Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898

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Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898
First edition cover
Author
Audio read by
ISBN
978-0-19-511634-2

Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898 is a non-fiction book by historians

New York City history for the following 20 years.[1] Initial plans were to have the second volume's timeline go through World War II, but due to the amount of material, an upcoming third volume should cover the period from 1920 until 1945.[2]

Reception

In his review for The Atlantic, Timothy J. Gilfoyle called the book "the most comprehensive examination to date of the city's history prior to 1900," saying that "Gotham may rank in importance with the multi-volume works on Thomas Jefferson by Dumas Malone and on the Civil War by Allan Nevins,"[3] while Clyde Haberman in The New York Times wrote that "Burrows and Wallace offer a large-canvas portrait of a city they clearly love. . . . [I]t marches relentlessly across the nearly three centuries from the Dutch landing to the emergence of the unified boroughs. The countless topics include, to list but a few, New York's wars with the Indians and its pro-Crown leanings, its financial support for the slave trade and its bloody draft riots during the Civil War, the commercial imperatives and the waves of immigration that constantly redefined it."[4] Publishers Weekly called the work "definitive."[5]

Journal reviews

Naming

"Gotham" as a

term for New York City was coined by Washington Irving in an 1807 November issue of his literary magazine, Salmagundi, based on the legends of the English village of Gotham, whose inhabitants are known for their folly.[6]

References

  1. ^ "Reading "Greater Gotham" and Reviewing New York's Historic Monuments". The New Yorker. October 15, 2017.
  2. ^ "Mike Wallace - Charlie Rose".
  3. ^ Gilfoyle, Timothy J. (February 1999). "America's Heart". The Atlantic Monthly. Vol. 283, no. 2. pp. 95–98. Retrieved January 3, 2018.
  4. ^ Haberman, Clyde (December 13, 1998). "Goats' Town". The New York Times. Retrieved January 3, 2018.
  5. ^ "Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898". Publishers Weekly. November 2, 1998. Retrieved January 3, 2018.
  6. .
Preceded by
Summer for the Gods
Pulitzer Prize for History
1999
Succeeded by
Freedom From Fear