Historic Preservation And the Imagined West - Assignment Example

Historic Preservation and the Imagined West The cities of Denver, Seattle, and Albuquerque have found that recreating the past in a historical manner may suit the needs of the cities in more than one way. They have recreated their historic districts. Those are Pioneer Square in Seattle, Larimer Square in Denver, and Old town in Albuquerque. The book Historic Preservation and the Imagined West by Judy Morley reviews these districts and what their effect may really be on the local public as well as the tourist business that is created. There was much pain in the development of these districts, as well as the gains for the cities themselves. We will review some of the things that had to happen in order to create districts in this manner. Albuquerque is a vibrant city that is one of the fastest growing cities in the Southwest. It is in the high desert with mountains all around. There are many personalities to the city and it has grown in such a way, through planning, that it is easy to move around in and for tourists is very well marked. There are many things to do when visiting and one of those is Old Town. The Hispanic presence in Albuquerque is part of the history, as is the presence of the Pueblo Indian tribes of the Navajo, Apache, and Southern Utes, to name a few (McCullah, 2007, pg 30). Many of these cultural differences have affected the way the city feels when you visit. Old Town is on Central and 4th Streets in what was the heart of the city. The city has grown up around it so that is no longer true; however, As you walk into Old Town you are immediately reminded of an old Spanish village with its wrought iron fences and its covered patios. There are flower gardens everywhere and outside establishments to have a cool drink in the shade. The irony of this is that the Mexican people who established the area was evicted from there homes in order to renovate the area as Old Town. Yes, it draws many thousands of tourists every year and millions of dollars are spent on expensive jewelry and restaurants but the cost was high in human living standards. The poor that used to live there now live in the areas around Old Town. Many of them live in abject poverty and the level of crime there is tremendous. Navajo jewelry, the real stuff, used to be sold off Navajo blankets in the square but now you can only buy Navajo jewelry and rugs in the shops along the veranda. Morley has tried to explain this to us in her book (Morley, 2006). Go to the internet and see Old Town as it exists today. They want you to believe that is the way it has always been in Old Town and of course what you see is what you get. However, underlying all that beauty and fun is the cost of the loss of homes and pieces of a culture as the changes began. The poverty and gangs in Albuquerque is tremendous with Albuquerque having one of the largest ratings for drive by shootings and gang activities in the nation. At what cost has Albuquerque gained the riches of their history. Denver Colorado and Larimer Street are famous on the tourist’s tour. First of all Denver sits in the high desert among some of the most beautiful mountain vistas available anywhere. It is growing and urban sprawl has spread up the sides of those mountains. It still, by tourists, and some of the residents are seen as part of the Wild West and certainly if you ever watch a western on TV you will see why. Larimer Street is the center of old Denver. It sits on 1st street within the city. This part of the city originally housed a dry goods store, the first bank in the west, as bookstore, and the first post office in the west. Today, you would never know it. All the buildings have been renovated and it is full of beautiful shops, restaurants and nightclubs. It is remarkable to note that prior to the renovation it was very much like the Wild West. This is where the homeless and prostitutes hung out. There much crime here. Fights were an everyday thing and often that was because of the liquor that was drunk here on a regular basis. Panhandlers could be seen on every corner and soup kitchens were abundant. Driving all of these people out of the area was difficult. Isn’t it ironic that the people of the Wild West had to move on so we could build up the history of the Wild West? Now we have a perfect representation. However, even advertising on the internet warns not to go there at night by yourself and always have a heads up as to who is around you. Like so many richer areas, they are surrounded by neighborhoods that now house all those people that were moved out the area and they are not far away (Gendzel, 2008). Pioneer Square in Seattle is downtown among cobblestone streets and much history. View the historic buildings from a horse drown cart while you relax and enjoy the smell of flowers. Pioneer Square was very well planned. Before even beginning renovations, Seattle, typical of their city planning style, spent years on how to do this right. The area they chose was nothing like it is now. Pioneer Square now houses the biggest book store in the country, The Tattered Book Cover. There is a map available to get around in it. There are shops and museums and restraints galore. It is now know as one of the very best historic visits in the country. Seattle began their renovation after many of the others. They knew what the result of such venture was. They also knew what needed to go into the renovation to draw the tourist trade needed. They needed to change the culture of the area in such a way that it would change some of the assumptions of visiting a historic area in the city of Seattle. They first set out by evicting the people that lived in the area. They then left the old buildings but renovated and changed their facade. The area had previously held old apartment buildings plus small shops. The money that was spent by Seattle was quite large and the people that were moved from the area were moved to another area of town all together. This prevented the issue that the other two cities have in increased crime rate around the historic district. In conclusion, the historic districts of Denver, Albuquerque and Seattle are beautiful places to visit. There is much to do there and certainly you can shop in the very best shops. In Seattle, you can visit the largest of bookstores. In all three places, there is sadness and misadventure too. In each case the true historic factor had to be moved in order to provide the view of history that we all think we have. The Wild West is a picture in our minds and it is a clean picture. We want to know about the history but we do not want to join it. In the end, many were hurt but the cities have gained a tourist business that would not have come in any other way. Certainly historic districts draw tourist money. References Gendzel, G. (2008) Historic Preservation, A Review: San Jose University McCullah, T. (2007). Indian Pueblo Cultural Center: Albuquerque, Journal of the West Vol. 46 Iss 1, p. 30. Morley, J., (2006). Historic Preservation And the Imagined West: Albuquerque, Denver, And Seattle, University Press of Kansas: Kansas City. Read More