Arizona republican., 1899-06-09
GROWTH OF NORTHWEST
?, cuIiarlfy of American Towns in
 Their Growth in Residences.


 tendency of growth in residences in
 cities is toward the north and north
 west Fifty years ago Capitol hill
 was the social center of Washington.
 Within a quarter of mile of congress
 resided many of its most influential members, as we'll as the diplomatic
 corps and the extremely fashionable
 set. One by one the families began settling elsewhere. Every visitor to the capital city knciws that the eastern
 and northeastern parts are high, well
 drained and beautifully situated fer
 residence purposes. Yet the move
 m.ent was west and northwest and has
 continued to this day, until the in itials N. w. attached to the card of
 citizen means he is living in the fash ionable quarter True, a few of the
 older families still cling to the hill,
 but they are but a handful compared with these who lived there even twen-
 ty years ago. Possibly the White
 House being in the western part of the
 city may have drawn the smart set''
 westward. But the movement did not
 stop in the vicinity of the White
 House. It has kept on and on, the so-
 cial center being fully a half mile to
 the northwest of the presidents home.
 Tn the early part of the century
 FeII'S Point, Baltimore was the home
 of the wealthiest families, many cf
 whose heads were ship owners living within stones throw of the wharves
 where their vessels brought cargoes
 from all parts of the world As the
 city increased in size the residence
 center changed in a westward and
 northern direction, finally settling in
 the neighborhood of Mount Vernon place. From there it gradually spread out, taking a west and northwest di-
 rection, until about ten years ago,
 when it shifted tCi the north and has
 been steadily growing in this direc-
 tioEJ since. The country to the cast and northeast of the city forms a nat ural park in the beauty of it's scenery, and is admirably adapted for dwelling
 purposes, yet it has been neglected, and the movement of the higher grade of population has been confined prin-
 cipally to the west of a line drawn
 through the center of the city, Sub- stantial houses built by the pioneers now contain the families of laiboring men, and the foreign part of the pep
 ulation is in the south and east. parts.
 The growing of Philadelphia in northward direction may have been favored by nature, as the country along the Schuylkill is perhaps the best adapted for suburban towns To the southwest of the city, however, caT he found town sites and dwelling sites as attractive as directly west, Tray elers entering the city, however, note the long stretch of suburbs, having from few hundred to 10000 residents each. branching out from the ci1y proper in a westerly direction. The growth toward this point of the com pass has been fully five times as great as tc' the southwest Along one rail- road line alone a series of thirty towns have been built up within a distance Of as many miles from Fairmount park, living so closely together that in many cases four or five really form one community
 A half dozen other large cities can sea cited where the people seem to pre- fer the west and northwest parts as the piaces increase in population, al- though nature has favored the south and east as well. Atlanta, Ga, is an- other sample of this development. For the last twenty years Buffalo has grown steadily westward and north ward, spreading out along the Niagara river toward Niagara Falls and leay- ing the south and east parts to be set tied by the masses and to be given up ] largely to manufacturing. The city i of Cleveland is another example. while i Chicago of late years has b cen also | developing in the same way. Of i course the growth of New York city | Is affected largely by it's water bound | aries and the same applies to Brooklyn | and Jersey City. The development of | Manhattan island must extend north ward But although the part of liar lem toward the East river is as favor able for the construction of the finer residences and apartment houses as that adjacent to the North river, it is a well known fact that the social line is drawn north and south very close to Central park and that far more monev IS being spent in buildings for resi- dent1al purposes in the northwestern than ill the eastern part.
 some Of the cities on the Atlantic coast have been forced to grow north and west because of the water front cr the east and south, but many other places have had equally attractive sur 1oundingS On all sides, but have de- geIoped in the north and west direc- Ions. One reason for this drifting of population may be due to imitation, "h1ch Is one cf the characteristics of Amer1can peop-e- The many thou 'ands who have moved west from Ne,y and the middle states may ; ave followed the custom of their an . 'estcrs in picking out the northwest : amply from custom, as they have ' the eastern part of the coun- ny in other ways. There is also q [ possibility that in choosing places for wing Americans have, unccnsciously 'erhaps. endeaVored to follow the ex- tmple of London. The West End is amous throughout the world as the asEionable quarter cf the British me rCOoli5, and undoubtedly the same erm which is used to designate fash onable centers in American cities has cen borrowed from across the water. New Ycfk Sun.