In the 1800s, the moist soil of the Midwest would stick to plow blades, stopping the farmers as they plowed. Young blacksmith John Deere knew about the problem, so he designed and built a self-scouring plow. With this small start, he founded the famous farm implement company Deere & Company and started down the road to success.

With more than 200 historic photographs, Moline: City of Mills offers an overview of this dynamic river town located on the southern shore of the mighty Mississippi River. This book helps to celebrate 150 years of Moline's history, beginning with its incorporation in 1848. The city's history is closely tied to the Mississippi River. The name Moline comes from the French word "moulin," meaning "mill." The river, together with some famous entrepreneurs, helped industry flourish in Moline. John Deere and his steel plow turned the city into the "agricultural implement center of the world." During its lifetime, Moline has experienced steady growth, welcoming a variety of peoples and cultures. Continued commercial prosperity and a bright future are sure to allow for another interesting 150 years for Moline. Found within the pages of this volume, a special birthday gift from three longtime Moline residents, is a look back in time and an up-to-date panorama of people and places.

By any standard, Bettendorf, Iowa, is a fairly young city, having awakened from its sleepy rural beginnings in the nineteenth century to become an industrial center in the first half of the twentieth century and, now, on the precipice of a new millennium, it is a city becoming what is yet unrealized, but not unimagined. With more than two hundred historic photographs, this volume offers up chapters of American history in its stories from the heartland: a packet of seeds that started an agricultural dynasty; a slave who took a stand for freedom and changed the course of the nation; two brothers, one with a mind full of innovative ideas and the other with a knack for business; a community that would not lay down and die in the depths of the Great Depression; and a new generation of civic leaders who took a second look at the great river that had long flowed quietly by and found a renewed strength in the promise of its constancy. By any standard, Bettendorf, Iowa, is a fairly young city, having awakened from its sleepy rural beginnings in the nineteenth century to become an industrial center in the first half of the twentieth century and, now, on the precipice of a new millennium, it is a city becoming what is yet unrealized, but not unimagined. With more than two hundred historic photographs, this volume offers up chapters of American history in its stories from the heartland: a packet of seeds that started an agricultural dynasty; a slave who took a stand for freedom and changed the course of the nation; two brothers, one with a mind full of innovative ideas and the other with a knack for business; a community that would not lay down and die in the depths of the Great Depression; and a new generation of civic leaders who took a second look at the great river that had long flowed quietly by and found a renewed strength in the promise of its constancy.

Rock Island, Illinois, named All American City by Life magazine in 1955, is a mighty river town that prides itself on its leadership and sense of community. In every house on every street, there is a story to be told of how the residents came to be a part of this unique city. A few Rock Islanders can trace their roots back to the first white settlements of Farnhamsburg and Stephenson; fewer still go even further back than that, to the villages of Wappello and Keokuk and the Sauk warrior, Black Hawk. In Rock Island: All American City, the authors invite us to join them on a visual tour that explores the areaA[a¬a[s earliest neighborhoods, from Spencer Square to Broadway, Greenbush, and Old Chicago, from Longview and Highland Park to Keystone and Douglas Park. Discover how the Mississippi and Rock Rivers helped to shape the lives of area residents and how they have shaped its course; meet some of Rock IslandA[a¬a[s first families, including the Weyerhaeusers and Denkmanns, who arrived in Rock Island with little more than a dream and left their legacy in the areaA[a¬a[s landscape, architecture, and culture. Also learn the stories of the A[a¬Aregular folksA[a¬A and unsung heroes who contributed in their own special ways to the cityA[a¬a[s rich history.

As author David R. Collins traveled around Illinois, librarians and teachers everywhere begged him to write a book about noble Polish patriot Casimir Pulaski. The teachers complained that there was a Pulaski state holiday, as well as Pulaski towns, schools, and streets across the country, yet few students know who he was or what he did. Casimir lived a short but active life--he was only fifteen when he took on Russian troops that attempted to conquer his homeland in the mid-1700s. When the invasion of Poland became inevitable several years later, he went to America to help the Colonists fight for their freedom from the dominating British monarchy. Young Casimir helped develop new cavalry units and fighting techniques, and eventually was recognized as one of the most important officers of the American Revolution. George Washington once said that Casimir was a true hero because he indiscriminately risked his life in the name of democracy. This biographical account of a young man's struggle for freedom and liberty for all people is an admirable example of the democratic spirit.

Samuel Clemens grew up in a child's paradise--Hannibal, Missouri. There, mischief added humor to everyday events as Sam encountered the folks who would one day reappear as Huck Finn, Aunt Polly, and Becky Thatcher in his books, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. At eighteen, Sam left Hannibal to seek his fortune. He became a newspaperman and story writer. Then, always a restless spirit, he tried his hand as a steamboat pilot (where he took a liking to the riverboat call "mark twain"), a soldier, and a gold prospector. All the while, Sam collected tales to tell on stage and recount in his many books. David Collins invites readers into the fabulously exciting, endlessly entertaining world of "America's Greatest Humorist"--the beloved Mark Twain.

E. B. White first recognized the magic in words when he was very young. As a child, some of his happiest hours were spent finding just the right words to describe his feelings and experiences. After graduating from college, he took a job with a new magazine called The New Yorker. The magazine's readers soon began to look forward to the poetry and essays written by E. B. White. His writing was clear and lively with no wasted words, and it could make people laugh as easily as it could make them cry. In 1936, White and his family moved to a little farm near the coast of Maine, complete with sheep, chickens, and pigs. It was there that E. B. White wrote Charlotte's Web, perhaps one of the most beloved children's books ever written.

The life story of the dedicated teacher who was one of the seven astronauts killed in the Challenger space shuttle disaster.

Tea with a hedgehog and supper with a rabbit? Beatrix Potter entertained guests that most people--certainly Beatrix Potter's proper Victorian parents--would have thought belonged in a meadow, not in a London nursery. Such unlikely companions were company for lonely Beatrix, and she spent much of her time sketching and making up stories about these small creatures. Beatrix was so well acquainted with the characters of her various animal friends that when she was older it seemed natural to write and illustrate small books about their delightful adventures. Generations of children all over the world have gotten to know and love Beatrix Potter's animal friends--Benjamin Bunny, Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle, Squirrel Nutkin, Peter Rabbit, and many more. David Collins's lively text and Karen Ritz's striking illustrations combine to tell the wonderful tale of this gentle, creative woman who had a special feeling not only for animals, but also for children.