From: Simon Gunn <[log in to unmask]>
Call for Papers
Deadline: 2009-12-01
Major Session, European Association of Urban History Conference, Ghent, 1-4
September 2010
THE DECLINE OF THE INDUSTRIAL CITY
Co-organisers:
Richard Harris (Geography, McMaster University, Canada) [log in to unmask]
Simon Gunn (History, Leicester University, U.K.) [log in to unmask]
The rise of the industrial city, that is to say of urban centres dominated
by manufacturing, was a major feature of western Europe and North America in
the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It both expressed and enabled
economic growth. It also propelled the urbanization of society, with diverse
social, political, and cultural consequences. The decline of industrial
cities since the mid-twentieth century has been compensated and
counterbalanced to varying degrees by the growth of office and service
employment. Nonetheless, decline has had major and diverse consequences, not
least for urban infrastructure and the built environment.
Historians have paid a great deal of attention to the rise of the industrial
city but, in contrast to social scientists, have mostly neglected its recent
and ongoing decline. This is understandable because, even in North America,
it is only recently that urban historians have begun to pay serious
attention to the postwar city, which is when industrial decline became most
apparent. In the current period of global economic crisis and restructuring,
it is timely to consider the character and consequences of industrial
decline. The purpose of the proposed major session would be to explore
thematic aspects of this decline within a comparative frame of reference.
The co-organizers invite papers on the economic, social, and cultural
aspects of urban-industrial decline in Europe and North America, primarily
since 1945. We especially welcome papers that are sensitive to
manifestations upon the urban landscape.
If you are interested in contributing to this session, please contact either
of the organizers, Richard Harris and Simon Gunn, at the email address
above. Formal proposals must be submitted through the main conference
website http://www.eauh2010.ugent.be/paperproposals between 1 October and 1
December 2009.
Professor Simon Gunn
Centre for Urban History
University of Leicester
Leicester LE1 7RH
United Kingdom
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