ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that the assumptions and hypotheses of the Chicago ecologists were amazingly accurate for describing a type of city—organized around streetcar transportation. It discusses the basic theories of the Chicago ecologists about the internal spatial development of cities, sketching the major points, problems, and strengths. The chapter examines the applicability of important ideas and concepts of the classical ecologists to understanding the emergence of modern metropolitan America. Childbearing families needed large homes and lots for their large households, and these could be found disproportionately on the metropolitan outskirts. The importance of the Burgess theory is strongly suggested by comparative research on metropolitan spatial patterns which almost inevitably finds that “old” areas differ from “new.” The most crucial test of value for the Burgess theory is its ability to predict the development of metropolitan America. The changing function of the metropolitan center and the dispersal of activities outward has been a truly dramatic social change.
