated with Park Ridge include Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and actor Harrison Ford, who both attended Maine East High School; Chicago Cubs great Ron Santo, who operated a popular pizzeria in town; and painter Grant Wood, whose American Gothic is one of the 20th century's great works of Americana. Anchored by the landmark Pickwick Theater, a fine example of art deco architecture built in 1928, downtown Park Ridge has changed much over the years, a transformation captured so well in the pages of this book.

Visit the Back of the Yards neighborhood and setting for Upton Sinclair's The Jungle.

The Back of the Yards neighborhood, located in back of the Union Stockyards and composed of Packingtown, Town of Lake, and New City, was the setting of Upton Sinclair's classic 1906 novel, The Jungle. Permeated by an unforgettable smell, Back of the Yards was a melting pot of immigrants, many who worked in the stockyards. In 1894, Mary McDowell started the University of Chicago Settlement House in Back of the Yards. She improved living conditions and in 1905 helped create Davis Square Park. The Back of the Yards Neighborhood Council was founded in 1939 by Joseph Meegan, Saul Alinsky, and Bishop Bernard Sheil and is America's oldest not for profit community based organization. It consisted of 185 delegate organizations involving residents, business owners, churches, parks, schools, and social clubs that worked to advocate improvements. The council motto continues on as ""We the people will work out our own destiny."" Relive the bustling activity and the lives of the people in the neighborhood through the historic images in Back of the Yards.

Witness a never-before-seen perspective of the personnel who have become legends in their own in the stands of The Friendly Confines.

In 1970, a vendor at Wrigley Field had an amazing idea to turn his personal camera away from the baseball diamond and toward his fellow ballpark hawkers as they went about their daily jobs of selling souvenirs, programs, hot dogs, ice cream, and soft drinks. Along the way, he also captured images of other employees - ushers, security staff, commissary workers, and union officials. The result, Wrigley Field's Amazing Vendors, offers an inside look of Major League Baseball that Arcadia Publishing is proud to include in its Images of Modern America series. The subjects themselves are amazing: a blind Frosty Malt vendor; a singing peanut vendor; a Coca-Cola vendor who went on to become an economic adviser to the president of the United States. Many of the vendors photographed in the 1970s are still in the aisles of Wrigley Field today. Others left for new career opportunities, while a few became legends in vending history.

Croatians of Chicagolandexamines how the Croatian community, its leaders, clergy, laborers, politicians, athletes, benevolent societies, and social organizations helped build and shape Chicago's history.

Chicago was once known as the Second Croatian Capital. Lured by economic, political, and social freedoms, Croatians, like other immigrants, came to Chicago in search of the American dream.

The first documented groups settled mainly in Pilsen, Bridgeport, and theSouth Side in the late 1800s. By the turn of the century, these immigrants toiled in Chicago's steel mills, meatpacking plants, and construction sites. They soon formed social groups, churches, schools, Croatian-language newspapers, and other infrastructure needed to support the expanding community. Today there are more than 150,000 descendants of Croatian heritage in the Chicagolandarea, and many of the foundations built by the forefathers continue to service the community. Ivan Meštrovic´'s Indiansculptures still adorn Congress Parkwayand Michael Bilandic´ remains in the history books as the only Croatian mayor of Chicago.

Author Maria Dugandžic´-Pašic´ was born, and still lives, in Chicago. Her mother was a first-generation Croatian whose parents emigrated in 1951. Her father arrived in the early 1960s from Bosnia-Herzegovina. As a producer with CNN, she has covered major news events in Chicago, Rome, London, Jerusalem, and the Balkans.

From 19th century trading post to one of the world's great financial, business, and entertainment districts, experience the growth and changes of the Windy City.

Chicago's famed Loopis said to have gotten its name from the route of a cable car that looped the central business district in 1882. Since then, much has changed.

This book captures the evolving urban landscape of the Chicago Loop, with a collection of over 100 vintage images, each coupled with its contemporary counterpart. Few cities are as renowned for their architecture as is Chicago. The impressive skyscrapers in and around the Loopgive Chicago a skyline second to none. And with more than three dozen historic landmarks, the Loopis home to many of the city's most recognized structures.

Authors Janice A. Knox and Heather Olivia Belcher are both native Chicagoans and collectors of Chicago memorabilia. Together they have created a book that shows us the Chicago we know and love today, along with a clear echo of the city's rich, ever-changing landscape.

Robert Sengstacke Abbott had a vision, purpose, and a slogan that said it all: ""American race prejudice must be destroyed.""

In 1905, Abbott created the Chicago Defenderwith 25¢ and a dream in his landlady's kitchen. The Defender was a platform and voice for talents such as Langston Hughes, Gwendolyn Brooks, and W.E.B. DuBois. What began as a humble weekly grew into the largest and most influential Black newspaper in the country, inspiring roughly a million African Americans to leave the oppressive South for a better life in the North. Born in 1868 on the heels of the Reconstruction Era, Abbott--the son of former slaves--managed to influence the first two decades of the 20th century and was a major contributor to the prolific movement known as the ""Great Northern Migration."" Boasting a circulation of over 300,000 nationally, the Defender was secretly delivered by Pullman porters across the United States. By 1920, the paper's tagline read, ""The World's Greatest Weekly."" The story of the Defender is one of inspiration, struggle, triumph, and irreversible pathways being forged.

After an extremely hot and dry summer, Chicago got a spark that grew into something unimiginable and unforgettable on Oct. 8, 1871.

On Oct. 8, 1871, what became known as "the Great Chicago Fire" was a massive firestorm that moved faster than most men could run, fueled by southwest winds of at least 30 miles per hour. The heat was so intense it melted stone and brick buildings in minutes and turned sand on the lakeshore into glass. A total of 18,000 buildings were destroyed. About 100,000 were left homeless, and over 300 lost their lives. The very same day, and nearly the same hour, both the Lower Peninsula of Michigan and Peshtigo, Wisconsin, suffered similar firestorms. Peshtigo's was even worse, creating an event that came to be known as "the Peshtigo Paradigm." Many people believe the three fires forming a huge triangle of destruction were related as one with cosmic causes, and it remains a mystery to this day. Authors and native Chicagoans John Boda and Ray Johnson take you inside this historic happening.

Prohibition Glenview made many people rich, some angry, some sad, and some dead.

Today, Glenview is one of the safest places to live in Illinois, but during Prohibition, speakeasies, saloons, and "ice cream parlors" hijacked the small farming town. Good men and women, trying make a few bucks, opened scores of taprooms and lounges along Waukegan Road. Beloved institutions like Hackney's restaurants, Meier's Tavern, and Grandpa's Place were originally supplied by a bootlegging operation that was both local and friendly. Then the Chicago Outfit moved in. Author Jill Crane traces the path the resilient citizens of Glenview took in carving a thriving community out of the tumult of Prohibition.

Track the history of the Chicago Great Western Railway through vintage images in this volume authored by David J. Fiore Sr.

The Chicago Great Western Railway (CGW) was a Midwestern line that operated in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Minnesota, Kansas, and Nebraska. Although this territory was served by much larger systems, the CGW was able to retain its share of passenger and freight business for 83 years through aggressive management, dedicated employees, innovations, and efficient operations. By the early 1960s, however, the growth of the trucking industry and airlines had taken away a substantial amount of the business previously handled by railroads. The CGW would not survive as operating costs increased while revenues declined. The only solution was to consolidate with another railroad, and a favorable agreement was reached with the Chicago and North Western Railway (C&NW). At 12:01 a.m. Monday, July 1, 1968, the CGW ceased to exist, as it became part of the C&NW. Since that time, much of the system has been abandoned, and today only a few segments of former CGW trackage remain in service. This book provides nostalgic images and photographs of the operations, employees, locomotives, and stations of a little railroad that is now only a memory.

The history of one of the most important airports in the US comes to life in over 150 historical photos.

In 1942, a stretch of Illinois prairie that had served as a battleground and a railroad depot became the site of a major manufacturing plant, producing Douglas C-54 Skymasters for World War II. Less than twenty years later, that plot of land boasted the biggest and busiest airport in the world. Many of the millions who have since passed through it have likely only regarded it as a place between cities. But for people like Michael Branigan, who has spent years on its tarmac, they know that O'Hare is a city unto itself, with a fascinating history of gangsters and heroes, mayors, presidents and pilots.