audiobook Civil War Ironclads: The U.S. Navy and Industrial Mobilization (Johns Hopkins Studies in the History of Technology) by William H. Roberts in History

Description

In the early twentieth century; down the Ohio River from Pittsburgh; the Jones Laughlin Steel Company built one of the largest mills in the world and a town to go with it. Aliquippa was a beacon and a melting pot; pulling in thousands of families from Europe and the Jim Crow south. The JL mill; though dirty and dangerous; offered a chance at a better life. It produced the steel that built American cities and won World War II and even became something of a workers’ paradise. But then; in the 1980’s; the steel industry cratered. The mill closed. Crime rose and crack hit big.But another industry grew in Aliquippa. The town didn’t just make steel; it made elite football players; from Mike Ditka to Ty Law to Darrelle Revis. Pro football was born in Western Pennsylvania; and few places churned out talent like Aliquippa. Despite its troubles—maybe even because of them—Aliquippa became legendary for producing football greatness. A masterpiece of narrative journalism; Playing Through the Whistle tells the remarkable story of Aliquippa and through it; the larger history of American industry; sports; and life. Like football; it will make you marvel; wince; cry; and cheer.