Located just 14 miles northwest of Philadelphia, Bridgeport is a stone's throw from Valley Forge National Historic Park. Incorporated in 1851, the tiny village of 422 acres had 500 residents living within its boundaries. In 1723, Swedish and Welsh immigrants settled along the Schuylkill River, with the Eastburn and Holstein families among the first to settle. Irish immigrants found work in Bridgeport as early as 1860, and Italian immigrants poured into Bridgeport in the 1890s, finding work in the quarries and along the railroads and canals. Through vintage photographs, Bridgeport celebrates the families and industries that have helped shape this borough.

Explore Bridgeport, the most political neighborhood in the most political of cities - home to five Chicago mayors and parades of politicians honoring its power at national conventions. Once a Native American village traversed by Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet, as Chicago grew the area was called Hardscrabble, then Cabbage Gardens, and finally Bridgeport. Immigrants built it: the Irish dredged a canal and mined a quarry that led to slaughterhouses, cooperages, rolling mills, and breweries that were worked by Germans, Bohemians, Swedes, and Poles. Held dear as the "Heart of Lithuania," muckrakers described parts of it as a heartbreaking jungle. More immigrants came: Italians, Croatians, Mexicans, Chinese. Against the backdrop of prairies, labor strife, gangways, and Joe Podsajdwokiem, this sometimes uneasy mix lived, worked, and voted together. Bridgeport still has streets that defy the city's orderly grid, settlement houses, language stews, and, for each nationality, churches and taverns. Today, it may welcome artists and expensive housing, but on summer nights stoop sitting and rooting for the White Sox remain social obligations.

In 1860, John Butterfield rerouted his famous stage line over the west fork of the Trinity River, and soon a small community sprang up along the banks near the new toll bridge. The settlement became known as Bridgeport, and its pioneers found themselves in the middle of both Texas and American history. Since then, Bridgeport's contributions to history have been achieved through the area's land, as well as the rich oil that flowed beneath the rugged, cactus-dotted country. Recognizing the importance of the earth and what lay below took the skill of entrepreneurs and the hard work of many people. The cast of pioneer characters included a young, well-educated New Yorker seeking adventure in the new republic, a stern but generous engineer from Pennsylvania, and a billionaire wildcatter from Houston. Not forgotten are the stories of immigrants from all over the world whose lives have enriched Bridgeport's historic past. Today Bridgeport continues to utilize natural resources while developing its local heritage and ecotourism sites.

If a Richard Russo protagonist went on a bender in Vegas, the result would be something like Swimming with Bridgeport Girls: an uproarious romp about a lovesick gambler and his against-all-odds quest to win back his ex-wife. Ray Parisi is in trouble. Fired from his anchor job at ESPN after one too many public humiliations, he is holed up in a motel and in desperate need of a break. His ex-wife is shacking up with another guy in his old house, a Cambodian bookie wants to kill him, and he’s wanted by the New York State Police. A few days before the Fourth of July, he unexpectedly receives an inheritance from his long-lost father, and it seems like all of his problems might be solved. Determined to get his life back together, Ray hatches an imaginative but highly suspect plan to win back his wife, dashing from Connecticut to Las Vegas to Memphis in an attempt to secure his future before the past runs him down. The cast of characters he meets along the way is as loveable as it is absolutely insane. Sure to please fans of sophisticated romantic comedies like Seating Arrangements and Silver Linings Playbook, Swimming with Bridgeport Girls is a hilarious, heart-wrenching, and unexpectedly powerful tale about one man’s mission to—against all odds—finally get it right.

Bridgeport: 1900-1960 presents a fascinating look into the history of Bridgeport through vintage postcards from the citys formative years. These vintage postcards depict the change and expansion in Bridgeport during the 20th century, from the growth of the University of Bridgeport from a small junior college into a major university to the changes in transportation from the horse and buggy to early automobiles and trolley cars. Bridgeports waterfront played an important role in the development of the city, drawing visitors and wealthy residents who built homes along the shore. Following the two world wars, the city saw a large population increase, and a building boom soon followed. Factories and homes were built, retail stores moved in, and recreational options increased to serve the needs of the thousands of people who came to Bridgeport seeking employment.

With a population of approximately 7,500, Bridgeport is the second largest city in Harrison County, next to Clarksburg. It is perhaps best known as the birthplace of oil wildcatter and philanthropist Michael Late Benedum. The region's airport and civic center were named for him. Bridgeport was also home to Joseph Johnson, the first governor (then of Virginia) west of the Allegheny Mountains. In 1815, he introduced a bill in the Virginia General Assembly to create Bridgeport. During the railroad's heyday, the city became an important stop on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad between Clarksburg and Grafton. In more recent years, residents have worked together on numerous projects, including the Bridgeport Swimming Pool in the 1960s and the Bridgeport City Park. As the eastern terminus of Appalachian Development Highway Corridor D and with Interstate 79 less than a mile west of town, the city has grown. In 1982, the Meadowbrook Mall opened a short distance from the Bridgeport Country Club. The city boasts two grade schools, Simpson and Johnson Elementaries, as well as Bridgeport Middle School and Bridgeport High School, which has garnered county and state athletic titles.

A backdrop to the evolving national developments of the New Deal, this study stands at the intersection of political, labor, and ethnic history and provides a new perspective on how working people affected urban politics in the interwar era."--BOOK JACKET.

What was it like to work and live in Bridgeport during the past two centuries? No one could tell us better than the people who worked on the line in the factories, sold goods behind the counter at a department store, taught children in local schools, ran a travel agency, worked as a housewife, drove a truck, or ran one of the many prosperous businesses that helped Bridgeport grow and develop. Bridgeport at Work chronicles the working life of Bridgeport, a center of industry and home to several legendary individuals. P.T. Barnum, who made Bridgeport his adopted home, began an 1851 project that established an industrial center in East Bridgeport, spurring many other companies to set up in this remarkable city. Igor Sikorsky, Simon Lake, Lucien and I. DeVer Warner, Harvey Hubbell, Elias Howe, and for a short time even Buckminster Fuller all produced some of their best work in Bridgeport. World Wars I and II helped to build the munitions and defense industry in the city, and companies such as Remington Arms, the Lake Torpedo Boat Company, and Sikorsky Aircraft thrived. Bridgeport at Work shows the workers and companies, producing everything from Frisbie pies to firearms, that made Bridgeport the "Arsenal of Democracy," and an industrial leader at a crucial time in American history.

First incorporated in 1836, Bridgeport is notorious for a raucous political history that includes both liberating accomplishments and salacious scandals. From a state senator who spent several years in prison for racketeering to a mayor who was caught taking drugs while in office, Bridgeport has had its fair share of unlawful politicians. The political playground of the city has also seen invigorating leaders who fought hard to bring jobs, industries and prosperity to the community. The city's most famous mayor was none other than circus impresario P.T. Barnum. Discover the stories behind some of the most contentious elections, like the alleged ballot stuffing that ended the twenty-four-year era of socialist mayor Jasper McLevy or the power politics and threats that landed John Mandanici in office. Join author and reporter Rob Sullivan as he brings the Park City's fiery political history alive.