contents -- Illustrations -- Maps -- Preface -- Introduction -- Editorial notes -- Chronology of Joseph J. Mersman's Life -- Maps -- Pedigrees -- Prologue: Two Immigrant Families and Their Start in America -- 1 / Jenkins's Boarding House -- 2 / Theater and Circus -- 3 / Music and Dancing -- 4 / The Miami and Erie Canal -- 5 / Cigars and Saloons -- 6 / In Charge of the Store -- 7 / Mosher's Boarding House -- 8 / Farewell to Cincinnati -- 9 / Starting in St. Louis -- 10 / Seeking a Cure -- 11 / Courtship and Marriage -- 12 / Settling Down -- Epilogue / The Rest of the Story -- Acknowledgments -- Appendix -- Annotated list of persons, places, and businesses -- Sources cited -- Index.