Against the Grain: The History of Buffalo's First Ward

Against the Grain tellsthe story of agroup of mostly Irish immigrants who toiled in the hulls of grain ships and other waterfront industries in an area called the First Ward in Buffalo, New York.  This economicallt deprived area produced an abundance of historically imprtant people including Fingy Conners, the largest private employer on the Great Lakes; Michael Shea, Buffalo's greatest entertainment showman; "Wild Bill" Donovan, the founding father of what became the CIA; John Sheehan, one-time Tammany Hall boss; Jimmy Slattery, the Light Heavyweight Champion of the World; andJimmy Griffin, the longest serving mayorin Buffalo history.  The stories of other lesser-known but equally important Ward residents such as Mike Quinn, Jack White, Algie McGuire, Roggie Lavin, Father Thomas Conway, the McCarthy brothers, and even Rick James are also told.