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Eight miles west of Idaho's capital city, Boise, the first settlers in what became Meridian found only arid land, sagebrush, and jackrabbits. The lone tree in the area was another 8 miles west in what became Nampa. Originally called Hunter, after a railroad superintendent, Meridian was initially a railway postal drop where workers tossed and hooked mailbags as the train passed through before the arrival of passenger service. By 1893, residents called the village Meridian, after the north-south prime meridian running through Meridian Road. In 1903, the village incorporated but still had a population of only a few hundred with grocery and harness shops and more churches than saloons. Village merchants and residents experienced orchard and dairy/creamery eras that ended in, respectively, the 1940s and 1970. Meridian became a city in the 1940s but 50 years later had a population of only 10,000. That number quadrupled over the next decade and today has nearly doubled again to around 80,000, as Meridian has evolved into the transportation and commercial hub of the Treasure Valley, especially in electronics and health care.

Railroads have been a part of Orange County for over 130 years. The great names of American railroading--Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe; Southern Pacific; and Union Pacific--were firmly planted here by the early 1920s and linked with the largest interurban rail system in the United States, the famed Pacific Electric Railway. Thousands of people passed through Orange County's depots during the 1940s as they came to serve at the many military bases located here during World War II. The names have since changed, and yet the county's rail scene remains as dynamic as ever, with Amtrak, Metrolink, and amusement park railroads joining the Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Union Pacific. Railroad depots, new and old, are located across Orange County and continue on both as vital parts of history and the future of transportation for America's fifth most populated county.

Los Altos would never have existed if not for the Southern Pacific Railroad. Since the 1850s, Los Altos, Spanish for "heights" or "foothills," was the name generally applied to the two ranchos (San Antonio and La Purisima Concepcion) between Palo Alto and Mountain View southwest of El Camino Real. In 1906, visionaries Paul Shoup, who worked for the railroad, and Walter Clark, a Mountain View real estate developer, saw the potential to turn Sarah Winchester's ranch near Stanford University into an ideal San Francisco suburb. They would capitalize on new commuters-those who wanted to live in comfort in the country but work in the city. Slowly, a new town grew in influence well beyond its original Altos Land Company plat, realizing tremendous post-World War II expansion. Now two communities solidly embedded in Silicon Valley, Los Altos and Los Altos Hills share a school system, downtown shopping, libraries, and water system, as well as a history of interesting people.

In 1910, the North Sacramento Land Company purchased 3,339 acres to establish the city of North Sacramento. Three years later, Del Paso and Company set up power and water operations, along with rail transport. A police and fire department and school sealed the deal, and the city incorporated on June 18, 1924. In this idyllic hometown, parents allowed their kids to walk "the Boulevard" unattended, skate at Iceland, and cool off in Woodlake Pool, after they stopped in at Li'l Joe's or Sammy's for a bite or a donut at Hoyt's. The city thrived with characters like Mama Marks, Mayor Olga Roth, and entrepreneur Betty "Boop" Bryan. Pugilist Max Baer sparred in the open-air theater before the screen came down to the sawdust floor for a Tom Mix movie.

Mary Ann Conklin, also known as "Madame Damnable," ran Seattle's first hotel, the Felker House, which burned to the ground in the Great Seattle Fire of 1889. The Rainier Hotel was erected quickly following the Great Seattle Fire but razed around 1910. The Denny Hotel, an architectural masterpiece later known as the Washington Hotel, was built in 1890 but torn down in 1907 during the massive regrade that flattened Denny Hill. Upon opening in 1909, the Sorrento Hotel was declared a "credit to Seattle" by the Seattle Times. The Olympic Hotel was the place for Seattle's high society throughout the 1920s. The Hotel Kalmar was a workingman's hotel built in 1881 and was razed for the Seattle tollway. The Lincoln Hotel was destroyed by a tragic fire in 1920, along with its rooftop gardens. The famous and grand Seattle Hotel in Pioneer Square was replaced by a "sinking ship" parking garage, thus sparking preservationists to band together to establish Pioneer Square as a historic district.

Filipinos have been a part of the history of the United States and San Diego for over 400 years. The Manila-Acapulco galleon trade ships included Filipinos on sailing expeditions to California, including the port of San Diego. After the Philippines became a territory of the United States in 1898, many Filipinos began immigrating to San Diego. The community grew rapidly, particularly in the 1920s and 1930s. After World War II, Filipino veterans returned with their war brides and the community began to build further. The Immigration Act of 1965 increased Filipino immigration into San Diego to include military personnel, especially those enlisted in the U.S. Navy, as well as professionals. Today Filipino Americans are the largest Asian American ethnic group in San Diego.

This fourth-smallest county in Texas was created in December 1870 from parts of Wood, Hunt, Van Zandt, and Hopkins Counties. The county and the county seat are named after the founding father, Emory Rains. In the early days, cotton was king, and the towns were full of businesses that served the residents' needs. In 1902, the National Farmers Union was formed in Point, and with the decline of cotton, dairy and beef cattle are now the main industries. The Texas legislature designated Rains County as "Eagle Capital of Texas" in 1995 in order to protect and preserve the bald eagles who nest around the local lakes. Today, Emory is the home of the A.C. McMillan African American Museum, which preserves the African American culture of this area. Rains County is bordered by Lake Tawakoni for catfish fishing and Lake Fork for bass fishing. These lakes, along with annual festivals, draw thousands of visitors and outdoor enthusiasts each year. This pictorial history portrays the everyday life, influential people of the county, education, worship, and businesses from 1870 to 1950. "Come to Rains County where it rains when it wants to!"

When a town is named for a Comanche chief, it sets a certain standard to be bold, strong, and original. Nocona, Texas, certainly lives up to these expectations. With roots firmly bound in the Western lore of the cattle drives, Nocona began as a ranching community of sturdy, tenacious men and women. Agriculture was the driving force of the economy until Herman Joseph Justin chose Nocona as the headquarters of his boot company. Justin Boots was the first in a long line of leather-related industries that were instrumental in making Nocona the "Leather Center of the Southwest." The oil boom of the 1920s and the creation of Nocona's North Field added yet another facet to an already unique history. Nocona's past is steeped in Native American culture, Western heritage, agriculture, and the oil and leather industries. Today Nocona is as vibrant and exciting as its past. The annual Old Settlers' Days celebration, the Tales 'N' Trails Museum, the charming Verandah Inn, and Daddy Sam's Saloon along with other wonderful revitalization efforts make Nocona a must-see on any tour of North Texas.

Looks at Maricopa's life as an important railroad junction, playing host to two presidents, 1911 flying machines, honeymoon couples, actors, and a nest of wildcats to entertain the hundreds of passengers who waited for their connections to Phoenix or east-west. In the early 2000s, Maricopa grew from a small farming community to a city, earning it the title of one of the fastest growing cities in the nation. Today its population continues to grow with more than 40,000 inhabitants from all over the United States and world.

The town -- The banks -- The schools -- The churches -- The families -- The military -- Outlying communities.

Medina County was founded in 1848 by settlers from Europe and the eastern United States. At the time, Native Americans still lived on that land, which they called "Comancheria." Full of hope for a better life, settlers tamed an unfamiliar landscape that was filled with prickly pear cactus, rattlesnakes, coyotes, mountain lions, bison, armadillos, pecans, persimmons, and mustang grapes. The first settlements in Medina County were Castroville, Quihi, Vandenburg, and D'Hanis. New Fountain, New D'Hanis, LaCoste, Rio Medina, Hondo, and others were established later. The settlers worked hard growing cotton and grain and raising cattle, and they retained their old-world customs and religious faith in the face of many challenges. With the building of the Medina Dam, farming changed for the better, and new immigrants arrived to help establish schools and communities. Today the proximity to San Antonio allows people to work in the city while maintaining their homes, farms, and ranches in Medina County.

Since Otto Brodie's airplane flight at Fair Park in 1910, the city of Dallas has seen over 100 years of rich and diverse aviation activity. Many of those years were spent on a long and complex road to a consolidated airport for the Dallas-Fort Worth area, an impasse finally resolved with the dedication of Dallas-Fort Worth Regional Airport in 1974. Central to Dallas aviation history is Love Field, established as a military base in 1917. A waypoint for famous flights such as the first round-the-world flight in 1924, a venue for colorful characters like barnstormer and bootlegger "Slats" Rodgers, and the site of World War II's largest Air Transport Command base--Love Field was all this and more. Although no longer the region's primary commercial airfield, Love Field remains a major aviation facility as the home of Southwest Airlines and several internationally recognized business aircraft operations.

Sherman was founded in 1846, but because of a lack of wood and water, the town moved east to its present location in 1848. The county seat of Grayson County, Sherman was named for Gen. Sidney Sherman, a hero of the Texas Revolution. From the beginning, Sherman was known as an educational center and was nicknamed "The Athens of Texas." The home of Kidd-Key Conservatory of Music, Mary Nash College, North Texas Male and Female Academy, Carr-Burdette College, and today the prestigious Austin College, Sherman has long been an educational mecca. Sherman was incorporated in 1858, the same year the Butterfield-Overland Stage arrived. The stage line was the first mail route west of the Mississippi and covered a distance of 2,795 miles from St. Louis to San Francisco. As Sherman progressed, industry became a mainstay of the community, which continues to thrive today through companies such as Texas Instruments, GlobiTech, Sunny Delight, Progress Rail, Tyson Foods, Fisher Controls, Kaiser Aluminum, and CertainTeed Corporation.

The Texas Rangers. The words evoke exciting images of daring, courage, high adventure. The Rangers began as a handful of men protecting their homes from savage raiding parties; now in their third century of existence, they are a highly sophisticated crime-fighting organization. Yet at times even today the Texas Ranger mounts his horse to track fugitives through dense chaparral, depending on his wits more than technology. The iconic image of the Texas Ranger is of a man who is tall, unflinching, and dedicated to doing a difficult job no matter what the odds. The Rangers of the 21st century are different sizes, colors, and genders, but remain as vital and real today as when they were created in the horseback days of 1823, when what is today Texas was part of Mexico, a wild and untamed land.

Historians dispute the founding of Arlington. Some say Arlington started in 1848 when Col. Middleton Tate Johnson started the settlement called Johnson's Station, a forerunner of Arlington. Others say it was 1876, when the railroad arrived, or 1877, when the post office was established. Still others claim 1884 as the founding, because that was when city leaders incorporated Arlington, naming the town after the home of Gen. Robert E. Lee. Whatever date one chooses for the founding, there is no question that Arlington has grown from its frontier origins into the entertainment center of North Texas. Highlights of Arlington's development include Depression-era gambling at Top O' Hill and Arlington Downs, Progressive values in the Berachah Home for Erring Girls, higher education through the University of Texas at Arlington, and economic expansion with General Motors. More recently, energetic citizens like former mayor Tommy Vandergriff helped bring two professional sports teams to Arlington. Today the Texas Rangers and Dallas Cowboys share top billing with the city's other signature attractions--Six Flags Over Texas and Hurricane Harbor.

Little Mexico was Dallas's earliest Mexican barrio. "Mexicanos" had lived in Dallas since the mid-19th century. The social displacement created by the Mexican Revolution of 1910, however, caused the emergence of a distinct and vibrant neighborhood on the edge of the city's downtown. This neighborhood consisted of modest homes, small businesses, churches, and schools, and further immigration from Mexico in the 1920s caused its population to boom. By the 1930s, Little Mexico's population had grown to over 15,000 people. The expanding city's construction projects, urban renewal plans, and land speculation by developers gradually began to dismantle Little Mexico. By the end of the 20th century, Little Mexico had all but disappeared, giving way to upscale high-rise residences and hotels, office towers of steel and glass, and the city's newest entertainment district. This book looks at Little Mexico's growth, zenith, demise, and its remarkable renaissance as a neighborhood.