A tale of two towns
Subtitle: a mining and a farming community in the 1890s
By: Duane A. Smith.
Publisher: University Press of Colorado
Published: 1997
Place of publication: Niwot, Colo
Language: eng
Number of pages: 261
Subjects: Agriculture -- Illinois -- Sandwich -- History -- 20th century.; Mineral industries -- Colorado -- Durango -- History -- 20th century.; Sandwich (Ill.) -- History.; Durango (Colo.) -- History.; Sandwich (Ill.) -- Social life and customs; Durango (Colo.) -- Social life and customs.
Description: The 1890s was an tumultuous decade in American history, with economic depression, war, heated politics, and labor conflicts surrounding America's emergence as a world power. Against this chaotic background, life in the rowdy western mining town of Durango, Colorado, and the quiet agricultural hamlet of Sandwich, Illinois, seemed to be worlds apart.

In A Tale of Two Towns, historian Duane Smith takes a comparative look at Durango and Sandwich in an effort to determine what life was like in these two small communities. His study, based on a close examination of papers, municipal records, and personal correspondence, offers a unique portrait of everyday life in these two towns.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.