City on a Grid: How New York Became New York

Winner of the 2015New York City Book Award

The never-before-told story of the grid that ate Manhattan

You either love it or hate it, but nothing says New York like the street grid of Manhattan. This is its story.

Praise for City on a Grid

The best account to date of the process by which an odd amalgamation of democracy and capitalism got written into New York's physical DNA.--New York Times Book Review

Intriguing...breezy and highly readable.--Wall Street Journal

City on a Grid tells the too little-known tale of how and why Manhattan came to be the waffle-board city we know.--The New Yorker

[An] expert investigation into what made the city special.--Publishers Weekly

A fun, fascinating, and accessible read for those curious enough to delve into the origins of an amazing city.--New York Journal of Books

Koeppel is the very best sort of writer for this sort of history.--Roanoke Times


Author: Gerard Koeppel
Publisher: Da Capo Press
Published: 04/04/2017
Pages: 336
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.70lbs
Size: 9.10h x 5.90w x 0.90d
ISBN13: 9780306825491
ISBN10: 030682549X
BISAC Categories:
- History | United States | State & Local | Middle Atlantic (DC, DE, MD,
- History | United States | 19th Century
- Architecture | Urban & Land Use Planning

About the Author
Gerard Koeppel is the author of Water for Gotham, Bond of Union, and City on a Grid. He has contributed to numerous other books, including the Encyclopedia of New York City, of which he was an associate editor. He was an editor for many years at CBS News. He lives in New York City.