| Description |
1 online resource (394 pages) : illustrations, map |
| Series |
University of Chicago geography research paper ; number 247 |
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University of Chicago geography research paper ; no. 247.
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| Contents |
Capitals: a new light on American cities and territorial processes -- Capitals as places of memory -- Geographical patterns in the migration of capitals -- In search of explanatory models -- Capital choice and the balance of power -- Evolution of state capitals to the 1950s: the "purgatory years" -- State capitals since the 1950s: the renaissance of forgotten cities -- Validating models through a chronological and concrete analysis: three case studies -- Losing status: the place of former capitals in today's America -- State capitals today: symbols of American democracy -- Appendix 1: Demographic and historical tables -- Appendix 2: A brief chronology of Colonial, Territorial, and State Capitals |
| Summary |
"State capitals are an indelible part of the American psyche, spatial representations of state power and national identity. Learning them by heart is a rite of passage in grade school, a pedagogical exercise that emphasizes the importance of committing place-names to memory. But geographers have yet to analyze state capitals in any depth. In American Capitals, Christian Montes takes us on a well-researched journey across America--from Augusta to Sacramento, Albany to Baton Rouge--shedding light along the way on the historical circumstances that led to their appointment, their success or failure, and their evolution over time. While all state capitals have a number of characteristics in common--as symbols of the state, as embodiments of political power and decision making, as public spaces with private interests--Montes does not interpret them through a single lens, in large part because of the differences in their spatial and historical evolutionary patterns. Some have remained small, while others have evolved into bustling metropolises, and Montes explores the dynamics of change and growth. All but eleven state capitals were established in the nineteenth century, thirty-five before 1861, but, rather astonishingly, only eight of the fifty states have maintained their original capitals. Despite their revered status as the most monumental and historical cities in America, capitals come from surprisingly humble beginnings, often plagued by instability, conflict, hostility, and corruption. Montes reminds us of the period in which they came about, 'an era of pioneer and idealized territorial vision, ' coupled with a still-evolving American citizenry and democracy"--Provided by publisher |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references and index |
| Notes |
Print version record |
| Subject |
Capitals (Cities) -- United States -- History
|
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SOCIAL SCIENCE -- Sociology -- Urban.
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Capitals (Cities)
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United States
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| Genre/Form |
History
|
| Form |
Electronic book
|
| ISBN |
9780226080512 |
|
022608051X |
|
9781306269797 |
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1306269792 |
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