A City So Grand: The Rise of an American Metropolis, Boston 1850-1900

Long before the frustrations of our modern era, in which the notion of accomplishing great things often appears overwhelming or even impossible, Boston distinguished itself in the last half of the nineteenth century by proving it could tackle and overcome the most arduous of challenges and obstacles with repeated—and often resounding—success, becoming a city with vision, daring, and an almost indomitable will to succeed.

In A City So Grand, Stephen Puleo chronicles this breathtaking period in Boston’s history for the first time, in his trademark page-turning style. Readers experience the abolitionist movement of the 1850s, the thirty-five-year engineering and city-planning feat of the Back Bay project, the Great Fire of 1872 and the subsequent rebuilding of downtown, and the many contributions Boston made to shaping transportation, including the Great Railroad Jubilee of 1851 and the grand opening of America’s first subway. These stories and many more paint an extraordinary portrait of a half-century of progress, leadership, and influence that redefined Boston as a world-class city.