In 1860, New York City had 800,000 inhabitants and was the third largest city in the world. Augustus and Genevieve Courtenay were a prosperous and loving couple who wanted the very best for their children. From the time they were girls, Maggie Courtenay and her cousin Faye planned to work together in a job they'd choose after college. Their careers took root in New York City. They were enterprising ladies with a will to succeed in a career of their choosing. Maggie and Faye found love and a new kind of freedom in a century where women had few rights and no property to call their own. Carlos M. Lago is a Harvard graduate with many interests. He is a writer, a scientist, an engineer, and environmentalist, who has published with Mill City Press.