Ragtime is the story of two families living in America in the early days of the twentieth century, amid the influx of immigrants and social changes that altered the complexion of the country both positively and negatively. The story begins in New Rochelle, New York, in the home of an affluent family. The head of the family is a man who owns a company that produces flags, patriotic bunting and fireworks. The family lives in a world of delicacy where nothing as unpleasant as problems with immigrants or Negroes ever existed. (read more)