Livestock markets for the sale and distribution of meat developed as early as the days of colonial America. In the mid-nineteenth century, as westward expansion increased and railroads developed, stockyard companies formed in order to meet the demand of a growing nation. Contrary to markets, these companies were centrally organized and managed by a select few principal partners. America's Historic Stockyards: Livestock Hotels is an examination of such stockyards, from their early beginnings to their eventual decline. Stockyards helped to establish some of America's greatest cities. Early on the scene were stockyards in cities such as Cincinnati, otherwise known as "Porkopolis," and meat stockyards and packing powerhouse Chicago, which was considered the number one livestock market in the nation. Markets soon opened in the Midwest and eventually expanded further westward to California and Oregon. Other smaller markets made large contributions to the industry. The cow towns of Fort Worth and Wichita never reached the status of Chicago but did have large livestock receipts. Fort Worth, for instance, became the largest horse and mule market in 1915, as World War I produced an increased demand for these animals. Meatpacking moguls known as the Big Four--Phillip Armour, Gustavus Swift, Nelson Morris, and Edward Cudahy--usually financed these growing markets, controlled the meatpacking business and, in turn, the stockyards companies. Although the members changed, this oligopoly remained intact for much of the duration of the stockyards industry. However, as railways gave way to highways, the markets declined and so too did these moguls. By the end of the twentieth century, almost every major market closed, bringing an end to the stockyard era. J'Nell Pate's examination of this era, the people, and the markets themselves recounts a significant part of the history of America's meat industry.

As early as 1867, Fort Worth held promise as an ideal stockyards. Making their way to northern markets, cattle passed through the city on what became the Chisholm Trail. By 1876, local businessmen urged railroad development, and the establishment of local packing facilities and animal pens followed in the 1880s. The first stockyards opened in 1889. It was not until the nation's two largest meatpacking giants, Armour and Swift, bought into the local market in 1902, however, that the stockyards began to thrive. Fort Worth became the largest stockyards in the Southwest and ranked consistently from third to fourth nationwide. Most major stockyards have now closed, including Fort Worth in 1992. Of these, only Fort Worth has successfully turned its former livestock market into a tourist site, attracting nearly a million visitors annually.

On the South Side to tour the Union Stock Yard, people got a firsthand look at Chicago's industrial prowess as they witnessed cattle, hogs, and sheep disassembled with breathtaking efficiency. At their height, the kill floors employed 50,000 workers and processed six hundred animals an hour, an astonishing spectacle of industrialized death. Pacyga chronicles the rise and fall of an industrial district that, for better or worse, served as the public face of Chicago for decades. He takes readers through the packinghouses as only an insider can, covering the rough and toxic life inside the plants and their lasting effects on the world outside. He shows how the yards shaped the surrounding neighborhoods; looks at the Yard's sometimes volatile role in the city's race and labor relations; and traces its decades of mechanized innovations.

With breathtaking color photography and absorbing historical detail, Carolyn Brown and J'Nell Pate tell the story of the Fort Worth Stockyards, the place that earned the city the nickname "Cowtown." From the rise of the stockyards as a vital railhead for the ranching industry through the postwar decline and rebirth as a National Historic District, first-time visitors and long-time acquaintances will find this chronicle engaging and enjoyable. Brown and Pate accompany readers through the early days of settlement, the cattle drives that saw thousands of head of livestock going up the trail through what was then little more than a frontier outpost, and the rising tide of industry that accompanied the arrival of the railroads. Continuing after World War II when the changes in the livestock industry led to decline of their importance, the stockyards, once a bustling, vital part of the regional culture and economy, fell into slow decay. In 1976, citizens banded together to create a National Historic District. Today, the Fort Worth Stockyards attract thousands of visitors from all over the world with restaurants, entertainment venues, and the world's only twice-daily longhorn cattle drive along East Exchange Avenue. Brown's lens captures the vibrancy of today's stockyards while Pate's research depicts the drama of the area's rise, fall, and rebirth. The Historic Fort Worth Stockyards provides a visual and factual tour of an unforgettable place where heritage is celebrated and preserved.

From the invention of eyeglasses to the Internet, this three-volume set examines the pivotal effects of inventions on society, providing a fascinating history of technology and innovations in the United States from the earliest European colonization to the present. Technical Innovation in American History surveys the history of technology, documenting the chronological and thematic connections between specific inventions, technological systems, individuals, and events that have contributed to the history of science and technology in the United States. Covering eras from colonial times to the present day in three chronological volumes, the entries include innovations in fields such as architecture, civil engineering, transportation, energy, mining and oil industries, chemical industries, electronics, computer and information technology, communications (television, radio, and print), agriculture and food technology, and military technology. The A–Z entries address key individuals, events, organizations, and legislation related to themes such as industry, consumer and medical technology, military technology, computer technology, and space science, among others, enabling readers to understand how specific inventions, technological systems, individuals, and events influenced the history, cultural development, and even self-identity of the United States and its people. The information also spotlights how American culture, the U.S. government, and American society have specifically influenced technological development.

Fort Worth is an American city quintessentially founded upon change. From its birth to the present, Fort Worth has consistently built and reshaped its appearance, ideals, and industry. Through changing fortunes, Fort Worth has continued to grow and prosper by overcoming adversity and maintaining the strong, independent culture of its citizens. Historic Photos of Fort Worth captures this journey through still photography selected from the finest archives. From the Texas Spring Palace to Armour and Swift, the Carnegie Library to the Casa Manana and Frontier Centennial, Historic Photos of Fort Worth follows life, government, education, and events throughout the city's history. This volume captures unique and rare scenes through the lens of hundreds of historic photographs. Published in striking black and white, these images communicate historic events and everyday life of two centuries of people building a unique and prosperous city.

Kansas City is often seen as a mild-mannered metropolis in the heart of flyover country. But a closer look tells a different story, one with roots in the city’s complicated and colorful past. The decades between World Wars I and II were a time of intense political, social, and economic change—for Kansas City, as for the nation as a whole. In exploring this city at the literal and cultural crossroads of America, Wide-Open Town maps the myriad ways in which Kansas City reflected and helped shape the narrative of a nation undergoing an epochal transformation. During the interwar period, political boss Tom Pendergast reigned, and Kansas City was said to be “wide open.” Prohibition was rarely enforced, the mob was ascendant, and urban vice was rampant. But in a community divided by the hard lines of race and class, this “openness” also allowed many of the city’s residents to challenge conventional social boundaries—and it is this intersection and disruption of cultural norms that interests the authors of Wide-Open Town. Writing from a variety of disciplines and viewpoints, the contributors take up topics ranging from the 1928 Republican National Convention to organizing the garment industry, from the stockyards to health care, drag shows, Thomas Hart Benton, and, of course, jazz. Their essays bring to light the diverse histories of the city—among, for instance, Mexican immigrants, African Americans, the working class, and the LGBT community before the advent of “LGBT.” Wide-Open Town captures the defining moments of a society rocked by World War I, the mass migration of people of color into cities, the entrance of women into the labor force and politics, Prohibition, economic collapse, and a revolution in social mores. Revealing how these changes influenced Kansas City—and how the city responded—this volume helps us understand nothing less than how citizens of the age adapted to the rise of modern America.