Norman Bruce Ream was born in southwestern Pennsylvania in 1844, the son of a farmer. He exhibited a commercial sense, but the Civil War interrupted his ambitions. Wounded twice, he returned home a hero. After some unsuccessful business ventures out west, he went to Chicago in 1871 and became a commission merchant in the Union Stockyards. A few years later, he moved uptown and traded grains and provisions in the pits of the Board of Trade. Money poured in. Indeed, by 1886 he was a millionaire (also married and the father of several children). He started investing in real estate, urban transit companies, railroad stock--and began consolidating and financing enterprises. At century's end, he was traveling to New York City, impressing financiers like J. Pierpont Morgan. Indeed, he helped Morgan put together the U.S. Steel Corporation and the International Harvester Company, served on many boards, and even advised Morgan during the panic of 1907. But life grew turbulent. Public sentiment soured towards Wall Street and the wealthy. This, along with the presumed indiscretions of some of his children, kept his name in the press. He died in 1915, and gradually, his life was forgotten.

When Eleanor Pendleton met Louis M. Ream in 1911, it was love at first sight. She was a Broadway actress known for her beauty and dancing ability in musical comedy productions during the early twentieth century. Louis was tall, dark, and handsome and, as she soon discovered, the youngest son and presumptive heir of Norman B. Ream, one of America's wealthiest men. The problem for Eleanor, as she learned after eloping with Louis, was her father-in-law's deep-seated aversion to the theatre; he regarded all actresses as disreputable. After an overnight trip to seek his father's forgiveness and understanding, Louis disappeared. A blend of history and melodrama, H. Thomas Howell's Eleanor's Pursuit offers the biographical legacy of Eleanor Pendleton. It looks beneath the sensational newspaper coverage of 1911 to explore the confrontation between father and son and Eleanor's anxious vigil while awaiting the return of her husband. When Ream's lawyer arrives at her apartment instead of Louis and informs her the marriage is over, Eleanor collapses in disbelief. The lawyers take center stage, displacing the lovers. Chronicling one of the biggest celebrity newspaper stories of its day, Eleanor's Pursuit follows the secret deal-making sessions, the stage-managed travesty of justice, and the ultimate courtroom battle. These events come to life as the witnesses and lawyers reveal the private details in their own words. Howell also tells how the public reacted to the story as it unfolded. With surprises at every turn, this biography explains the exceptional final stage of Eleanor's pursuit.

About the Book Alexandra Ghika of Romania: The Lost Princess and Her Chicago Roots is the fascinating history of Princess Alexandra Ghika of Romania, who gave up her royal life and fled her country during WWII in order to save her children. About the Author Jacqueline P. Passey had a varied career. Her most successful venture was being a mother raising 6 children. She was married to a national recognized clinical chemist. Jackie is an adventurer who loves spelunking. She is a skilled baker and a better genealogist. Jackie caught the genealogy bug when she was 13 and has never recovered. She has enjoyed helping others learn to love genealogy by directing two genealogy libraries. She taught genealogy on two college campuses in Oklahoma, Rose State College and The Downtown College Consortium. She has lectured for many different genealogy conferences and the Scottish festival in Salado Texas. She has authored 11 books on several different family members. She’s considered the main author of a book about the Schweppenhauser/heiser family in the Philadelphia historical society library.

Queen of the Lakes is a Great Lake Books publication.

A consolidation of all items of a permanent nature published in the weekly Internal revenue bulletin, ISSN 0020-5761, as well as a cumulative list of announcements relating to decisions of the Tax Court.