Adams County was established on July 10, 1797. Carved out of the Old Northwest, it is the third-oldest county in Ohio, predating the state by more than five years. The county's southern boundary is the Ohio River, once a vital component in the commerce and growth of the county. When the first explorers and settlers came here, prehistoric earthworks dotted the landscape. The most significant, the Great Serpent Mound, is preserved today in a public park. In antebellum days, the county was a hotbed of abolitionist activities with several "stations" organized on the Underground Railroad. During the Civil War, Confederate General John H. Morgan and his raiders passed through the county taking horses, food, and anything they liked. The vintage views in this book that help tell the story of the county come from the collections of the Adams County Historical Society, the Adams County Genealogical Society, and several private sources.

Jane Adams focuses on the transformation of rural life in Union County, Illinois, as she explores the ways in which American farming has been experienced and understood in the twentieth century. Reconstructing the histories of seven farms, she places the