New England Metropolis: Boston and the Industrialization of New England, 1807-1850

At the outset of the nineteenth century, Boston was at its zenith as a maritime city even as New England was in decline.Many struggling farmers abandoned the area for more promising opportunities to the west.Yet by 1850, New England had been transformed into one of the most industrialized regions in the world.Former agricultural villages had become specialized manufacturing towns producing consumer goods for sale, and Boston merchant capitalists had established textile complexes that produced fabrics in huge quantities.Although Boston had been superseded by New York as a trading center, it thrived not only as a financial market but as an exchange hub in which these hinterland manufacturers acquired raw materials, capital, sales services, and transportation.With Boston at its metropolitan center, New England was transformed into an industrial geography that was unique nationally and internationally. New England Metropolis demonstrates that, in contrast to the course of industrialization