Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
^ Probably the over corporate culture, as well as the houses that look like they were designed when the architect was drunk when at the drawing table, or using CAD .
And let's not forget, you cant walk anywhere, so it almost feels as though you're stuck in a cul-de-sac.
Re: #2, it has not been common for some time for all employment to be in the center city,
Employment centers started to disperse about 70 years ago, when the first post-WWII suburbs started to pop up, and the automobile made it possible to drive wherever the jobs were.
Quote:
nor has it EVER been common for employment to be interspersed with residential, with a few exceptions.
I'm going to use Youngstown as my example. The mills were strung along the Mahoning River, which ran through the center of the city. (I know this happens to be true for Cleveland, as well, but I also know it's different for different cities.) Everything else--where everyone else was employed--was found downtown, and on commercial corridors that were, generally, accessible by foot from the neighborhoods in between those corridors.
The suburbs of Youngstown were mostly farming communities, with a few spillover neighborhoods at the city's edge. So, the shops/businesses that employed people were either on the extension of the city's commercial corridors, or in their own little central business district.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Katiana
The industrial revolution did not start in the US until the beginning of the 19th century. What Year Did the Industrial Revolution Start? - Ask.com
It's not surprising that once it got underway, it became apparent that it wasn't cool to live next door to a factory. My experience with factories is more the heavy industry stuff such as steel mills.
But people did live near the mills. Again, in Youngstown, the mills were strung along the river, and there were many neighborhoods adjacent. I've heard many stories of people walking down to the mill with their lunch pail in hand. The soot that would collect on laundry hung outside to dry was often called "pay dirt."
There were very few steel mills in Pittsburgh proper. The only one I can think of is the South Side works, which is now a shopping mall. In Beaver Falls, the big B&W works was on the far north edge of town. There was little housing nearby.
Sugar refinery. Closed 15 or so years ago. Immediate block or two is non-residential (there's a few apartment buildings in the view, but some are recent) but further away is plenty of housing. Industry was always smaller scale there. Ditto with many New England mill buildings
^ Probably the over corporate culture, as well as the houses that look like they were designed when the architect was drunk when at the drawing table, or using CAD .
And let's not forget, you cant walk anywhere, so it almost feels as though you're stuck in a cul-de-sac.
Come to my suburb - no corporations, plenty of mom n pop stores, footpaths and sidewalks, cycle paths, butchers and bakers (real bakers - bake on the premises), street cafes, a cinema, a theater, and houses dating from the late 1700s through to today. Plus more actaul community than you can shake a stick at, rather than the fleeting transient "community" I always saw in the city (in which I lived for 40 years).
I suppose ignorance really is a sort of bliss.
In addition, train suburbs pre-date streetcar suburbs as a phenomenon. So at least say "train & streetcar suburbs", not just the latter.
Come to my suburb - no corporations, plenty of mom n pop stores, footpaths and sidewalks, cycle paths, butchers and bakers (real bakers - bake on the premises), street cafes, a cinema, a theater, and houses dating from the late 1700s through to today. Plus more actaul community than you can shake a stick at, rather than the fleeting transient "community" I always saw in the city (in which I lived for 40 years).
I suppose ignorance really is a sort of bliss.
My burb is similar. Yes, we have some corporations here. It's called "jobs". We have a few chains, Walgreen's, Kohl's, a couple of chain grocery stores, Hobby Lobby, Great Clips, all employing locals. We also have lots of "Mom and Pop" stores and restaurants. We have all of the above in bold. Our houses only date from the late 1880s; we're a younger city in the west. We have an outdoor skating rink in winter, a bandshell where concerts are held and beer is sold in the summer, a great public library.
But no one wants to believe that.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
