Research Catalog

Title

City lights : illuminating the American night / John A. Jakle.

Author

Jakle, John A.

Publication

Baltimore : Johns Hopkins University Press, c2001.

Supplementary Content

• Contributor biographical information
• Publisher description

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

x, 292 p. : ill.; 24 cm.

Summary

• "Today's cities shine brightly at night, illuminated by millions of street lamps, neon signs, and incandescent and fluorescent bulbs burning in the windows of office blocks, apartment buildings, and homes. Indeed, the modern city is in large part defined by this brilliance. In contrast, cities before the end of the nineteenth century were dominated by shadows and darkness, their oil lamps mostly ineffectual against the night. The introduction of modern lighting technologies in the 1870s - at first natural gas and later electricity - transformed urban life in America and around the world.".
• "This Promethean story and its impact on the shape and pace of life in the American city is recounted by John A. Jakle in City Lights. Jakle reveals how artificial lighting became a dynamic instrument that altered every aspect of the urban landscape and was in turn shaped by the growth of America's automobile culture. He examines the technological and entrepreneurial innovations that made urban illumination possible and then explores the various ways in which artificial lighting was used to enhance - for reasons of commerce, safety, aesthetics, and mobility - such public spaces as streets, festivals, world's fairs, amusement parks, landmarks, and business districts.
• From the corner street lamp to the dazzling display of Broadway's "Great White Way," City Lights offers a lively and informative investigation into the geography of the night."--BOOK JACKET.

Series Statement

Landscapes of the night

Uniform Title

Landscapes of the night.

Subjects

• Municipal lighting > Social aspects > United States
• Municipal lighting > United States

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (p. [261]-283) and index.

Additional Formats (note)

• Also issued online.

Contents

Introduction: City Lights in the American Imagination -- Pt. I. Evolving Lamp Technologies: The Development of Night Lights. 1. Oil and Gas Lighting. 2. Electric Lighting. 3. Maturation of the Lighting Industry. 4. Cutting Costs and Brightening the Night -- Pt. II. Lighting the American City: Application and Change. 5. Lighting City Streets. 6. Light as City Celebration. 7. Lighting the World's Fairs. 8. Night at the Amusement Parks. 9. Landmarks Floodlit in the Night. 10. The Great White Way and Electric Sign Art. 11. Lighting America's Main Streets and Commercial Strips.

Call Number

JQE 14-436

ISBN

• 080186593X
• 9780801865930

LCCN

00011213

OCLC

44934113

Author

Jakle, John A.

Title

City lights : illuminating the American night / John A. Jakle.

Imprint

Baltimore : Johns Hopkins University Press, c2001.

Series

Landscapes of the night

Landscapes of the night.

Bibliography

Includes bibliographical references (p. [261]-283) and index.

Additional Formats

Also issued online.

Connect to:

Contributor biographical information

Table of contents

Publisher description

Other Form:

Online version: Jakle, John A. City lights : illuminating the American night. Baltimore : Johns Hopkins University Press, c2001 (OCoLC)606580428

Research Call Number

JQE 14-436