many of these pieces have long been known by curious people, but weaving them together into a coherent narrative like this is quite useful. a few major pieces a

many of these pieces have long been known by curious people, but weaving them together into a coherent narrative like this is quite useful. a few major pieces are missing...mainly from the east coast...but i'll reserve judgment until reading the second part. i'd love to see some nndb-style infographics to accompany this work, since i struggled at times to keep all the names and relationships straight while skimming. this is a truly sprawling--if sometimes incomplete and dense--origin story for many readers' employers. i hope this work will prompt more of my colleagues to be more thoughtful about what they're working toward and whose goals their work furthers.