Frank Custer is a young black man from rural Mississippi who, in 1917, came north to make his fortune at the beginning of World War I. There, the only job he can get is at one of Chicago's meat-packing plants, working in the slaughtering area called the killing floor, where he is caught up in a war between the "packers" and those trying to form a labor union. Desiring to rise off "the floor" to a better position as a butcher, Frank joins the whites...

Pate examines the era of the stockyards' and meatpacking business's ogliarchy, recounting the people and markets to reveal a significant part of the history of America's meat industry.

Describes the activities that take place at a large stockyard including the jobss done by yardmen, brokers, packer buyers, dealer buyers, auctioneers, and others. Also describes how the animals are transported from ranches to stockyards and a typical auction.