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Nature's Metropolis: Chicago and the Great West
In this groundbreaking work, William Cronon gives us an environmental perspective on the history of nineteenth-century America. By exploring the ecological and economic changes that made Chicago America's most dynamic city and the Great West its hinterland, Mr. Cronon opens a new window onto our national past. This is the story of city and country becoming ever more tightl...more
Paperback, 556 pages
Published
May 17th 1992
by W. W. Norton & Company
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This is a thoroughly researched book on the economic and environmental history of Chicago, focusing especially on the 19th and early 20th centuries. Especially good are the chapters on the mapping of capital flows from Chicago to the cities in the East and to the rural frontier hinterlands to the West; and the chapter on the social reactions by rural peoples to Chicago as an urban space. What is not so good is Cronon's inexplicable (to me, anyway, a marxist cultural studies historian) misreadi...more
" . . however we may feel about the urban world which is the most visible symbol of our
human power—whether we celebrate the city or revile it, whether we wish to “control”
nature or “preserve” it—we unconsciously affirm our belief that we ourselves are unnat-
ural. Nature is the place where we are not.
"The oddity of this belief becomes most evident when we try to apply it to an actual
place and time in history. . . . The journey that carried so many travele...more
human power—whether we celebrate the city or revile it, whether we wish to “control”
nature or “preserve” it—we unconsciously affirm our belief that we ourselves are unnat-
ural. Nature is the place where we are not.
"The oddity of this belief becomes most evident when we try to apply it to an actual
place and time in history. . . . The journey that carried so many travele...more
When people ask me where I'm from I always say: The country, a rural area, no fences, no sidewalks, not connected to the city. In this book Cronon dynamites apart my entire idea of place.
It shows the symbiosis and growth of Chicago and what we now call the Midwest during the 1800s. This is important not just in showing the extremely fast rise of our 3rd largest city, but in showing the complete entanglement of the countryside to the city. Through narrative and facts, he relentlessl...more
It shows the symbiosis and growth of Chicago and what we now call the Midwest during the 1800s. This is important not just in showing the extremely fast rise of our 3rd largest city, but in showing the complete entanglement of the countryside to the city. Through narrative and facts, he relentlessl...more
A long, difficult, but extremely rewarding book about how people transformed the landscape as they built a region (a hinterland) to support Chicago’s development. Cronon focuses particularly on grain farming, lumber, and meatpacking. If you don’t have time to read the book, read “Perspectives on Nature’s Metropolis: A Book Forum,” in the Annals of Iowa 51 (Summer 1992), 480–525.
At the heart of Nature’s Metropolis is an abstract irony with very practical consequences: the market syste...more
At the heart of Nature’s Metropolis is an abstract irony with very practical consequences: the market syste...more
A fantastic, eminently readable history of economic geography in nineteenth century middle America. First, a disclaimer: I was a history major at the University of Wisconsin, and in that department Mr. Cronon is widely revered (with good reason, however). I took an American Environmental History class (a historical discipline that Cronon helped nurture in its earliest stages) about 10 years ago, and in retrospect the nineteenth century portion of that class was pretty much modeled on the structu...more
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You know how "connectivity" sounds like a load of crap? Well this book proves you wrong! From the construction of the transcontinental railroad uniting U.S. timetables to the standardization of wheat sales, this book vividly shows how the flow of information and physical connectedness gave rise to capital markets in the U.S.
Cecelia
added it
Wonderfull and far reaching this book was really interesting to me. Although long winded and sometimes a bit dense for me, I felt like I could just as easily skim some of its parts and get just as much from it as I could if I struggled through all of it. That said I tended to mix straitght reading and skimming. By far the most interesting part, at least to me was the section on meat packing and the way that Cronon introduces his ideas and goals in the opening pages and chapters. I would reco...more
Loved the way Cronon blurred the lines between the urban/rural, city/country through the study of Chicago and the Great West. Also liked his description of first nature and second nature. First nature is the original geography, pre-human unconstructed world. Second nature is the artificial nature erected on top of first nature—the environment shaped by human intervention. It is designed by people and improved towards human ends. Yet, despite the difference, the geography of both is compelling, a...more
Nature's Metropolis is an economic history of Chicago, specifically in view of how intimately tied together the city and countryside were in the development on the American frontier. Cronon has a great command of his sources, and he uses them creatively (his use of depression-era bankruptcy records to show debt-credit flow between Chicago and its hinterlands was genius).
Obviously if you're interested in American history, this is a great book, but if you've got much interest in economi...more
Obviously if you're interested in American history, this is a great book, but if you've got much interest in economi...more
This book sat on my shelf for quite some time. I viewed it as an academic history of Chicago and the Midwest. Boy was I wrong. This book is a biography of Chicago - the good side of the family and the bad. Along the way I learned how Chicago controlled the grain trade and bore the Chicago Board of Trade. I learned about the exploitation of Wisconsin lumber and the Cutover, where forest though inexhaustible were scraped away to Chicago. I learned enough about the meat-packing industry to ma...more
An excellent history of Chicago and how the railroad and technologies that took advantage of it gave Chicago an edge over other cities to become the gateway to The West. And how those same advantages allowed the natural resources to be used up and for other cities to grow to be gateways of their own and eventually lead to Chicago's decline. It challenges the commonly held views about the country and city being separate things at odds with each other, when in reality they are two sides of the sam...more
Conceptually, this book was fascinating. The author did a great job of showing how the growth of Chicago as a port, a railroad way-point, and as home of the futures market inextricably connected urban America to rural America. In essence the author makes the argument that economic systems are much like ecological systems in that "everything is connected." Is this a good and natural thing for the environment or is it profitable for urban areas at the expense of rural life? This ques...more
The Chicago Metropolis that Cronon talks about in his novel could be thought of as anything but "natural". He covers the idea of first nature in the respect of natural landscape. As the "progress" began with railroads, lumber and the meat packing industry he started to refer to the landscape as second nature. Quoting a booster, or one endorsing Chicago's greatness, when looking into a forest it was said, "look at all that lumber" further exemplifying the concept of...more
I love Chicago because it's not New York. New York has been fully postmodernized, but Chicago still is a city of sausage factories and scrap yards. Its industrial heart still beats strong.
Cronon links the history of the city to its hinterland, and the way they are inextricably the same thing. We see the city as an assemblage of its commodities (wood, meat, and grain) and this is a pretty unique perspective. If you're at all interested in history or the environment, it's a great rea...more
Cronon links the history of the city to its hinterland, and the way they are inextricably the same thing. We see the city as an assemblage of its commodities (wood, meat, and grain) and this is a pretty unique perspective. If you're at all interested in history or the environment, it's a great rea...more
I recently re-read this book. I first read it in 1992 while I was living in Chicago. At that time, I enjoyed all of the local history that I previously did not know or even heard before.
After re-reading it, once again I enjoyed reading about why Chicago made it and other cities in the region did not. It's a great economic history and somewhat relevant to current events.
After re-reading it, once again I enjoyed reading about why Chicago made it and other cities in the region did not. It's a great economic history and somewhat relevant to current events.
A phenomenally well-written book, using ecology and economics to frame the rise of Chicago in the nineteenth century. The city's sweep (as well as the book's) is staggering. I finished it in about a week and would definitely assign it in any American history class.
A must read for anyone interested in urban or environmental history. I also highly recommend it to anyone who generally enjoys well-written academic histories that are accessible to the lay reader.
On of the better works of history and/or economics I have read. Superb illustration of the way transportation, commodities markets, ecology, and westward expansion collided in Chicago. Brilliant.
This book absolutely rules. I never before understood how closely connected cities were to the resource hinterlands that surrounded them. A great review of grain, meat, and timber industries in Chicago, as well as how the city dominated the railroad system for many years. Explains the decline of Chicago as the central trade point for the western US after 1890 and the rise of other regional centers like Omaha and Denver. After reading this I understood why St. Louis, the former river gateway ...more
The knock on this book, and Cronon in general, has always been that there are no people in his version of history. And it's true. Is it a lethal omission, or even a major drawback? Not really. The story of Chicago is, in an absolute sense, the story of its boosters, the charlatans, investors, and dreamers who made something of nothing. Cronon is not wrong, however, to focus instead upon the natural setting of the unnatural city; it is the only remotely plausible explanation for the rise of ...more
Seriously one of the most interesting history books I've ever read, not that I've read many...basically explains how the Midwest became what it is today.
Definitely of of my fave books from planning school. This is the most helpful book I've read for understanding the process and causes of urbanization in the industrialized world. Cronin's key contribution is to remind us that city and country are part and parcel, and that industrialization and urbanization shrouded the processes of production and consumption that were once common knowledge. The issue of climate change is not addressed directly, but the contemporary reader will easily connect ...more
I think that this is the best book I have ever read that focuses on the significance of local/regional history. I recommend it often. It's a terrific read.
The careful research and clear thinking about the growth in the America middle west, especially Chicago's part in it, was revealing and entertaining.
Davis Schneiderman
is currently reading it
A bit slow going for a before-bed read, but a fascinating look at the intersect between Chicago and "rural" areas in the making of American space.
About my favourite history book--nature and culture, stories and intellectual depth, and a great city at the heart of it
Awesome book of about the history of Chicago, and how it shaped the midwest (and the rest of the country) in the 19th century.
William Cronon is a remarkable researcher and writer. A fascinating work.
I read most of this in 2006, but i want to re-read and finish it. Masterful.
Great companion to Michael Pollan.
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