The city has played an important role in the growth of the United States

from the earliest times to the present. Despite this importance, the urban-

ization of the nation has been, until recently, neglected by historians.

The Urban Life in America Series attempts to develop this dimension of

the American past. Some books deal with single cities over a significant

period of time; others are comparative, treating two or more cities in differ-

ent regions or perhaps different periods. Still others concentrate on factors

which account for urban growth, such as transportation, immigration, in-

dustrialization, and commercial development.