Using post Civil War Richmond, Virginia, as a case study, Hoffman
explores the role of race and class in the city building process
from 1870 to 1920.Richmonds railroad connections enabled the city
to participate in the commercial expansion that accompanied the
rise of the New South. A highly compact city of mixed residential,
industrial and commercial space at the end of the Civil War,
Richmond remained a classic example of what historians call a
walking city through the end of the century. As city streets were
improved and public transportation became available, the city's
white merchants and emerging white middle class sought homes
removed from the congested downtown. The city's African American
and white workers generally could not afford to take part in this
residential migration. As a result, the mixture of race and class
that had existed in the city since its inception began to
disappear.
The city of Richmond exemplified characteristics of both
Northern and Southern cities during the period from 1870 to 1920.
Retreating Confederate soldiers had started fires that destroyed
the city in 1865, but by 1870, the former capital of the
Confederacy was on the road to recovery from war and
reconstruction, reestablishing itself as an important manufacturing
and trade center. The city's size, diversity and economic position
at the time not only allows for comparisons to both Northern and
Southern cities but also permits an analysis of the role of groups
other than the elite in city building process. By taking a look at
Richmond, we are able to see a more complete picture of how
American cities have come to be the way they are.
General
Imprint: |
McFarland & Company
|
Country of origin: |
United States |
Release date: |
September 2003 |
First published: |
November 2004 |
Authors: |
Steven J. Hoffman
|
Dimensions: |
228 x 151 x 13mm (L x W x T) |
Format: |
Paperback
|
Pages: |
240 |
ISBN-13: |
978-0-7864-1616-5 |
Categories: |
Books
|
LSN: |
0-7864-1616-5 |
Barcode: |
9780786416165 |
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