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Book Review
| Building San Francisco's Parks, 1850–1930. By Terence Young. Balti-more: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2004. xvi + 260 pp. Illustrations, maps, notes, index. $45.00
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| The study of human-nature relationships has a long-standing tradition in the field of geography. In Building San Francisco's Parks, 1850–1930, geographer Terence Young explores this relationship as embodied in the development of the American urban parks movement, and specifically the parks in San Francisco, California. One of the important contributions of the book is to show that the way in which society interprets "nature" is partly reflected in debates about the design and purpose of urban parks. This book presents a well-written and highly readable analysis of the environmental history of urban parks and the complex and dynamic social and moral forces that created them (p. xii). |
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The book has two sections. The first section provides an overview of the theoretical and historical issues underlying the American urban park movement between 1850–1930. The movement developed in two phases: the romantic (1850–1870) and rationalistic (1870–1930). |
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Both phases of the American park movement shared broader social and moral values: (1) improve public health (parks were the "lungs" of the city, supplying fresh air), (2) aid in social coherence (parks could counter rising class divisions through public interaction), and (3) protect democratic equality (parks could stem the urban disorder of the rapidly expanding industrial city). However, the two phases did differ on the design, use and location of parks. Romantic park advocates, reacting to the pollution and chaos of the industrial city, viewed parks as the antithesis of the city; hence parks should be bucolic landscapes which would promote quiet contemplation. Rationalistic design promoted organized leisure and included areas for athletic fields, gardens, museums, and playgrounds. Sports and activities would improve health and discipline the mind. Romantic supporters favored locating large-scale parks on the "edge" of the city, where space was plentiful. Rationalist advocates preferred the establishment of small parks and public squares located around population-dense neighborhoods to better offer local recreational opportunities. The enduring legacy of both phases is that U.S. cities contain both large-scale, naturalistic parks (such as Central Park) as well as numerous neighborhood parks and playgrounds. |
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The book's second section (chapters 2–6) present a case study of the design and development of San Francisco's many parks, with particular emphasis on Golden Gate Park. Young's exploration here is rich in detail and illustration and links back to the more general themes of the first section. For example, planners were challenged to transform a wind-swept sand dune into a romantically designed Golden Gate Park. This section is noteworthy for highlighting that what we take for granted as natural landscapes are in fact products of conscience design articulated through debate and compromise. |
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For much of the twentieth century, the environment has been the domain of the physical sciences. Young's book is a valuable contribution to the social science context for how, when, where, and why cities around the United States began to develop public parks. This book adds to the growing body of literature that explores "social nature" as he deftly reveals that while a park is a natural object, it is also a theoretically informed work of art and hence a product of society (p. 83). If there is a shortcoming, it is that Young misses the opportunity to more thoroughly explore the irony that it is the city (and its visionaries) that shape new directions in human-nature relations. Explorations of nature-society relationships have sometimes assumed "nature" to be disconnected from the city, and hence defined by wilderness ideals. Young's book proves just the opposite and is well worth a read. |
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Lisa Benton-Short is an urban geographer with a particular interest in environmental issues in the city; she has written about the role of urban national parks and public space in informing environmental values and ideas. |
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