This book tells the story of Tampico, and how it became Mexico's major port city between 1876 and 1924. This was achieved by local businessmen through the intelligent maneuvering of politics at the local, regional and national levels. However, these men were strongly supported by all the social groups in the city who held capitalism in high esteem since the foundation of the port in 1823. It describes the city's development under Porfirio Díaz and the Revolution, and how it became the world's first international oil port and the fifth largest city of Mexico.