ABSTRACT
The history of American post-war development is most characterized by the country’s transformation from urban to suburban settlement patterns, a process of expansion that has continued unabated into the present. The resulting Modern Cities comprise enormous, sprawling, low-density developments reaching far beyond the historical limits of the country’s major urban centers. This Modern City has grown with staggering speed, and now threatens our environment at large. Roughly 50 years into its evolution, the contemporary metropolis consumes nearly 400,000 acres of farmland in the USA each year.1 The resulting traffic congestion, the loss of arable lands, increased pollution, and the neutralising of distinctive regional communities threatens our health, our social well-being and our economy. As the American Metropolis approaches this critical juncture, an analysis of its origins may prove useful when considering the future of urban growth.
