The eleven essays included in this volume offer the most authoritative account yet published of the distinctively urban history of Springfield, Missouri--the largest city in the Ozarks. Essays on early history include "Quinine and Courage: The Battle of Springfield, January 8, 1863," by William Garrett Piston and John C. Rutherford. Post-Civil War histories include "Retail Rivals: Springfield's Commercial Street versus the Public Square, 1870-1945," by Angela Wingo Miller, and "Memories of Walter Majors: Searching for African American History in Springfield," by Richard L. Schur. Post-World War II histories include "From Zenith to Nadir: The Story of Springfield's Largest Manufacturing Plant," by Tim Knapp, and "The Demise of O'Reilly Hospital and the Beginning of Evangel College, 1946-1955," by Lawrence J. Nelson. The volume concludes with Holly A. Baggett's "Creation of a Community: A History of Gay and Lesbian Springfield, 1945-2010."