Black Bottom Stomp tells the compelling stories of the lives and times of nine seminal figures in American music history, including Scott Joplin, Louis Armstrong, and Jelly Roll Morton.
David A. Jasen is considered to be the world's foremost authority on ragtime music. He has studied, recorded, and performer ragtime music for over five decades; his publications include complete scores for many major ragtime composers, and several books on the history of the music. Additionally, he has authored for Routledge a number of other well-received and strong selling reference works, including Tin Pan Alley: An Encyclopedia and A Century of American Popular Song.
Good primer on ragtime artists. The big names are here and some of the lesser-remembered artists as well. It's not an exhaustive history but will probably be informative for many readers interested in learning more about this genre.