In this entertaining history, illustrated with 75 photographs and 32 color plates, Douglas Bukowski traces the origins and construction of Navy Pier and describes its "golden era" to 1940, its role in the World War II home front, its college campus years, and its rediscovery and redevelopment for recreational use from the 1970s to the present. This is the official history, authorized by the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority of Chicago.