Reinterprets the rise of giant corporations, especially International Harvester Corporation (IHC), arguing that mass production was achieved in Chicago in the 1880s, where unprecedented urban growth made possible a break with the constraints felt elsewhere in the dispersed production system. 'The author presents his audience with a grand view of the growth and development of a vital international industry, granting an important new scope to the dual rise of American industrial and agricultural prowess on the world stage.' ICON - Journal of the International Committee for the History of Technology '... specialists will benefit from both [the book's] important information and its thoughtful analytical insights. This is an important contribution to the economic history of American agriculture and the business history of manufacturing firms, and it offers a clear explanation of how complicated local, national, and transnational networks operated in one of the era's most important industries.' EH.Net 'A text that deftly blends the methodologies of business history, historical geography, and cultural history, The American Reaper will appeal to a diverse scholarly readership, especially those interested in the history of the modern corporation and agricultural history... Abounding with maps, informative tables, and images, Winder's meticulous and multifaceted research has produced an excellent volume that will be of value to readers unfamiliar with the subject and specialists alike.' Enterprise and Society