Streetcar Suburbs: The Process of Growth in Boston, 1870-1900

This short book analyzes the growth of Boston from the city core to the distant suburbs. Streetcar lines form the structure of development that results in bands of settlement that vary by income and proximity to the urban core. Warner focuses on Roxbury, Dorchester, and West Roxbury - three towns annexed to Boston during this period - but only mentions Brighton, Charlestown, East Boston, and Hyde Park in passing. Oddly he repeatedly refers to these three places as becoming suburban towns after 1870 when they were already suburban towns prior to that date and were now being woven into the greater metropolis. Warner's insights are interesting but the book feels more like a compilation of data and trends without any human stories that show more could make it interesting. The book also feels dated, especially in Warner's description of Black communities in Boston.

Favorite Passages:

"The inattention of late nineteenth century Bostonians to the fragmentation of their community life was not an accidental oversight, it was a matter of principle, the principle of individualistic capitalism." - p. 160

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Mentions Henry Dearborn's estate in Roxbury. Appendix A A Local Historian's Guide to Social Statistics and Bibliographic notes & notes may be helpful. Limited to Roxbury, West Roxbury, and Dorchester.