Warehouses and Warehouse Districts in Mid-American Cities

Abstract

In the late nineteenth century, the construction of warehouse districts became an important part of the building process in the North American city. These warehouse districts were the centres of activity for the wholesalers who were the key agents for the expansion of mercantile capitalism. The warehouses themselves were often structures of unusual architectural distinction. With the railroad station, the warehouse was ordinarily the true civic monument of the North American city. This article studies the process by which the wholesale district was formed.

Résumé

À la fin du XIX^e siècle, la construction de quartiers réservés aux entrepôts devient un élément important de la croissance des villes en Amérique du Nord. Ce type de quartier constitue le centre d’activité des grossistes, principaux agents de l’expansion du commerce. Souvent, les entrepôts mêmes sont remarquables du point de vue architectural. De fait, l’entrepôt reste d’ordinaire, avec la gare de chemin de fer, le véritable monument de la ville nord-américaine. Le présent article examine la façon dont s’est formé le quartier du commerce de gros.