Cities of the heartland : the rise and fall of the industrial Midwest

Summary: During the 1880s and '90s, the rise of manufacturing, the first soaring skyscrapers, new symphony orchestras and art museums, and winning baseball teams all heralded the midwestern city's coming of age. In this book, Jon C. Teaford chronicles the development of these cities of the industrial Midwest as they challenged the urban supremacy of the East. The antebellum growth of Cincinnati to Queen City status was followed by its eclipse, as St. Louis and then Chicago developed into industrial and cultural centers. During the second quarter of the twentieth century, emerging Sunbelt cities began to rob the heartland of its distinction as a boom area. In the last half of the century, however, midwestern cities have suffered some of their most trying times. With the 1970s and '80s came signs of age and obsolescence; the heartland had become the "rust belt."" "Teaford examines the complex "heartland consciousness" of the industrial Midwest through boom and bust. Geographically, economically, and culturally, the midwestern city is "a legitimate subspecies of urban life.--[book jacket].

Record details

OCLC: ocm45729156
ISBN: 0253209145
ISBN: 0253357861
ISBN: 9780585278186
ISBN: 0585278180
Physical Description: 1 online resource (xii, 320 pages) : illustrations.
remote
Edition: Pbk. reprint ed., 1994.
Publisher: Bloomington, Ind. : Indiana University Press, 1994, ©1993.

Content descriptions

Bibliography:	Includes bibliographical references (pages 256-294) and index.
Contents:	Creating the urban network -- The emerging center of urban America -- Skyscrapers, symphonies, and ballparks: the changing physical and cultural complexion of the city -- Automobiles and reform: the Midwest leads the nation -- In the cultural vanguard -- After the heyday -- The making of the Rust Belt.