Common landscape of America, 1580 to 1845
A first-rate introduction to a still largely extant North America away from the great cities. This 400-page documentary by a dedicated exploring scholar explains how and why the landscape changed between the times of the early Spanish settlers and the impact of industrialization. John Stilgoe has provided us with a panorama of American land development that is unique in the literature of this field. In the process he has sharpened the reader's perception of the historic struggle between those who would tend the land and those who would exploit it, thus making a significant statement about issues in the forefront at the present day. Stilgoe's global vision over time, combined with his remarkable facility for involving a great variety of elements into one coherent system of thought and feeling, makes this a deeply important and timely work. Focusing on vernacular design and its evolution, Stilgoe effectively demonstrates how builders (rather than professional designers) passed on their traditions from one generation to the next--in so doing shaping Americ's enduring attitudes towards landscape
History
xi, 429 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm
9780300026993, 9780300030464, 0300026994, 0300030460
7976130
Landscape. Wilderness ; Landschaft ; Roads ; Landscape
Planting. Chimayo ; New England ; Tidewater and Piedmont ; Prelude
National design. Mercantile cities ; Grid ; Internal improvements ; Lighthouses ; Turnpikes ; Canals ; Engineering ; Roads ; Principles
Agriculture. Lore ; Farmsteads ; Farmhouses ; Farmland ; Grass ; Crops ; Fences ; Cowpens ; Woodlots ; Equilibrium
Community. Liberalism ; Graveyards ; Camp meetings ; Rural churches ; Schoolhouses ; Fairs ; Armature ; Agrarianism
Artifice. Elements ; Criaderos ; Real de Minas ; Furnaces ; Mills ; Sawmills ; Factories ; Technique
Conclusion. Keepsakes ; Values