
Chicago Before the Fire
An Economic History
Louis P. Cain(Author)
University of Illinois Press
Will be published approx. on 30. June 2025
Book
Hardback
304 pages
978-0-252-04658-2 (ISBN)
Description
An advantageous location and entrepreneurial passion helped fuel Chicago's transformation from a fur trading post to a thriving city. Louis P. Cain's economic history places pre-1871 Chicago within the narrative of national expansion and examines infrastructure, finance, and other areas of city life. Business histories tell the story of fortunes made with essential products like meat and grain. Sketches of titans like William Ogden and Cyrus McCormick reveal how real estate, farm equipment, and other industries became engines of local growth. Cain also details public health improvements that made Lake Michigan safe as a water supply while census data informs a portrait of Chicago's population and the lives of the free Blacks and Irish immigrants at the bottom of the socioeconomic ladder.
Panoramic and up to date, Chicago before the Fire looks at how an intersection of geography, vision, and investment built a great American city.
Panoramic and up to date, Chicago before the Fire looks at how an intersection of geography, vision, and investment built a great American city.
Reviews / Votes
"In a deeply researched and highly readable mix of history, economics, and geography, Louis Cain offers a fresh understanding of how Chicago came to be. As he guides us through the conditions and contingencies that went into the creation of this remarkable place, we see Chicago rise before our eyes."--Carl S. Smith, author of Chicago's Great Fire: The Destruction and Resurrection of an Iconic American CityMore details
Edition
New edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Baltimore
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Edition type
New edition
Illustrations
30 black & white photographs, 4 maps, 18 tables
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 156 mm
Weight
454 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-252-04658-2 (9780252046582)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Louis P. Cain is an adjunct professor of economics at Northwestern University and a professor emeritus at Loyola University Chicago. He is the coauthor of The Children of Eve: Population and Well-being in History.
Content
Preface and Acknowledgments
Introduction
The Fur Trade and Chicago
Pioneers and Boosters
Assembling Trade Routes and Establishing Position
How Chicago Grew
Those behind the Growth
Creating Position: Sanitation and Health
Population and Labor
The Lubricant of Growth: Money and Finance
Summary and Final Thoughts
Notes
Bibliography
Index
Introduction
The Fur Trade and Chicago
Pioneers and Boosters
Assembling Trade Routes and Establishing Position
How Chicago Grew
Those behind the Growth
Creating Position: Sanitation and Health
Population and Labor
The Lubricant of Growth: Money and Finance
Summary and Final Thoughts
Notes
Bibliography
Index