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In discussing the growth of cities in the United States in the nineteenth century, one cannot really

use  the  term  “urban  planning,”  as  it  suggests  modern  concerns  for  spatial  and  service organization which, in most instances, did not exist before the planning revolution called the City Beautiful Movement that began  in the 1890s. While there certainly were urban areas that were “planned” in the comprehensive contemporary sense of the word before that date, most notably Washington,  D.C.,  these  were  the  exception.  Most  “planned”  in  the  nineteenth  century  was limited  to areas much  smaller  than a  city and was  closely associated with developers  trying  to make a profit  from a piece of  land. Even when  these small-scale plans were well designed, the developers made only those improvements that were absolutely necessary to attract the wealthy segment of  the market.  Indeed,  it was  the  absence of  true urban planning  that  allowed other factors to play such an important role in shaping the nineteenth-century American city. 

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Three  forces  particularly  affected  the  configuration  of  urban  and  suburban  areas  in  the nineteenth  century:  economics,  transportation  technology,  and  demographics.  Added  to  these was the characteristic American preference both  for  independent  living, usually associated with having an individual, free-standing home for one’s family, and for rural living. Economics affected urbanization  in  two  ways.  First,  economic  considerations  influenced  location  decisions  for business and  industry, which often preempted choice sites. Second,  industrial growth generated higher  incomes  for  large  segments  of  the  population, which  in  turn  provided more money  for larger  homes  and  commuter  transportation.  Related  to  economics  (since  costs  to  individuals always played a role) were  improvements  in transportation, from the first horse-drawn buses of the  1820s  to  electrified  street  railways  at  the  end  of  the  century.  Each  transport  innovation extended  the distance  that  a person  could  reasonably  travel  as  a  commuter or  shopper, while constant system improvements and increased ridership lessened costs.

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Demographic  patterns  also  affected  urbanization  in  two  ways:  first,  urban  populations  grew steadily throughout the century due to immigration from rural areas, principally by those seeking factory work, and emigration from abroad. Therefore cities expanded as new housing had to be provided. Secondly, at the same time that new residents were surging into cities, many urbanites, particularly  those  of  the  middle  classes,  began  to  leave.  While  a  preference  for  rural  living explained part of this exodus, it was also due to the perception that various urban problems were becoming worse.