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Sports fans nationwide know Soldier Field as the home of the Chicago Bears. For decades its signature columns provided an iconic backdrop for gridiron matches. But few realize that the stadium has been much more than that. Soldier Field: A Stadium and Its City explores how this amphitheater evolved from a public war memorial into a majestic arena that helped define Chicago.

Chicago Tribune staff writer Liam Ford led the reporting on the stadiumand#8217;s controversial 2003 renovationand#8212;and simultaneously found himself unearthing a dramatic history. As he tells it, the tale of Soldier Field truly is the story of Chicago, filled with political intrigue and civic pride. Designed by Holabird and Roche, Soldier Field arose through a serendipitous combination of local tax dollars, City Beautiful boosterism, and the machinations of Mayor and#8220;Big Billand#8221; Thompson. The result was a stadium that stood at the center of Chicagoand#8217;s political, cultural, and sporting life for nearly sixty years before the arrival of Walter Payton and William and#8220;The Refrigeratorand#8221; Perry.

Ford describes it all in the voice of a seasoned reporter: the high school football games, track and field contests, rodeos, and even NASCAR races. Photographs, including many from the Chicago Park Districtand#8217;s own collections, capture these remarkable scenes: the swelling crowds at ethnic festivals, Catholic masses, and political rallies. Few remember that Soldier Field hosted Billy Graham and Martin Luther King Jr., Judy Garland and Johnny Cashand#8212;as well as Grateful Deadand#8217;s final show.

Soldier Field captures the dramatic history of Chicagoand#8217;s stadium on the lakeand#160;and will captivate sports fans andand#160;historiansand#160;alike.

and#8220;Liam Ford, Chicago journalist, has unearthed an ancient Chicago formula in the story of Soldier Field: the lords of the political machine seizing upon grand public works projects to perpetuate their control of the city, and co-opting the reformers in the process. Thoroughly researched and well-written, Soldier Field: A Stadium and Its City will be fascinating reading for anyone interested in the real history of the Chicago machine.and#8221;

and#8220;Ford (who writes for the Chicago Tribune) has written an excellent biography of Chicagoand#8217;s Soldier Field, depicting it as a product of patriotism, urban boosterism, the City Beautiful movement (of the turn of the 20th century), and machine politics. . . . Excellently written, beautifully illustrated, and nicely documented, this book places Soldier Field in the context of the national appetite for construction of municipal stadiums in the 1920s. . . . Recommended.and#8221;

and#8220;Wrigley Field and Comiskey Park may attract more attention, but neither has hosted as many historic events as Soldier Field. Fordand#8217;s Soldier Field reveals how Chicagoand#8217;s iconic amphitheatre is more than a football field; it serves as a unique portal into Chicagoand#8217;s social, political, and cultural history.and#8221;

and#8220;Soldier Field is a true page-turner. Liam T.A. Ford covers all the bases in this in-depth narrative on the history of one of Americaand#8217;s landmark sports stadiums.and#8221;

Liam T. A. Ford, a fifth-generation Chicagoan, returned home after a stint at the Advertiser in Montgomery, Alabama, and joined the City News Bureau, eventually becoming its lead City Hall reporter. Since 1998 he has covered housing, politics, regional development, and the Chicago Park District for the Chicago Tribune. This is his first book.

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Prefaceand#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;

Introductionand#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Chicago Challenges the World

Part 1and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Getting It Built

Chapter 1and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Born Republican, Adopted by Democrats

Chapter 2and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Soldier Field and the Democratic Ascendancy

Part 2and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; A Stadium for All Chicago

Chapter 3and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; A Game for Our Youth: Amateur Football at Soldier Fieldand#160;and#160;

Chapter 4and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Chicagoand#8217;s Olympic Legacy

Chapter 5and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; A Stage for Acceptable Dissentand#160;

Chapter 6and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; The Cityand#8217;s Altarand#160;and#160;

Chapter 7and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Military Marches, Music, and an Arsonist Cowand#160;and#160;

Chapter 8and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Americans All: Culture in an Epic Space

Chapter 9and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; A Family Placeand#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;

Chapter 10and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; New Religious and Political Movements in a Classic Spaceand#160;and#160;and#160;

Part 3and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; The Fall and Rise of Soldier Field

Chapter 11and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Celebrations in an Era of Decline

Chapter 12and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Amateur Sports Founder at a Fading Stadiumand#160;

Chapter 13and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Professional Sports in a Changing Eraand#160;

Chapter 14and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; The Bears, the Stadiumand#8217;s Saviorand#160;

Chapter 15and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; A New Century, a New Stadiumand#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;

Acknowledgementsand#160;

Notes