The Urban Frontier : Pioneer Life in Early Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Lexington, Louisville, and St. Louis

by Richard C. Wade

Trade paperback is the history of pioneer life in what was then the frontiers of the United States. Author is Richard C. Wade.

Genres: History, American History

374 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1964

Reviews

[Bob Costello · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you are interested in American history this is a great and very interesting book. It covers the largest five towns in transmontane America (over the Appalachian Mountains)from the late 18th century until 1830. The five towns are: Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Lexington, Louisville and St. Louis / Iron City, Queen City, Falls City,Athens of the West and ? . The first steamboat to go from New Orleans to Pittsburgh was the Enterprise in 1815. The steamboat was a major innovation that changed the development of the west.

A special reason for me to enjoy this book is that St. Louis is my home town where I lived until I went off to college. "Laclede's choice for a town site was superb. St. Louis was built on a limestone bluff that juts up from the bank of the Mississippi. This was the first elevated spot south of the junction of the three great rivers, Missouri, Illinois, and Mississippi."

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was written in 1959 to explain the expansion of urban development, pre 1830. Most of what we learn in school about westward expansion and city development sets the major development after the Civil War in the Industrial Revolution ear (Turner-ian theory). This author, Richard C. Wade explains that so much history has been lost already, that the cities really were developing cities pre-Civil War. Banks, newspapers, businesses, cultural centers/arts and education were already forming and in place. River commerce already existed. Buildings advanced from simple board structures to brick "mansions." In fact, the US had an economic collapse, a depression, after the war, the War of 1812, that is! (When reading this, I see our country has a history of having an economic collapse about every 100 years - 1820s, 1920s, 2008.... interesting.) I know our history classes can't teach everything, but there was more going on in the country in the first half of the 1800s besides Lewis and Clark exploration and the Oregon Trail. This books explains in great detail how the cities of Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Lexington, Louisville, and St. Louis grew and thrived before 1840.