John Joseph Donovan was a man born of common clay who lived the American dream, rising to great heights of achievement, wealth, and community affection. Donovan lived a storied life illuminated in this fascinating book by the discovery of his diaries long hidden in an old steamer trunk in Sag Harbor, New York. This early American story reveals the remarkable life of the son of Irish immigrants. After fleeing the Irish potato famine, his family established a New England farm where JJ grew up and succeeded in the long journey to a college education. He then earned a civil engineering degree from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and was hired by the Northern Pacific Railroad to advance the line across the plains and over the Cascade mountains to the Salish Sea. Later in his career he facilitated the rise of a city and new industries on Bellingham Bay. Donovan was a man suited to the challenges and opportunities of his times, but equally important, he was an honest man of immense character, determination, and skill who left a legacy of civic accomplishment. This is also a great love story, an Irish Catholic boy and a New England Puritan girl struggling to overcome their religious and social differences.