Conflict and commerce on the Rio Grande

"John A. Adams, Jr. provides the first-ever panoramic business and economic history of Laredo. He traces the evolution of the region from its early days as a ranching center into the mid-twentieth century, when Laredo had become what it remains today: a booming port of trade and a principal center of commerce and financial services on the southern border of the United States." "In Commerce and Conflict on the Rio Grande: Laredo, 1755-1955, Adams demonstrates how the increasingly diversified economy of the region fed the fortunes of the city through periods of expansion and dispute alike. His narrative, buttressed throughout by tables and statistics, paints a vivid mural of both the abstract forces and the farsighted and ambitious individuals that combined to bring prosperity to this unique city of the border. Readers will find a wealth of insights into regional economics, history, and borderlands themes."--Jacket.