Metropolitan Philadelphia: Living with the Presence of the Past

Metropolitan Portraits

by Steven Conn

As America's fifth largest city and fourth largest metropolitan region, Philadelphia is tied to its surrounding counties and suburban neighborhoods. It is this vital relationship, suggests Steven Conn, that will make or break greater Philadelphia.

The Philadelphia region has witnessed virtually every major political, economic, and social transformation of American life. Having once been an industrial giant, the region is now struggling to fashion a new identity in a postindustrial world. On the one hand, Center City has been transformed into a vibrant hub with its array of restaurants, shops, cultural venues, and restored public spaces. On the other, unchecked suburban sprawl has generated concerns over rising energy costs and loss of agriculture and open spaces. In the final analysis, the region will need a dynamic central city for its future, while the city will also need a healthy sustainable region for its long-term viability.

Central to the identity of a twenty-first century Metropolitan Philadelphia, Conn argues, is the deep and complicated interplay of past and present. Looking at the region through the wide lens of its culture and history, Metropolitan Philadelphia moves seamlessly between past and present. Displaying a specialist's knowledge of the area as well as a deep personal connection to his subject, Conn examines the shifting meaning of the region's history, the utopian impulse behind its founding, the role of the region in creating the American middle class, the regional watershed, and the way art and cultural institutions have given shape to a resident identity.

Impressionistic and beautifully written, Metropolitan Philadelphia will be of great interest to urbanists and at the same time accessible to the wider public intrigued in the rich history and cultural dynamics of this fascinating region. What emerges from the book is a wide-ranging understanding of what it means to say, I'm from Philadelphia.

Genres: History, Urban Planning

288 pages, Paperback

First published May 31, 2006

Reviews

[DW Rowlands · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting, but not especially impressive-seeming, history of Philadelphia. Parts of it are definitely potentially useful for my work on the history of US metro areas, but the book overall felt underwhelming.

[Gretchen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a rigorous, thesis-driven academic study of the city, but an elegantly crafted, enjoyable insider's introduction to various components of its past and present, trying to get at what makes Philadelphia distinct in feel from any other major American city. I picked up a good degree of basic knowledge about various city institutions, infrastructure projects, sociology, and historical moments. It should be well-pitched for my students as an introductory piece.

[Moira · Rating 4 out of 5]

Decent book about different trends in Philadelphia's past that have continued to the present day. Written by a West Philly progressive, had some interesting things to say about the development of the middle class in Philly. Also I liked his description of a weird liberal conservative split represented by independence hall and valley forge park.

[Nicholas Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short on details but long on insight, and probably gives a better "sense of place" than a more comprehensive history ever could. Makes a great argument for viewing the entire Delaware Valley region as a whole.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

A look at Philadelphia and environs from a modern-day Quaker.