"In 1979, John Coplans, then Director of the Akron Art Museum, approached me with the idea of a project to photograph in the northern industrial belt of the United States. The project Factor Valleys, ultimately focused itself in Ohio and Pennsylvania. This rich and interesting area has enough material for a photographing lifetime. I worked intensely for about 13 weeks in the different seasons during the course of the year..." - Lee Friedlander from book's acknowledgments. Richly printed images throughout, afterword by Leslie George Katz, list of plates and colophon.